Please use email for personal matters only; post all other questions or comments on the course bulletin board, where answers can benefit everyone.
To avoid the chance that your message may be incorrectly tagged as spam, please email or post from your CDF or UTORmail account only (see www.utorid.utoronto.ca for more information about UTORmail).
Avoid plagiarism!
- Never post to the course bulletin board your solution to
an assignment, or even your idea of the solution to an assignment, or even
one small part of a program or proof that is part of your solution to an
assignment, etc.
In particular, questions similar to the ones in the following list should be asked only by direct email to your instructor, not by posting them to the bulletin board.- “… Is this the right idea? …”
(If we ask you a question on an assignment, it's because we want you to figure out how to do it. If you describe what you intend to do on the bulletin board, you've just committed plagiarism with the entire class by giving away your idea for the solution!) - “… Can anyone tell me what's wrong with this code? …”
(Again, if “this code” is part of your solution, such a question constitutes plagiarism.) - “… For this question, are we supposed to do X or Y? …”
(Don't take a chance: maybe you've given away the solution by asking this because the whole point of the question was to get you to think about X and Y and to figure out which one to use…)
- “… Is this the right idea? …”
Get answers faster!
- Before asking a question by email or on the bulletin board,
please check the course webpage CAREFULLY !
I try very hard to keep the webpage updated with the most recent information regarding all aspects of the course (announcements, answers to common questions, etc.) so the answer to your question may already be there. Send or post your question only if you've already checked all relevant sections of the webpage without finding the information you need. (And if your question is about something that you expected to find on the webpage, let me know where you expected to find it so that I can update the webpage.) - If your question is about something in the textbook, or just about course material that is covered in the textbook, why not take a few minutes to check the index at the back of the book and look it up? If you're lucky, you will find your answer much faster than the time it would take to compose a message, send it, and then wait for a reply. Even if you don't find exactly what you're looking for, you will probably find out enough to be able to ask a more precise question.
- If your question is not about the course material but about software or system issues, then please check the documentation first! I have no doubt told you where you can find general information on the software being used: please use those resources. They contain more detailed and accurate answers to more questions than I can provide you with. In particular, I cannot answer questions specific to your computer at home, because I am not necessarily familiar with the operating system you're using—nor do I necessarily have access to the same hardware that you own. Questions about CDF should be directed at the appropriate system administrators.
Be polite!
- Always sign your full name at the end of your message,
so that I know I am answering an actual student in the course. You should also include your student number in email messages sent to me, but do not include your student number if you are posting to the bulletin board (unless you want every other student in the class to find out your number and be able to know your marks and other personal information…) If I cannot tell who you are, I may ask you to send your message again with proper identification before I answer. - Always use a descriptive subject for your email,
and always include the course identifier (like “CSC148”) in your subject. Remember that I usually teach more than one course during each term, and it's not always obvious what course your question is about. Also, subjects like “A question” are NOT descriptive: at least 75% of emails I get are questions! At least, let me know what the question is about (lecture material, assignment, test, etc.). If your message does not have a subject field, or if the subject field does not contain the course identifier or is not precise enough, I am more likely to look at it last, and my usual response time (see below) may not apply. - Use correct English.
You'll get faster, more positive responses to your questions (or for that matter, to your job applications and your official correspondence in general) if they show an appropriate level of professionalism. This obviously includes correct grammar and spelling, but also using an appropriate tone that is not too familiar.
Be patient!
- I normally answer my email or post replies on the bulletin board
within 2–3 business days (i.e., NOT counting weekends).
If you've sent or posted a question and have not received an answer by that time, it's almost certainly because the answer can already be found on the webpage or in the textbook, so check it again! (If I know that I will not be checking my email for more than 5 days in a row, I will set up an automated reply so that you don't wait for nothing.)
Also, please be patient when you send a question: just because I don't answer right away does not mean that I am ignoring you or that I forgot about you! It could be that I haven't checked my email (or the bulletin board) recently, or that I need to look up the information before I answer, or any number of other reasons.
Don't ask at the last minute!
- I reserve the right NOT to answer any question on the day that an
assignment is due,
especially if it's a basic question about the assignment or the course material that the assignment is on! In other words, we usually make an effort to give you the assignment early so you have enough time to do it, so we expect you to at least make the effort to read and understand the assignment (and the relevant course material) before the due date.
As long as you respect these guidelines, I will be happy to answer any questions you may have, about any aspect of the course. (I also welcome any suggestions or criticisms you may have about the course: see my note on feedback.) Don't let these guidelines discourage you from asking questions! They are only meant to help you find the information you need quickly and accurately, and to leave me enough time to answer everyone's questions.
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