Manual for using the on-line software.

Contents

This is the manual for using the on-line software used in the Computer labs or from home.

First, An on-line tutorial for using MATLAB in Calculus and other math classes is located at

http://wiener.math.csi.cuny.edu/Matlab/tutorial/.

The starting point for using the MATLAB on line software is the link at

http://www.math.csi.cuny.edu/matlab/.

1  Working on a Project

1.1  Finding your project or getting on the system

There are many ways to find your project. You can click the appropriate link from the home page, or the ``new project'' icon on the navigation bar.

Currently the home page is at http://www.math.csi.cuny.edu/matlab/.

You will likely need to logon to the system. You should have an ID and a password. If you forgot these, or they haven't been assigned you can work as a guest or ask your professor for help. Common mistakes logging in are not using the proper ID (it may be your student number with dashes and not your name) or forgetting that the password is case sensitive.

Once this is done, you are presented with a class syllabus. (You may have to select a section or enter some information, especially if you are a guest.) From the class syllabus, you can see your status in the class quite quickly. The syllabus shows the topics in order. An icon will indicate if there is a project, a quiz or a lecture for the topic. A quiz is a quick self-graded quiz that doesn't count towards a graded. A lecture provides external reading material. A project is like homework. It is graded and needs to be done.

A new project or one that has been saved but not submitted has a link that you can use to work on the project. If the project has been graded your grade will appear with a link to check your grade. If the project has been submitted, but not graded you can view the project only - you can't make changes.

1.2  Doing a project

After you have selected your project you will find a form with the project on it. To use this form you need to understand a few basic things about using forms on the internet. But first this is what the buttons mean:

1. Save and Submit This button will attempt to save your project and then submit it for grading. It will check to make sure all your problems are completed. If not, it will ask if you want to Submit Already.
2. Save: This button will save your answers. If you are a registered user, it will also save your graphs. The save button does not submit your project for grading. It only saves it for later. If you are finished with a project, remember to close down your browser. This ensures that your password is forgotten by the browser.
3. SUBMIT ALREADY: If you submitted your project, but were missing some answers, you can click this to override the submit button. This is only to be used to submit a project if it is missing answers. Typically, you would want to answer all the questions and click on Save and Submit.
4. Clear: This button will clear all the answers from your project. Use this to start anew. Be careful! you can not recover your previous answers once this is used.

The basic game is to answer the questions and then click the appropriate Save or Submit button. Note, your work is not saved unless you click on a Save or Submit button.

The input of answers should be fairly intuitive. On answers that expect a number, you may be reminded of this if you try to enter an answer with units. There are several different types of questions:

multiple choice

There are two types of multiple choice questions. One where you select exactly one answer, and one where you select some subset of all the possible answers. They should look slightly different on your screen

numeric answers

Numeric answers can be either a single number or a list of numbers. To make the automatic grading possible, a number is just that - no units are allowed. A message may remind you if you forgot. Also, numbers should not contain commas for clarity. That is, 100,000 should be entered as 100000. When you enter a list of numbers, you can separate them with commas or white space. Just be consistent. Often you can simple cut-and-paste your answer from the MATLAB output.

text answers

Some questions expect a text answer. These can be long or short in type. Be as clear as can be with your answers.

file uploads

Finally, some questions are answered with a file. More on this next, but in short, to answer these questions you need to upload a file that contains either an image file like a graph or a text file like a computer program.

1.3  Printing and Uploading a graph

1.3.1  Attaching or uploading a graph using Netscape

The idea is very similar to what you would do to turn in a print out of your graph which would be print the graph and then turn it in.

Here is the procedure to upload or attach a graph:

Uploading a image file

These are graphs that you have generated.

1. You need to export your graph into a file format that the web server can understand. This is done in one of two ways:
   

   With a mouse

   In the graph window under the file menu is the line export (not 'save' or 'save as'). Select this. You will then need to do 3 things:

   1. Select the directory (Save in) where the file will go. You will need to know this directory in order to attach the graph to the project.
   2. Create a file name. It is a good practice to make one that relates to the problem.
   3. Select the file type. Two types are recommended: JPEG, or EPS Level 2 Color. The JPEG format is a binary format that you may be familiar with. You can view these files with the browser. The other is PostScript. This is a text format. It is not possible to view these images without extra software. Try the JPEG first. If that fails to work, then try PostScript.

   From the command line

   You can do all this with one line on the command line. If the image you want is currently in the graph window, then from the command line type

   >> print -depsc2 a:\filename
   

   This creates a PostScript file called filename.eps on your a:\ drive. If you wish to save to the c:\ drive you would use something like

   >> print -depsc2 c:\MATLABR11\work\filename
   

2. You need to attach this file to the project. This is done by clicking on the browse button on the project. This opens a dialog box that allows you to find the file you just created. Find the file and then click to select it. The box next to the browse button should now show the filename. (Alternately, you could have simply typed this.)
3. When you save or submit your project the attached file(s) will be sent along with your other answers. A message will indicate if there were errors. A common error is forgetting to export the image file so that it has one of the correct file types.
4. There is no need to upload files more than once unless you wish to change what you have already uploaded. Once your graph has been saved, the next time you work on this project, you can see the graph by following a link that appears. You should 'dismiss' this window when you are done.

Uploading text files

These are even easier. You do not need to export the file first. Simply attach your file to the project with the 'Browse' button.

1.4  Some tips

Here are some tips to keep in mind as you work on you projects.

1. You need to use both MATLAB and a web browser (typically Netscape) to do these projects. You can use the ALT-TAB shortcut to switch between applications, or you can split the two windows so that they both appear on the screen. You should find it better to work with the window split top to bottom instead of side by side.
2. You can easily cut-n-paste answers from MATLAB into Netscape.
3. Our computers are rather slow. Please have some patience.
4. If you are having difficulties using the software, find help. The software is new and bugs need to be worked out.
5. Graphs and images display poorly in the browser. To see them better, use the right mouse button and find the ``view this image'' command. This will view the image separately. Use the back button on your browser to return to the project.

2  The Class Syllabus

The starting point for doing class work is the class syllabus or Class Outline page. On this page, you see a list of topics for the class and for each topic links to do any projects, quizzes or lectures. As well there are links for any possible newsgroups, chatrooms or on-line software that may be useful for the class.

At the bottom of this page is the Navigation bar. Follow these links to do such things as setting your preferences, e-mailing your professor, reading class messages or reporting bugs.

3  Checking your grade

You see the grades you have been given on the Class Outline page . To get a detail of the grades you got on a given project, click the link. If you want to, you can make discrete grades a preference. This hides your grade from passersby.

4  Setting Preferences

There are a few preferences that you can configure. You may set these by clicking on the preferences icon on the navigation bar.

A fun preference is the selection of a theme. By changing the theme, you can easily change the way each web page looks. If you would like to add a new theme, you are more than welcome.

5  Email

You may sign up for free e-mail of the form you@e-pupils.com if you like. You can read this e-mail through the web, or have it forwarded to a different account if you like. More information can be found at http://www.e-pupils.com/email.

6  Class Messages

7  Found a Bug? Have a suggestion?

Clicking on the 'bugs' icon allows you to send in a bug report. Please be clear about what the problem is. You can enter in a return email if you would like to receive a response.

8  Possible Problems:

Here are some known problems that you may have. If you experience others, please e-mail or contact your professor. Please be patient, remember you are the beta testers of this software.

• [Problem] The computer hangs. This is often caused by one of two things. Most commonly, there is a window somewhere that is waiting (patiently) for a response from you. You need to find the window and answer the question. As well, you may have made a mistake with your file upload. If the file can not be read, your browser will stubbornly try. The file may not be readable if you have a bad diskette, or you removed your diskette prior to saving the file, or there is an incorrect filename.
• [Problem] The fonts look funny?.
  Solution: This shouldn't happen in the labs, but if you are outside of the labs it may. A solution is found by following instructions at the address

  http://hutchinson.belmont.ma.us/tth/

• [Problem] Your fonts are too big. You can't see too much on the screen.
  Solution: Many things you can do. First, you can choose not to show the toolbar or the directory buttons. On Netscape 3.1 this is done under the options menu. Next you can adjust the font size so that more text appears on the screen. On Netscape 3.1 this is done under the Options->General Preferences->Fonts selection. Third, you can try a newer machine with a bigger monitor.
• [Problem] Your computer is too slow
  Solution: Find a faster computer. ;>)
• [Problem] You get a funny message on your computer.
  Solution: Tell you professor. They might get some information out of this.
• [Problem] You don't know what to do.
  Solution: Ask Somebody!!!!