The Vent and Rant Thread

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by Catire

Frakking School!

I get a 20 minute class last week on C language and Arrays and from that I´m supposed to be able to write a program that solves sudokus for this week???!!!!!!

I so feel your pain. I have no idea what the heck I'm doing in this accounting class. I emailed the teacher and he says, "Oh, you're not doing as badly as you think you are"... HUH?? In that case, it's pure dumb luck, and I STILL don't know the material, and this is supposed to HELP me??

[Catire]

Originally Posted by phenomshel

I so feel your pain. I have no idea what the heck I'm doing in this accounting class. I emailed the teacher and he says, "Oh, you're not doing as badly as you think you are"... HUH?? In that case, it's pure dumb luck, and I STILL don't know the material, and this is supposed to HELP me??

I had no idea what I was doing in my accounting class either, got an 18 (out of 20) because all the assignments and half the tests were done in groups of 4 or 5.

I can declare an array in C and I can make the program ask me to fill some of the values and check them, but I have no clue on how to write an algorithm to fill/check every other cell. And google is being stupid and not showing me anything I understand

[Sparrow]

Originally Posted by Catire

I can declare an array in C and I can make the program ask me to fill some of the values and check them, but I have no clue on how to write an algorithm to fill/check every other cell. And google is being stupid and not showing me anything I understand

Tough assignment!!

http://magictour.free.fr/suexco.txt discusses a C algorithm, but it's gibberish to me.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Sparrow

Tough assignment!!

http://magictour.free.fr/suexco.txt discusses a C algorithm, but it's gibberish to me.

Not so tough when you can look it up on the internet, eh?

I think the internet is responsible for making almost all school assignments (but especially programming assignments) much harder and more obscure.

I do think it was a tough assignment given that you only learned arrays last week. (but I'm not sure what you had before that).

[Sparrow]

I wondered if possibly the long-term assignment was Sudoku solving, and this assignment might just have been to set up the grids and input the initial values (array stuff) - with solving algorithms coming later.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Sparrow

I wondered if possibly the long-term assignment was Sudoku solving, and this assignment might just have been to set up the grids and input the initial values (array stuff) - with solving algorithms coming later.

Probably. I think a lot of times the assignments are not clear enough and the student (at least I always did) tries to read more into it than is asked.

[Catire]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Not so tough when you can look it up on the internet, eh?

I think the internet is responsible for making almost all school assignments (but especially programming assignments) much harder and more obscure.

I do think it was a tough assignment given that you only learned arrays last week. (but I'm not sure what you had before that).

Basically all I was taught about C is how to use printf and scanf and to include the libraries, then I was given a general overview of what an array is and then I was told to build a program that built a 4x4 grid, asked me for the values of 4 cells and then filled the rest of the cells so that no number repeats in either a column or a row (he didnt ask for the 2x2 boxes just rows and columns.)

Sadly half of my programming teachers are like that, and no ammount of complaining to anyone in the school has solved anything.

I remember a couple of semesters ago when I took a class called Program Language II and the teacher showed up on the first day and wrote on the board that he wanted us to make a "Who wants to be a millionaire" like game for the week after that, and then just left, we werent even told that we had to write it in Visual Basic wich was the language used in that class.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Catire

Basically all I was taught about C is how to use printf and scanf and to include the libraries, then I was given a general overview of what an array is and then I was told to build a program that built a 4x4 grid, asked me for the values of 4 cells and then filled the rest of the cells so that no number repeats in either a column or a row (he didnt ask for the 2x2 boxes just rows and columns.)

Sadly half of my programming teachers are like that, and no ammount of complaining to anyone in the school has solved anything.

I remember a couple of semesters ago when I took a class called Program Language II and the teacher showed up on the first day and wrote on the board that he wanted us to make a "Who wants to be a millionaire" like game for the week after that, and then just left, we werent even told that we had to write it in Visual Basic wich was the language used in that class.

That's horrible! How can they call themselves teachers! ???

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by Catire

Basically all I was taught about C is how to use printf and scanf and to include the libraries, then I was given a general overview of what an array is and then I was told to build a program that built a 4x4 grid, asked me for the values of 4 cells and then filled the rest of the cells so that no number repeats in either a column or a row (he didnt ask for the 2x2 boxes just rows and columns.)

Really? So, just add one to each cell. Can the numbers be any range?

1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8
9 10 11 12
13 14 15 16

None of those repeat.

I assume it isn't that easy what he is asking for.

BOb

[Dylrob]

I was debating whether to post this. But a proper explanation of why my birthday didn't turn out so great seems only fair considering all the sympathy you guys have given me.

I've already mentioned my parents' financial woes a couple times in this thread... though my mother has a form of income now, it still isn't enough. What I haven't said is that my parents have been arguing rather viciously as a result. Finally my step dad couldn't take it anymore. He decided, after 17 years of marriage, he was going to leave my mother and move to Alabama to take some job he was offered online. He'd been planning it for weeks. However originally he was going to stay at least long enough so we could spend some time together on my birthday. Afterall I don't know when or even if I'll see him again. However this changed late last week. My mother claims she had a dream... I don't really understand... but it made her paranoid. She started to push my step dad to leave ASAP. So he did. He just packed up his stuff and left Saturday evening.

The worst part of it though is that when I talked to my mother all she could do was talk endlessly about how he used her... her money... and how he was a bad influence on me growing up. Okay so he did have some serious faults... he drank way too much for one thing. But, and although he may not be my biological father, or have ever officially adopted me, he was there. He was far more of a father to me than that good-for-nothing that left my mother for another woman before I was even born!

The whole thing left me feeling sour all of the next day.

[nomesque]

Originally Posted by Dylrob

The whole thing left me feeling sour all of the next day.

That does sound really difficult to deal with... I'm sorry. Those sort of situations are rough, but sticking a birthday in the mix just makes it nasty. *hugs*

[montsnmags]

Originally Posted by kazbates

The same goes for the incredibly annoying telemarketer calls I get all day long. We have a "Do Not Call" registry here which we are on, but we still get any number of calls each day.
...

We have a national "Do Not Call" register, but it seems that the most effective control we have is that our broadband connection requires a phone number with Telstra, but we only use the broadband VOIP number with our ISP. The latter is not listed anywhere that we haven't given out, and the former is listed in the White Pages. There's no phone attached to the former - if they ring, then it just, to them, rings out.

However, the most effective means I have of dealing with phone telemarketers is to not answer the phone for any number I don't know that isn't known & expected, or friend or family (and often even then I don't answer it ). Family or friends or otherwise that don't display their number... well, they leave a message, or they don't. It's their choice.

Originally Posted by Peverel

My Father had a way to deal with all the ones that were doing windows, and alike, for the house. He just used to ask how they dealt with Grade 1 Listed Building (in the UK that means it is historically listed and cannot be messed with). They always said 'Oh we cann't' and hung up.

My Father used to live in a very average 1980's chalet bungelow..........

Most cold-callers here are physical callers at the front gate, trying to sell electricity or phone contracts. Our enthusiastic dogs generally discourage their eagerness to get a foot inside, and the response that "Our employer pays for all our services" (though only half true) gets rid of them anyway. However, my brother, who is a bit of a shit-stirrer, likes to tell them things like "We get all our electricity from our own private windfarm in the back yard", or "We've got hydroelectric storm gutters" or "I don't use the phone because the government is monitoring my conversations". Apparently those responses are not in the script.

Cheers,
Marc

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Dylrob

I was debating whether to post this. But a proper explanation of why my birthday didn't turn out so great seems only fair considering all the sympathy you guys have given me.
...

The whole thing left me feeling sour all of the next day.

Oh man! That sucks. Thank you for posting. I went through a similar thing though long before you were born when my parents split. It was (and still is) very confusing. I was 15 at the time. I don't think it's ever anything you get over, but just get used to. Hang in there. It will get better. Life has a way of going on.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Dylrob

The whole thing left me feeling sour all of the next day.

wow, dylrob, i'm so sorry ! that sounds like a horrible thing to go through any day, it definitely shouldn't have happened on your birthday. that's it then, dylrob, here is a coupon good for one make-up birthday, on the day of your choice. use it when you're in a good mood sometime, and don't forget the cake.

Originally Posted by montsnmags

Most cold-callers here are physical callers at the front gate, trying to sell electricity or phone contracts. Our enthusiastic dogs generally discourage their eagerness to get a foot inside, and the response that "Our employer pays for all our services" (though only half true) gets rid of them anyway. However, my brother, who is a bit of a shit-stirrer, likes to tell them things like "We get all our electricity from our own private windfarm in the back yard", or "We've got hydroelectric storm gutters" or "I don't use the phone because the government is monitoring my conversations". Apparently those responses are not in the script.

Cheers,
Marc

"we've got hydoelectric storm gutters" brilliant !! i'm going to have those installed here too.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by montsnmags

.However, my brother, who is a bit of a shit-stirrer, likes to tell them things like "We get all our electricity from our own private windfarm in the back yard", or "We've got hydroelectric storm gutters" or "I don't use the phone because the government is monitoring my conversations". Apparently those responses are not in the script.

Cheers,
Marc

Love the hydroelectric gutters! I've gotta get me some of those to go with my solar panels.