Deliverables

General Information

The course requires completion of weekly assignments, some of which are connected into a mini-project and larger project. For these assignments you will work individually or in teams, and will create individual or team deliverables.

The first assignment will be released by start of W02, due at your W03 workshop, and so on. Generally you will have about 1 week to work on each assignment, with some exceptions. There will be no assignment due the week of the midterm.

Checkpoints vs. Reports: Your primary deliverable mark and detailed written feedback is focused on a small number of report-type deliverables, which you will carefully prepare and we will carefully mark. Building up to each of these are multiple checkpoint deliverables. These are primarily there to keep you on schedule, and provide an opportunity to give you timely in-person feedback. They will be quickly marked in-workshop, and you won't get much written feedback; it is up to you to make the most of your TA's verbal feedback, and to quickly follow up if you need clarification.

This does not (sadly) mean that a 1% checkpoint is 1/10th the effort of a 10% report. E.g., in Project Part II, lasting 3 weeks, expect the amount of work per week to be roughly comparable. The report focuses on the final week's work; but if it's not built upon solid prior effort, it will show. You should think of reports as 'spot marking' of the larger project; and reflecting your documentation effort (this is how the real world works: it's the final product that counts).

Date and Time: see the top row of the course dashboard, unless otherwise specified in the assignment. Items identified as "due at start of workshop" are due using the "handin" utility 1 hr before start of your workshop.

Table of Deliverables

Links to assignment details to be provided when the assignment is released (generally 1.5 weeks before its Wednesday due time).

Assignments and Mini-Projects (1st half of term): 17% of total course mark

Standalone Assignments

Mini-Projects [ Steps, Deliverable Descriptions, and Marking Rubrics ] [ template.docx ]

Project (2nd half of term): 28% of total course mark

Note: project elements may change prior to mid-term.

Project Part I [ Steps and Deliverable Descriptions + Rubrics ] [ project topics ]

Project Part II [ Steps and Deliverable Descriptions + Rubrics ]

General Deliverable Format Information

Deliverable Templates:

For all deliverables, begin with the deliverable template provided in the deliverable table above for the assignment (Word doc version). You'll eventually create a pdf to handin unless otherwise instructed.

Unless otherwise specified in individual instructions, use the following specifications for your deliverables. These apply fully to Report type deliverables. Few Checkpoints require a typeset document handed in, but in those cases, follow these guidelines using common sense (e.g. font size, margins, title page, pdf).

Length:

Length (overall, and sections) deliverables are given within each assignment. Length constraints for sections are generally provided in the submission template.

Written:

• Single-spaced, 12 point font
• 1" margins
• Double-sided pages
• Page numbers

Visuals:

• Reasonably sized
• Annotated where necessary
• Clear and understandable

Also include:

• Cover page: which should include your name, student number and the date. For team or pair deliverables, list the full name and student number of each person on your team.
• Deliverable: Clearly separate sections of the deliverable using headings or other delineation so that it is clear to read.
• Appendices: Where applicable, complete as indicated in the assignment. Clearly mark each individual appendices with headers. Unless otherwise specified, appendices will not count towards the page limit. They should be a reasonable number of pages, and if they are deemed to be excessive, marks will be docked.

Generating Images for Deliverables

Many of your assignments encourage or require use of images -- photos and sketches and in some case short videos-- in electronically submitted deliverables.

• Photos: if you need use of a camera to supply photos or short videos as specified or helpful in your deliverable documentation, contact course staff to arrange borrowing a lab camera.
• Other images (sketches, collages, etc): Some items will reproduce better via scan than photograph. For this please use a scanner.

Always take reasonable measures to reduce file sizes to extent possible without excessively impacting readability.

Submission Details

Preparing your submission:

• Filename: Use format <name>_<deliverableName>, where <name> is the last name of the student(s) (or team) handing in the assignment, and <deliverableName> is the name of the assignment you are handing in. Use web-friendly filenames (under 20 characters, no spaces or funny characters
• PDF: All electronic submissions in PDF format.
• Size: Minimize file size to reduce course disk space needs (verify images etc are intact and legible)
• Videos:See the assignment description for video deliverables for detailed hand-in instructions.

To submit and get feedback:

• Test: Ensure that your submission is viewable on a departmental machine.
• Number of submissions: Choose one team member to submit for group deliverables.
• Submitting: Use the handin utility for submission, using the command: handin cs344
• Submission evaluation: Marks will be available online, and re-capped in the workshop following the due date.

Using Handin

We will use the UBC CS department's Handin utility for all course deliverables.

NOTE: A current CS undergraduate ID is required to use Handin, as well as to access the computers in x360, which is an undergrad lab. Any undergraduate CS student should have one already; non-CS or graduate students may need to get one.

Use getacct to get or renew an undergraduate CS account.

Submission using the web interface:

• At this link login with your student ID and list course as "cs344". A list of assignments and imposed due dates will be visible, and you can upload a specific file through the website.

Submission using the command-line interface (detailed instruction):

• Login to an ugrad machine (e.g., remote.ugrad.cs.ubc.ca)
• Create a cs344 directory in your home directory; in this cs344 directory create an <AssignmentX> directory where AssignmentX = whatever is specified in the instructions for that deliverable.
  > cd ~
  > mkdir cs344
  > cd cs344
  > mkdir <AssignmentX>
• Put all of your files for the assignment in the <Assignment X> directory.
  Subdirectories within <AssignmentX> are supported.
  > cp <your files> ~/cs344/<AssignmentX>
• To handin your assignment use the handin command from your home directory:
  > cd ~
  > handin cs344 <AssignmentX>

General Marking Scheme

Most weekly deliverables will be marked according to a simple and fairly consistent scheme, whose intention is to maximize rapid, useful feedback to students while keeping course staff load to manageable levels. There may be some minor assign-specific variations to the general scheme below, but this gives you a general idea of what to expect.

Checkpoint deliverables: your TA will apply a simplified mark scheme in-person and focus on in-person feedback at a design review sesson in a workshop, and will focus on your progress, direction, problems and planning.

Report deliverables: Custom marking rubrics will be supplied in advance. You'll see a balance between content items, and presentation (understandable and professional; requirements followed; completeness, overall quality including but not limited to depth, thoughtfulness, thoroughness, justifications, resourcefulness, creativity, etc).

At all times, any member of the course staff welcomes feedback on this from students -- e.g. in its assistance to you in focusing your work; helpfulness of the feedback you receive; and any other suggesions you might have.

Viewing Your Marks

Marks will be shared with you as formatted mark sheets for each deliverable and for your overall mark at course midpoint and end.

To get your personal 344 mark reports, access this page using the course password provided to you early in the course (contact course staff if you need it); once there, login to the link provided with your undergraduate CS ID. You should see a list of pdfs available for download - one for each mark report that has been released to date.