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Gerry Schmitz wrote: I think you're allergic to work.
Really?  And how did you come up to that conclusion? I never met you  Did you read that from the tarrot cards or see that in a crystal ball? Maybe you should try another fortune teller lol
modified 3-Jun-21 21:01pm.
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The problem is that CS is a complicated field, which a massive variety of subfields: in terms of languages alone there are dozens that are in common use in the real world, and each of those is used with different aims in mind, with different parts of the frameworks available being used depending on the task.
Just in terms of environments under which an application will run, there are four main contenders: Windows, Web, iPhone, Android: and each of them uses a different framework (or frameworks - there are many different ones in each environment!. Some environments traditionally enforce a specific language: Java for Android, Objective C for Apple, HTML / Javascript plus a backend language for web based.
So there is a huge amount to learn: the course doesn't know what you are going to be good at or interested in so it has to - initially at least - give you an overview of everything so that you know that it exists even if you can't really code in it (and trust me on this, almost nobody leaves a degree course in CS being able to code well in any language, much as their exam results may beg to differ!)
And there's the rub: out in the real world, you have to keep switching about - you can't just focus on one thing for a long period of time, because everyone else is waiting for that bit so their bits can work. And you have to keep on learning, all the time - new ideas, new methods, new frameworks, new languages ... it never ends!
It takes a specific mindset to do this, not that many people have it, and as far as I know it can't be taught - it has to be learned and that's a big difference!
I'd suggest talking to your tutor, and seeing what he can suggest or do to help - if nothing else this will be a problem he has met before and he knows you better than we do.
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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Amen ! 
«One day it will have to be officially admitted that what we have christened reality is an even greater illusion than the world of dreams.» Salvador Dali
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I would take issue with your usage of CS.
CS IMO is the study of computing in the abstract - algorithms, complexity theory, etc. In order to apply CS in the "real world", we use computer languages, operating systems, etc. The difference is analogous to that between physics and electronics.
Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four. If that is granted, all else follows.
-- 6079 Smith W.
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Precisely so. Computer Science is infested with wannabe mathematicians, and Software Engineering is infested with wannabe engineers. 
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Thanks for your reply, sorry I'm late with it. I took a week off just to program some real stuff and see if my programming skills go anywhere. And actually it was a good choice. I learnt a lot and gained confidence in myself. It looks like I'm not that dumb as I thought. I really progressed so maybe I have a chance to work as a programmer if I keep up studying and practicing. At least i hope it will lead to a job someday.
Have a nice day 
modified 3-Jun-21 21:01pm.
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You're welcome!
Good luck.
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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Member 14971499 wrote: If you want to pass the exams the school books and lectures aren't enough. You have to learn from other sources.
I won't comment on your situation, others have done that - but this quote is so true, yet so little understood. Even at school (I'm thinking 'A' levels in UK) it applies. Yet too many youngsters think that if they just do the minimum (turn up at lectures and read through the booklist) they'll pass with flying colours. There may be subjects where that's true, but in general doing well involves a lot more than that.
Ironically, it was the route I took - doing the minimum to check the boxes, and I completely wrecked my A-levels (resulting in D, E and O grades instead of the A, B, B I needed for my preferred uni course) and managed to scrape a 2:2 at Uni when with some application I'd have got a good 2:1. Fortunately exam grades are not the be-all and end-all and I rate my career as pretty successful. 
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You are sweating the small stuff. Concentrate on what it takes to pass the exams and ultimately get the degree. When you get your first job, you'll likely find that it has nothing in common with college exercises or exams. Buckle down and get through it.
My story: At 20, I was a struggling CS student...not particularly struggling with the CS classes, but with all the other required 'culture' classes...that and an inflexible computer lab schedule and an inadequate number of terminals when it was open. That combined with a lack of funds at the time brought my first college try to a halt. I got a pretty good factory job and did that for 10 years.
In the late 90's, I'd put back enough money to go live in a shack on my grandparent's farm and attend the local college, this time as a CIS major. I was a much better student the second time graduating at the top of my class and landing a job before graduation. 20 years on an I'm a co-owner of that company.
While I don't regret any of my choices, I would advise you to tough it out and get through it, otherwise, you may find yourself on a factory floor. From experience, it's much nicer (and lucrative) getting paid to use your head than your back...just my 2 cents.
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
"Hope is contagious"
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enjoyed your post
«One day it will have to be officially admitted that what we have christened reality is an even greater illusion than the world of dreams.» Salvador Dali
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Thanks Bill!
Coming from a writer that means a lot! Cheers!
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
"Hope is contagious"
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You're forgetting the third possibility, it could be both. 
The difficult we do right away...
...the impossible takes slightly longer.
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hahaha 
modified 3-Jun-21 21:01pm.
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I think it helps to have Asperger's syndrome. I can focus on my studies in spite of distractions, especially when doing something that requires little thinking. When I was in college, I worked multiple jobs earning money to cover my living and tuition costs, including working in a Xerox room, research assistant, in a candy store assembling the Sunday newspapers, and "private service." (As a member of a private service crew, I and my coworkers would provide service staff for private parties, doing such jobs as walking around with trays of drinks or canapes, setting the table for dinner, serving dinner and cleaning up afterward, tending a small bar and all of the other small jobs required to serve 20 to 50 guests in a private residence.) In addition, I worked as a female graduate student's personal servant and typist in exchange for tutoring in math. All of these jobs were part time and I had to keep a calendar to keep my work hours organized (Thank you DayTimer!! I am still a customer today, even though I am now retired.)
It also takes an organized and efficient way of thinking, rapidly breaking down any problem – academic, personal, just plain living – into small pieces that are quickly solvable. with the wide realm of technologies and the speed of technological innovation in computer science, you need to be able to rapidly learn new skills and paradigms.
Computer science is not for everyone. It is a tough, rapidly changing, demanding discipline that requires constant reading and learning.
See OriginalGriff's reply. There are some good suggestions there.
__________________
Lord, grant me the serenity to accept that there are some things I just can’t keep up with, the determination to keep up with the things I must keep up with, and the wisdom to find a good RSS feed from someone who keeps up with what I’d like to, but just don’t have the damn bandwidth to handle right now.
© 2009, Rex Hammock
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Thanks for your reply
modified 3-Jun-21 21:01pm.
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fyi: I started programming after age 40, and within five years was an about-box credited co-author of a best-selling consumer software program.
First, how do you know you have ADHD ?
Second, your description of your "basic CS course" is so absurd that I think you are making it up.
Other:
Nature speaks the language of mathematics.
In my experience, multi-lingual students have an advantage in learning CS.
Finally, quit making elaborate excuses for your lack of motivation, and/or laziness ... and:
Assess whether you have the aptitude for computer science.
If you have the aptitude, find a course or school where the introductory content is focused on algorithms and programming in one language.
Above all, find something to invest in that challenges you, that motivates you to grow.
Time's a wastin'
«One day it will have to be officially admitted that what we have christened reality is an even greater illusion than the world of dreams.» Salvador Dali
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Quote: Second, your description of your "basic CS course" is so absurd that I think you are making it up.
Yes, I agree, something is fishy about the post.
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CS- degree. My english is bad so my posts can be sometimes easy to misunderstand.
modified 3-Jun-21 21:01pm.
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My first weeks at university were also overwhelming. I simply could not follow courses, in part because I had no good study habits. I even failed my first exam.
This did not stopped me from finishing the 5 year course on time, with fairly decent grades.
It is normal that you feel "dumb", although I doubt that you are. Double down on the effort, pick up good study efforts and evaluate again in a few months. If you come to the conclusion that it is not for you, change. There is no shame in it.
The student loan can be daunting, but again relax. Nobody is going to cut-off your head or put you in prison for failing to pay it. Yes, it is a big deal, but not a life and death kind of thing.
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Thanks for reply, sorry I'm late with it
modified 3-Jun-21 21:01pm.
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Its called studying a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering Math/medicine) aligned subject.
You are meant to read around the subjects, its not like being at school.
Being at University/College is not meant to be easy (or least for STEM subjects) - its meant to stretch you to your limits (and beyond)!
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i think that something is wrong with your country's educational system or maybe with that particular school you're in, if it's a private university.
they are jumping into many technologies at once and too little programming i guess.
technologies will change, but the way of thinking about solving problems doesn't change so fast.
this: Swing, JavaFX, UML... seems to me like chaos.
i believe that learning should be like an exponential curve. at first it's hard to grasp the basics but you need a very strong foundation. when you take the right path then you excel, letter.
for a person that has infinite amount of memory and brain power maybe their approach is good, throwing at you dozen of technologies at a time, but that way of learning has only linear progression. as i said if you have infinite memory...
i don't want to discourage you but i think you should look out for the option to switch the university.
i'm not saying to drop CS, but tho consider a different uni that has at least 30+ years of CS educational experience.
i don't know what you should do about your college money loan/supply. that's another and very upsetting story and maybe your entire generation is in the same shoes as you. maybe everybody is as confused as you with that (i believe) experimental educational system.
apart from mathematics, natural science, hardware and other stuff that you should learn at a CS university, the CS path should be (IMHO): algorithms, imperative language A, data structures, declarative language B, OO language C, functional language D... then go back to data structures in a language E that can do as much of A, B, C and D as possible.
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First, it is no big deal if you take an incomplete in the course, and continue again a second time.
I would still try to stay in the course, doing the work, etc. [After taking the incomplete]
As you said, you might be more kinesthetic and less visual as a learner (Meaning you learn through doing more than imagining/visualizing). It's not good or bad, per se.
A lecture does NOT TEACH a subject, it FRAMES a subject!
A good lecture on Algorithms + Data Structures doesn't teach you ALL of those things. It FRAMES why they are important. That you match the two of them based on your memory, performance and data sizing requirements. If you have 10 Terabytes of information to search through. I would guess an in-memory array that you bubble sort is out of the question!
My recommendation is (and always will be).
1) Read the material BEFORE the lecture. On a blank page, write down EVERY NEW Word/concept (do not look it up, just acknowledge this is new to you)
2) Do any EXAMPLE Problems in the text. Actually do them. Or at the least, rewrite them in their entirety (This familiarizes you to the patterns, and the language/terminoloty)
3) Set it aside for a bit... (Do this the night before the lecture)
4) Watch/Attend the lecture. [But read your list of new Terms Before you do, your brain will fill them in as you watch]
5) After watching the lecture, re-work by yourself ANY examples the lecturer used. Then redo the examples from the book. Review the terms, start checking off the ones you feel comfortable with.
6) Re-Read the book for this lecture.
7) Do the homework. Compare it to the examples. Review the terms, again...
Wash, Rinse, Repeat.
Do this for Math/Science classes. I've seen kids go from literally failing course, who went back to the beginning of the course, and APPLIED this approach end up getting STEM degrees or literally crushing the classes.
You need DECOMPRESSION time, and extra review time. I will guess that your confidence is getting crushed. Then you are flailing on the tests, never quite certain what they are driving at.
For most people, confidence is EITHER going to come from repetition or memory (Just knowing the answer is right). Your #1 job on your test is to manage your confidence.
Before your test, review ALL of those sheets with the terms on them. And this will help. You will instantly realize how far you have come. And at the same time, you will know what you know and know what you don't know. (I tend to calculate risks of TRYING to learn stuff I missed before an exam. I am willing to give up 3-5% of an exam in order to not feel like I was cramming, and risk a 10% failure induced by cramming and the damage to my confidence).
Finally, again, there is NOTHING wrong with having to re-take a class, especially if you are TRULY LEARNING the BASICS and learning them well. As a potential Employer for someone like you, I would LOVE to hear how you struggled, changed your approach, took the class a second time, since you realized how important it was, and then built from there. [To me, that makes you someone willing to question a design, throw away the WRONG design, and work hard to DELIVER the RIGHT design. A VERY Valuable Experience/Skill]
HTH
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Windows 10 does have some built in screen recording capability, and it's probably already installed... Type XBox into search and it should bring up the "XBox Game Bar".
It should allow you to record your lectures, and stop and resume them at your leisure. If that helps any.
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