John Jones - MAT 447

Current Grade

Note, a blank homework grade means that either you have not been assigned that problem yet, or that it was assigned and we have not reached the due date yet. If an accepted version has not been submitted by the due date, then the score will switch to 0. At that point, 10 points is not possible but you should still submit the problem to raise the score.

Announcements

9/3 The math department computer labs are ECA 221 and 225. All linux machines have LaTeX on them, and most likely the windows machines as well. The hours are Monday-Thursday 6pm-10pm and Sunday 2pm-6pm.

8/28 If you look at the "latex in 99 minutes", the main part is Chapter 3 on typesetting formulas.

8/28 Office hours have been changed to make it so that more students can make it to at least some of them. The new office hours are

Tuesdays 11:30-12:30
Wednesdays 12:30-1:30
Fridays 11:00-12:00

8/27 Test dates are now confirmed for the Math Department Testing Center:

Test 1: October 13-14
Test 2: November 24-25

and by appointment.

8/27 A student e-mailed me that he was having problems with the installation instructions for LaTeX on windows. It turns out that the math department instructions are a little old.

I just did an installation on a pc with the following steps:

Download and run the installer for MiKTeX version 2.7.
Run the updater which came with the installer. I did not select any additional parts to be installed.
Download and run the installer for Winedt (beta version 5.6).

I did not do install ghostview or gsview, etc. We shouldn't need it. I did have acrobat already installed. If you don't have that (unlikely), install it from Adobe's web site (it is free).

To make a document, I

made a copy of hw-template.tex (calling it JJ-0.tex)
opened that file (for me, JJ-0.tex) in Winedt
clicked on the button for latex (rightmost bear in the menu bar). This "compiles" the .tex file and produces a JJ-0.dvi.
I could have clicked on the dvi-previewer button. This would have viewed JJ-0.dvi directly.
instead, I clicked on the button for dvi->pdf (just below the latex button). This produced JJ-0.pdf and opened it in acrobat.

I can then make changes to JJ-0.tex, click on the latex button, and then on the dvi->pdf button, and I will see the typesetting changes. Alternatively, I could also have the dvi-previewer open, and then skip the dvi->pdf button until the very end. The dvi-previewer will update automatically every time you click the latex button.

8/27 If you are going the LaTeX route on homework 0, you should not change the body of the file. The file says you should, but that comment is meant for all other homework assignments.

8/27 The annotation process for marking on pdf's was causing problems on macs and pc's (it is why we had trouble seeing that pdf in class). The posted solution for homework 0 has been changed to avoid this problem.

8/22 Igor Fulman is running the Problem Solving Course for the department. This 1-credit course was originally designed to prepare students for the Putnam Exam, but it is not required that the students take the Putnam. Students will learn problem-solving techniques and encounter problems that are not just applications of material learned in class. They will also get practice in presenting solutions in front of a (small) group.

This course meets on Tuesdays from 3:40 to 4:30, in Language and Literature, Room 14. The course number is 194, 294, 394, or 494, depending on whether you are a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior. (This enables you to take the course more than once.) Check the Schedule of Courses for the SLNs.

8/22 The office hour on Friday, 8/29, is cancelled for a doctor's appointment.

Course Information

Test dates are: