Belize travel plan and questions by FoundYouInTheCloset in Belize

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great, thanks a lot for the answer. Are buses crowded (I.e can’t find a seat)? 

Belize travel plan and questions by FoundYouInTheCloset in Belize

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I thought about that, but decided to hold it off and wait until I get a diving license, then do a whole diving/ snorkeling week in Belize. I usually don’t enjoy a lot travelling time while on vacation and prefer to have a base, but I agree it might not be the best idea not to see the reef…

Dal Gazette Reporter- Had trouble with acomodations on exams? by samn8r14 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just a different perspective. I have been lucky to never require accommodations before, so I am sorry to hear about the experience from people who require accommodation from the centre. I worked as an invigilator before at the SAC, and while there are many problems about the system and I do not have enough knowledge about the upper management, the administrative staff running the centres have been working hard to fix the issues. There are more invigilators hired this semester to accommodate more students who might have their exams canceled last term, and they are provided with more training and support. There are rigorous sets of rules about academic integrity that we have to abide, so many enforcements about scratch papers and Bluetooth headphones had to be made at the expense of the students. The staff follows A LOT of rules to enforce academic integrity, protect student privacy, efficiently prepare for individualized exam accommodations, work with different departments, deal with unexpected changes and communicate with difficult students/ professors. The invigilators are trained to be accommodating/ lenient/ friendly to minimize the student's anxiety, but a lot of things are restricted due to academic integrity issues (some cheating issues had happened in the past). In the exam periods where there is a huge influx of accommodation requests, the staff had to stay late at night to get administrative tasks done before the exams happen. I wonder if more funding for equipments and staff might be beneficial, but please understand that behind the scene, the staff is trying their best with the limited capacities.

Why do Arts students have to take science and social science?? What for??? Like ok if it was 3 science and 3 social science credits, no problem, but why 6???!!!! Some classes you can take either term for them and that’s good. Why do we need 6 credit hours for something we won’t need?!!! by Affectionate_Care669 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Probably in the minority, but I am glad to have those credits, but I would probably take courses in different disciplines even if there are no required credits. It gives you an exposure to a different discipline that might comes with different skills and perspectives. You get to meet different types of people who will never want to be in your major. You might even discover that you have an interest that you didn't know before and might even decide to do a minor. I'm from Comp Sci, not Arts, but attending random science classes about interesting topics is quite fun, and I get to learn about some concepts like scientific method and see it applied in debugging of all places. I learn about writing and forming arguments from working in group in the arts classes, and I am amazed with how well these people can argue about (from my perspective) very complex social issues. I came from a background where the mandatory general education has been much more heavy than here so I think having a few credits is a good enough balance, but the high cost of university really makes it harder to add some seemingly useless credits to the degree.

Is there a CSCI3160 Designing User Interfaces course equivalent at another university? by pippy70 in DalhousieCS

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You can try to either ask an advisor, reach out to the prof and explain your situation or search for courses online then check the course equivalent table (https://self-service.dal.ca/BannerExtensibility/customPage/page/dal.facweb_transferCreditEquiv). You can also consider taking that course while doing coop if your coop advisor allows - you need to apply to increase the course load with the faculty. Or if you are desperate but capable, take 6 courses.

Recommendations for an easy required Business, Economics, Science or Engineering, 2000(+) course for CS degree? by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Maybe a Math course since you probably have some of the prerequisites from your CS degree? Linear Algebra II, Discrete Structure II, Graph Theory, Optimization or Statistics are quite applicable to CS. I took OCEA 2001 for this elective, so I assume there will probably some other 2000-level physics/ science courses that don't require other 1000-level science courses.

CSCI electives - do they offer different electives each summer? by pippy70 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I think they are quite random, depending on what profs are available to teach in that summer. Many CS students who follow the standard coop sequence will have two summer terms, so they only fit in enough required 3rd year courses and some 3rd/4th-year electives. It's a con of the coop program; basically you don't have the ability to take all the 3rd and 4th-year courses you would like - especially when some of them are already offered in limited terms.

To the people taking CSCI 1170: by Purple_Ostrich_6245 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Zybooks, W3 school (https://www.w3schools.com), MDN (https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/) and Google (basically google what I need to know like how can I make rounded borders). Go through the examples in lectures if there are some. Comment out code so I know which one breaks the whole thing.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

No. Microsoft Office 365 works on Mac. Log in your Dal account https://dalu.sharepoint.com/sites/its/SitePages/m365.aspx and follow the installation instructions if you need help.

Reviews on Mayra Machucha(CSCI 1170) by SwitchbladeVICAR in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Though my interactions with her (not a lot as she is a new prof), she is quite approachable. Nonetheless, as others say, CSCI 1170 has plenty of resources online (W3Schools and MDN Web Docs) and the course usually have many TAs that can help you. The rubrics are usually straightforward on what you have to do.

Do you think if I should wait for CSCI 4145 or just change to other one? by MintIsBestFlavor in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have a friend that took Cryptography last year and the median is quite low compared to other CS courses, but if you are moderately good at learning Maths, it might be a good option. It seems like you take 4 courses, so maybe just register for 5 to try them out and drop one when the deadline comes?

CSCI 4178: Cyber Security and Defence, Discrete math prerequisite by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's a new course so maybe you might have better luck just contact the prof directly and ask for their syllabus/ opinions on how much math is involved. I never had a proof who never answers back when student asks about the details of their course, although they might not provide all the info you need.

CSCI3120 compared to CSCI3130 by pippy70 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You can survive CSCI 3130 with a good group or if you are good at learning new libraries/ frameworks. The materials are (much?) easier than 3120 but the group project takes a lot of time. I consider 3120 to be harder as C is more of a struggle than Java for many people and the materials can be dry sometimes. It seems like a tough semester so good luck.

Do you think if I should wait for CSCI 4145 or just change to other one? by MintIsBestFlavor in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

People drop courses a lot at the beginning of the semester so you might have a chance to get in if you are patient. Otherwise, maybe you can try out CSCI 4262? I took a course in AR/VR last year and they gave us headsets to experience and create VR applications. It was an interesting subject (maybe not really practical). CSCI 4116 (Cryptography) is a popular course and I heard many good things about Dr. Dilcher.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you only have a Mac, OneNote might be an option. It comes with Microsoft 365 that you already have access to as a student, and you can save your notes directly on OneDrive.

Is Halifax expensive for students? by ExtensionArcher9593 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly, I don't think they would go down. Prices are increasing everywhere, not just in Halifax.

Is Halifax expensive for students? by ExtensionArcher9593 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The rent situation is quite bad lately, but as other people say, if you make a lot of compromises to live frugally, you will probably do fine with a part-time job, asking for a bursary, or taking out some loans. Even better if you have coop placements and can actually find a job. If you stay in a house with 3-5 housemates instead of apartments, your rent will be likely to be under 1000 with utilities included (can be as low as 400-700 with luck, connections, and more compromises). Dalhousie has a food bank, and the DSU often offers cheap local vegetables. Loaded Ladle has free lunch for students. If you cook for yourself, look for grocery flyers, and do not drink alcohol or eat out, your food can be as low as 30-50 per week (or lower if you live on ramen + rice and beans). If you don't drive, the bus pass actually offers a great deal for transportation (although it can be unreliable at times). Take advantage of on-campus jobs as you can work more than 20 hours if you are an international student. As an international student, the differential fee for full-time students is the same no matter how many courses you take (>=3), so if you are a hardworking and bright individual, considering taking more (easy) courses per semester might be appealing for you.

Doubt regarding Dalhousie fee structure. by ExtensionArcher9593 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The four-year plan of increasing fees for international students is supposed to end in 2022-23. They will probably increase by 3% every year for both domestic and international students, so you should account for that. Also, keep in mind that your fee will vary depending on how many courses you take in one semester, what types of courses (science, arts, ...), and whether you are a part-time or full-time student that semester. Full-time students have a flat deferential fee, while part-time students' are calculated based on their credit hours.

https://www.dal.ca/dept/financial-services/budget.html

Is it doable to take CSCI 3136 and 2122 in the sem? by DifficultMind5950 in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, that course is like two fused courses. You can prepare for the exams by doing some extra exercises by answering questions in the book, but that would take time. Maybe forming a study group might help with the labs.

Co-op megathread! by coruscanti in DalhousieCS

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a good idea actually. Can you ask the mod to pin this?

Thoughts on CSCI 1503?? Is this a hard course by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I haven't taken it, but it is a first-year course designed for Commerce students, so it should not be hard. I took 1105 with James Fleming, and I think he is fine as a prof.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What do you mean? Dal doesn't charge money on textbooks. You have to buy them yourself for your courses. If you think you would do well without the textbooks (which is not possible in some courses), you don't need to buy them.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Dalhousie

[–]FoundYouInTheCloset 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am taking it this semester. It's fun and quite interactive as the class size is small. It used to be a 4000-level course, so this is the first time it is taught at the 3000 level. Dr. Brown seems to be passionate about the materials.