MATH 133(FALL 2003): Vectors, Matrices and Geometry
About the WeBWorK Assignments
These assignments will be available on the Web
and will be answered on the Web. We will be using the WeBWorK
system developed by Prof. Arnie Pizer and Prof. Mike Gage
at the University of Rochester. WeBWorK is an internet
based method for delivering homework problems to students over
the internet.
What do I need to use WeBWorK?
The ideal is to have your own computer. Typically it is desirable
to have:
- An internet connection.
- An internet browser, Netscape, Microsoft Internet Explorer,
etc..
- Adobe's Acrobat Reader.
- A printer.
If you do not have a personal computer or you do not have all
the components listed above, please obtain an account at
a computer lab on campus. (If you are a Faculty of Science student,
you can get an infopoint account through the SUS. If you are a
Faculty of Arts student you are entitled to an account in the
Faculty of Arts Computer Lab (FACL), located in the Leacock building,
room 110.)
How do I use WeBWorK?
Here are the basic steps on how to get started.
NOTE: Most pages of WeBWorK also contain directions.
Therefore, if you are ever unsure of what you should do, try reading
the directions and descriptions on the page at which you are looking.
- Find a computer with access to Netscape, Microsoft Internet
Explorer etc.
- Open the browser and go to the WeBWorK page for MATH 133.
- This will get you to the main page of your course. This page
includes necessary information about logging in.
To log in, click on the 'Login' button.
- This will take you to a login page. Enter your login name
and password, and click on the 'Continue' button.
Your login name is your 9 digit McGill student
ID number.
Your initial password is also your 9 digit McGill student
ID number.
- If your login is incorrect, you will be told so, and you
can return to the login page and try again. If you are persistently
unable to log in, contact the administrator using the feedback
button (or directly at wwadmin@math.mcgill.ca).
If your login is correct you will see a page where you can do
following:
- Change your password. Please do
this the first time that you log in. This is important
since your initial password may be available to others. For your own protection you should change your
password at least by the time that Set 1 opens. (Set1
is the first problem set that is for credit). Keep a record of
your password. Once changed, your instructor does not have access
to it.
- Change your e-mail address if necessary. Please
do this the first time that you log in. Your e-mail
address is initially set to your McGill PO-Box account given
to every student on registration. If you do not use this account
on a regular basis, change the e-mail address to the account
that you prefer.This will enable us to send you course related
information electronically.
- Look at and do the problems in a set via your browser.
To do Set 1, for example, click on the line in the box that starts
with 'Set 1...'. Then click on the 'Do problem set' button.
On each line in the box, where all the sets are listed, after
the set number, you can see whether the set is open or closed.
If the set is open, that means that when you solve a problem,
the result will be recorded in the course database. If the set
is closed, you can still solve problems, but your results will
not be recorded.
After the indication of whether the set is open or closed, there
is additional information about the due date (if the set is open),
or whether the answers are available (if the set is closed).
When the answers are available, you have the option of looking
at correct answers when viewing a problem.
- Get a printout of the problem set.
To print out Set 1, for example, first choose the download type
- PostScript or PDF. If you have Adobe's Acrobat Reader (version
3.0 or better), it is probably easiest to use the PDF format
because it is universal. Acrobat Reader is available (free of
charge from Adobe) for virtually every computer platform and
will print to virtually every type of printer. However, PostScript
format may give better results. To print a PostScript file, you
will need a PostScript capable printer (or else a PostScript
interpreter such as GSview for Windows or MacGhostView for the
Macintosh). Most laser printers such as those found in computer
labs are PostScript capable and most inkjet printers are not
PostScript capable. If you have your own computer, but don't
have a printer, you might want to go to a university computer
lab and print out the current homework set there. You only need
to print out a problem set once. From then on, you can enter
the answers over the web on your own computer.
After choosing one of the download types, click on the line
in the box that starts with 'Set 1...'. Then click on the 'Get
hard copy' button. You will get one of two things at this point:
- If the browser you are using has a plug-in that supports
the download type (e.g. the Acrobat Reader Plug-in) you will
see the document in the browser window, You can now print or
save the document to disk. It may be better to use the plug-in's
shortcut bar rather than the browser's menus for this.
- If the browser does not have an appropriate plug-in, you
may get an alert message asking what to do with the file. In
this case, you can save the file to disk (so that you can print
it at a later time) or choose an application to view or print
the file (e.g. Acrobat Reader, GSview or dropPS).
You can use the preferences command of your web browser to
configure your browser to automatically transfer PDF files and/or
postscript files to the appropriate application for viewing and
printing.
- Look at a summary of your WeBWorK homework scores.
This is the second section of the page. If you click on the button
'Get Summary', you will see your current scores for all available
problem sets.
- If you are printing out a problem set or looking at a summary
of your homework scores, you are done. If you are viewing a problem
set via a browser, you will see a page with the problems in the
set you chose. To view and/or answer a problem, click on the
number of the problem and click on the 'Get Problem' button.
Notice that there are three modes of viewing the problem: 'text',
'formatted-text' and 'typeset'. Text output can be hard to read
if a problem contains complicated mathematical formulas, so it
is better to view the problem using 'formatted-text' or 'typeset'
mode. 'Typeset' mode is probably best, but 'formatted-text' mode
is usually acceptable, quick and reliable. One caveat is that
you need to set the encoding properly (e.g. Western(MacRoman)
for Mac Netscape) for best results. Once you choose a problem
and click on the 'Get Problem' button, you will see the text
of the problem with boxes for your answers. If you wish to submit
a solution at this time, enter your answer(s) and click on the
'Submit Answer' button. If you are working on a problem set that
is already closed, you will have the option to see the correct
answer. To see the correct answer, just check the box(es) and
click on the 'Submit Answer' button (you do not have to enter
an answer to see the correct answer). Once you have submitted
an answer, you will be told whether your answer is correct or
not. If not, you may be able to try again. The instructor sets
the maximum number of available tries for each problem. This
may be a finite number of tries or it may be unlimited. After
you've tried a problem, you can either go to the next problem,
the previous problem, or see the list of the problems again.
- If you want to check the status of your problems (e.g. to
double check that your answers have been recorded), use the "Prob.
List" button at the top of the page to see the problem list
page.
- When you are finished, log out using the "Logout"
button at the bottom of the page. This may be very important
if you are working close to the deadline for completing the assignment.
If you close your browser without logging off, it will be at
least half an hour before you will be able to log on again.
Things to know
- If you have a problem logging in, contact the adminstrator
using the feedback button or directly at wwadmin@math.mcgill.ca
- If you have questions on specific homework problems,
click on the 'Feedback' button
on any of the pages of WeBWorK and contact the Help Desk.
- If you are logged on to WeBWorK for longer that 30
minutes without any activity, you will be asked to log in again.
This is a security measure. You can resume your work after you
logged back in. All your results from the last log in will be
saved.
- Each WeBWorK problem set is individualized (each student
has a different version of each problem, for example the numerical
values in the formulas may be slightly different).
- Working close to the submission deadline may be risky, the
server will be heavily used at that time and probably rather
slow. Much better to submit your solutions a day or two in advance
of the deadline.
- There is a problem set on the server designated Set 0. This
set is not for credit. This problem set exists for two reasons.
First it will give you a chance to try out the WeBWorK system
in a situation where the results do not count. Second, the questions
are designed to test your knowledge of functions. If you are
having difficulty with this problem set, you most probably do
not have the required prerequisite for the course and you should
seriously consider dropping the course.
Consult with your advisor on this point.
- On the computer screen the problems, with spaces for the
answers, are displayed in close-to-typeset format as a web fill-in
form. Since WeBWorK uses standard HTML syntax it is possible
to display graphs using standard "GIF" formats. Even
typeset mathematics can be displayed on the screen using GIFs,
although displaying it in this manner is currently rather slow.
- Be aware of the number of available tries for each question
you attempt. You can tell if there is a limit on the number of
tries by scrolling down to the submit answer button. Alongside
this button you will see the number of tries that remain. This
message is not present if the number of tries is unlimited.
- If the number of tries is limited, be sure to answer all parts of a multipart question before
clicking the 'Submit Answer' button. Every time you click this
button counts as an attempt at answering the question even if
all the fields are not filled in. On the other hand, if the number
of tries is unlimited and the question is set up to show partially
correct answers, it may make sense to answer each part of the
question separately and check your answers as you go.
- If you are unsure of how WeBWorK will interpret a complicated
expression that you have entered in the answer box, you can click
'Preview Answer" which will show you how WeBWorK will parse
your answer, and, if you are using typeset mode, it will typeset
your answer. You are then free to either submit the answer as
entered or to go back and make appropriate changes.
- If the number of tries is limited and any of your answers
contains brackets, it is highly recommended to preview your answer
before submitting it. Unmatched parentheses will count as an
error. Even professors make errors like this sometimes!
- When printing assignments, it may be wise to check that all
mathematical signs are correctly rendered. For example, we have
seen the not equals sign rendered as the equals sign on a low
resolution printer. If you are using Acrobat, you can view the
document at very high resolution to check that you have everything
as it should be.
- When viewing an assignment using Acrobat, it is probably
best to select 'Fit Visible' from the resolution menu. This fits
the document margin to margin to your computer window.