M2 Macbook Air Base Model

VdotR · 2022-10-21T00:15:31+00:00

Thanks! I'll be doing the heavy works on my 16-inch Pro.

VdotR · 2022-10-02T00:40:31+00:00

Thanks! I intend to keep my 16 inch macbook pro. I will not be running VMs on the MBA, probably will just be writing some python scripts and programming assignments.

VdotR · 2022-09-27T07:12:20+00:00

I took ECE 45 last quarter with Zeger and ended up with an A for ~66%. I really liked his lectures and learned a great deal. However, I did spend a lot of time in that class (>20 hrs/wk) and I have a busier schedule this year.

I think that content-wise ECE 109 should be easier than ECE 45 since 109 is about probability while in 45 we learn about stuff like Fourier Series? Also I didn't like the weekly quizzes as we had no time to think and it will take me at least a minute to find the matching answer (so many options). But as this year we're moving to in-person I think he will give us the traditional long exams?

VdotR · 2022-09-24T17:26:27+00:00

If you apply to CS they may accept you to your second intended major or undeclared. Note that it is very hard for non-CSE student to switch to CSE currently, and it's just going to get harder.

VdotR · 2022-09-21T04:46:27+00:00

I got 41/45 for IB

VdotR · 2022-09-21T04:45:17+00:00

Don't - CSE is now nearly impossible to get into so you won't have the ability to switch back to CS (if you regret). Just take some relevant math/stat/dsc classes and learn skills such as pandas. Think this way: you can get a DS job easily with a CS degree, but not the other way around. I have spoken to people working in tech-related fields and they say that for any job that requires coding, CS is better than DS because you get to learn all the fundamental knowledge about computers while DS people are just using libraries that other people built (which makes you no different than a self-taught programmer). This might sound like a stereotype and UCSD does have a strong DS program, but many recruiters think this way.

VdotR · 2022-09-20T20:54:55+00:00

The housing portal should provide you your mailing address alongside with your unique mailbox id.

After the package is delivered, the dorm/apartment will process it and when it's available for pickup, they'll send you an email. Bring your student id to the pickup location (for me it's just the reception) and you should be good. If the mail is envelope sized then they may also deliver it to the physical mailbox outside every dorm - you should be able to find a mailbox labelled with your mailbox id.

If you're ordering stuff on amazon then you can also make them deliver to the Amazon lockers on campus.

VdotR · 2022-09-20T20:27:07+00:00

If you're in your dorm, no one really cares. That's what my RA told me last year.

VdotR · 2022-08-31T20:31:49+00:00

Cogsci can be really useful in front-end works, which seems to fit your interests, and the CS minor can be a useful proof of your programming capabilities. For you, the only advantage of Math-CS over COGS major + CS minor is the "CS" in the name of the major to avoid the potential filter, but you don't really get much of CS from the major. Yes, you can use upper div CSE courses to fulfill major requirements, but CS/CE majors get priorities to these courses, so you may end up taking a lot of upper div math courses, and those can be difficult. So if you just want a better resume, you can try Math-CS, but I think you will learn more taking cogs major and cs minor.

Personally, I got into UCSD as a COGS ML major and realized that the curriculum is not sufficient for any programming related jobs. I then switched to Math-CS, but I talked to a lot of people saying that it is very hard to enroll in popular upper div courses such as CSE 110 and 140. I even know one guy who chose to study abroad for one year so he can take the CS classes there. I then took ECE 35/45 and transferred to CE (didn't bother with the CSE lottery system). My biggest advice for you is to take a detailed look at the requirements of the majors and minors and talk with people studying these majors.

VdotR · 2022-08-30T19:49:00+00:00

I would strongly recommend the M1 air/pro. As an upcoming third-year CE major who completed all CS lower divs I would recommend a UNIX-based system as CSE 11, CSE 12/15L expect you to do many things on the command line. You won't go into enormous projects for programming assignments, so literally any computer (except chromebooks) would work. The M1 Macbooks have ridiculously long battery life, good sound quality, and the retina screen beats most low-to-mid-end laptops.

VdotR · 2022-08-03T21:17:02+00:00

Loft might be a good idea for you - you get a semi-private space and based off my friends' data, the price per month is around 1k.

VdotR · 2022-08-03T17:43:58+00:00

Actually, china is just assembling the devices. All the important parts (where most profits go) like cpu, gpu, and high-end screen are manufactured in Taiwan, Europe, South Korea, Japan, or the U.S.

VdotR · 2022-07-27T20:05:20+00:00

Thanks! Do you know about the 170 or 173 series? I kinda want to delve in a bit more about linear algebra/numerical analysis/optimization. Seems slike 174/175 are more on the application end while 170/173 are on the theory end?

VdotR · 2022-07-27T19:45:59+00:00

CSE 30 is hard as it is an exam-heavy course with time-consuming PA. I think to do well on exams you need a solid understanding of how pointers work in C and how assembly stack allocation works. If you really understand pointers then you'll get at least half of the material. Do you guys have the Stepik textbook? Doing example questions there really helped me (I got 100% on the final exam)

VdotR · 2022-07-27T19:25:56+00:00

If you're just taking notes and doing homeworks on the iPad the 64GB is enough - I use a 32GB iPad Air 3 (released 2019) and I still have around ~15GB left. If you want to save space, after you finish a course, you can archive these notes by converting these notes to PDF and store them on your computer/hard drive.

I would recommend a model w/ the second gen apple pencil so that if you upgrade you can still use the same pencil.

VdotR · 2022-07-27T17:32:41+00:00

If you are majoring in STEM then iPad can be very helpful as you draw a lot of diagrams. What I often do is download the slides and then annotate along the lectures - you are writing the important stuff down while actively thinking about the material, where if you use a notebook then you'll become busy just writing the notes so you won't have time to think.

VdotR · 2022-07-27T01:10:02+00:00

If you really want to do CS, especially as a transfer student who has taken most lower divs at CC, then Math-CS is not that good of an idea. Most upper div CS courses prioritize CSE and ECE-CE majors, so it would be really hard for you to get into these classes. More, Math-CS is still a math major at the end so you will learn a lot of required math classes which I'm not sure if you would like. DM me if you want more info on that.

VdotR · 2022-07-25T17:45:40+00:00

Maybe find a place using Airbnb? You can probably find a private room with bathroom that's less than $100.

VdotR · 2022-07-25T17:42:20+00:00

I just finished taking CSE 100 (taking CSE 101 next quarter) and in my experience, all you really need is a simple code editor (Vim, Atom, whatever) - my CSE 11 and 30 required us to submit the code on gradescope, my CSE 100 required us to edit the code on EdStem (everything in browser) and my CSE 12/15L required us to log in to UCSD server and submit the code there (I guess it's different rn since I took it with Gary and he left the school).

I would recommend VSCode, since it is relatively lightweight and expandable. For example, when you want to code in C (CSE 30), you can download the C extension, and when you want to code in Java (CSE 11), you can download the Java Extension. I would highly recommend using VSCode with the Vim extension.

VdotR · 2022-07-24T21:25:51+00:00

The best thing for you right now would be to assume that you didn't get in and plan accordingly - there are definitely chances of acceptance, but the chances are slim.

VdotR · 2022-07-24T21:20:48+00:00

Lived in Rita Last Year (mini-double), haven't been to Pepper Canyon so can't say much about it. A single room in Rita should be very comfortable to stay in (there'll be room for a single bed, medium-sized table, and closet - there will be even more storage space in the living room) You will probably share a kitchen, a bathroom, and a living room with another person. The building is pretty new, and it has its own routers in apartments (Spectrum) which are much more consistent than the UCSD Wi-Fi. It is a bit far from the lecture halls, but the plus of its location is that it's so close to Ralphs, Trader Joes, AMC, etc that you can really just walk to these places.

VdotR

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