CSCI 200 - Fall 2024
Foundational Programming Concepts & Design

How To Get Help

There are three recommended ways to efficiently receive the assistance you need. Here they are, in order of efficiency:

  1. In-person help
  2. Ed Discussion
  3. Email

First, before seeking help, be thorough


If you are facing build errors and cannot get your program to build & run, you need to spend some time deciphering the error message(s) you are receiving. This is a critical programming skill. Here are some tips:


Come to office hours


Take advantage of the instructor's office hours and tutoring when you can.


Look for your problem on Ed Discussion


Chances are likely that a fellow student has encountered the same problem that you are facing. Take a look at the messages posted on Ed Discussion to see if someone else has contributed a solution.


Post your problem on Ed Discussion


If you don't see an existing message on Ed Discussion that is relevant to your problem, then you should create a new post. Do not post your entire program on Ed Discussion, unless instructed otherwise. You should only post portions of code that you are suspicious about.

Here is the policy for help on assignments, labs, and projects.


Email your Instructor


Although it takes only a minute to send an email, it may take a long time to receive a response. You are NOT likely to get an immediate response from your instructor, so this shouldn't be your first attack against any error message. Instructors will answer questions and provide assistance to students via email. However, there are limits to the assistance that is easily provided via email.

You may have a hard time formulating a plan or algorithm for an assignment. Or, you may have formulated a plan but are unsure if it will be sufficient. In these cases your instructor can certainly provide guidance via email efficiently. However, starting your homework early and asking questions early is critical to solving these sorts of creative problems.