Math 3 --- Fortran

Syllabus

Instructor: David Arnold

Office Hours

A copy of my office hours can be found here. Note: These are "official" office hours. However, I will make myself available whenever I can. Please do not be afraid to ask for help at any time as I am always eager to help.

Office Location and Phone

Email

My email address is: david-arnold@redwoods.edu

WebBoard

There is a marvelous piece of software on our webserver that enables you to interact with your instructor and classmates online. The software is called WebBoard. On my home page, you will find an icon that looks like this:

WebBoard
Clicking on this icon will take you to the login screen for the WebBoard software. Select New User. You will be presented with with a form containing a number of fields. Fill in the appropriate information. Some fields, like a return email address, are mandatory (Note: Free email addresses are available from Yahoo and Hotmail). Other fields are optional. Write down your login name and password and keep it in a safe place. Once you've completed the information, click the "Create" button to build your profile.

Return to my home page, click the WebBoard icon, enter your new login name and password, then click the "Enter" button to log onto the system.

Once inside the WebBoard system, you'll want to complete some introductory tasks.

  1. Click the "More" button, then select the link "Edit your profile." Take some time to fill in information you wish to share.
  2. If you wish, change your password at this point. Remember to write down your login name and password. Save them in a safe place.
  3. When you are finished making changes to your User Profile, click the "Save" button at the bottom of the page to save your changes.
  4. Take some time to explore some of the features of the WebBoard. Note that there is a "Help" button with information on the inner workings of the WebBoard.
  5. Select your class list and post a "Hello" message.
  6. Finally, there is one very important thing you have to do when a session is finished. You have to log off. There is a "Log Off" button provided for logging off. If you don't do this, and simply close up your browser, your connection stays open on the server. You won't notice any difference at your end, but if our server becomes overcrowded with open connections of people who failed to log off properly, server performance could degrade, or worse yet, crash the server. So, always log off at the end of a session. If you log off properly, you will be returned to the division web page in your browser.
Whenever you have a question, either during the day or late at night, post it to the WebBoard. Hopefully, someone will be watching and provide a solution to your question.

Always be polite with your questions and responses. The WebBoard is a privilege, not a right. User that abuse this privilege, making jokes or being rude, will be denied further access to the WebBoard.

Texts

There are no texts for this course, nor are there any software purchases you need to make. The compiler is free and available on demand. Simply bring a CD to my office and I will burn all of the software required for this course on your CD. You can also download the software online at ftp://ftp.swcp.com/pub/walt/F. If you use the windows operating system, then you will want to download ftp://ftp.swcp.com/pub/walt/F/f_win_mingw_020224.zip. If you use the Linux operating system, then you will want to download ftp://ftp.swcp.com/pub/walt/F/f_linux_020224.tar.gz.

I have ordered copies of "The Programmer's Guide to F" and they are available at the bookstore. This text is not required for the course. However, some might find it a good reference and worth the purchase. You can also order the text online with an accompanying CD that contains the F compiler. Information is available at http://www.fortran.com/imagine1/books.html.

Here are two online Fortran 77 references that you will find helpful. They are free, you can download them and read them online. If you wish to print these, please do so at home. Don't use the school's printers to print them out as they are pretty extensive. If you like what you see, you might take the pdf files to Kinko's and ask them to bind them for you in a nice booklet.

This Fortran 90 Tutorial is slowly shaping into a pretty good source. Give it a serious look. Numerical Recipes in Fortran is available online. You might find the Fortran links on the following page helpful. The Fortran 77 Standard There are also all kinds of Fortran 77 tutorials available on the net. I've posted some that I've found to the WebBoard. A simple search at www.google.com should reveal many others.

Graphing Calculators

We will have no need of graphing calculators. All work will be done at the computer.

Homework, Examinations, and Projects

Homework will be assigned each class period. Due dates will be given when the homework is assigned. Here is my current thinking, which may be subject to change as we proceed.