Welcome to CS106A

• Instructor - Nick Parlante - CS senior lecturer, Google
• Head TA - Juliette Woodrow
• CS106A teaches basic coding and problem solving
  like swimming, you can't just read about it
  Learn by doing - "reps" Nick's favorite word
• No prior experience required
• We are careful to go step by step

You Will Be Amazed

• In just a couple weeks
• You will be amazed at what you can build
• Partly because computers are powerful
• Partly because it's easier than you think

Why Take CS106A?

• 1. Understand What Computers Can Do
  The nature of computers is code
  Understand what computers can and cannot do
  Not some hocus-pocus mythology of computers
• 2. Solve Coding Problems
  Python is powerful
  In 10 weeks, you'll learn enough to solve real problems
  Maybe don't take CS106A senior year
• 3. Hidden Agenda
  You might find you like it
  Take CS106B
  We have a whole department of this stuff!

Here is the deal...

Step-1 - Code is going to look bad

• Code will look kind of awful
  This will be evident right away!
• Weird syntax
• Unhelpful error messages
• Computer systems can be weirdly stupid and inflexible
  You see this trying to enter data into web forms
  Like you type a space in the wrong place and the whole thing shatters
• BUT .. this is a superficial badness

Aside: Why is syntax inflexible?

• Computers are powerful but mechanical and kind of stupid
• This is the basic deal of computer systems
  You, as a programmer, have an idea for the real world
  You express the idea in mechanical syntax so the computer can understand

Step-2 - And Then it's Going To Work

• Push through the superficial syntax
  It's weird, but not difficult
• We will show you how A connects to B, B connects to C
• Show you how to fix some common problems
• And then your code is going to work
• "That's it?" you will say
  "That's how this works?"

3. A Prediction About Your Code

Theme: "broken" is the natural state of code

• You will have code, and at first it is not working
• You will work on it, fixing this and that
• And one moment you will click the Run button..
• And it will rise up, working perfectly
• That moment is very satisfying
• You built it
• Working code is sort of tangibly satisfying
• This keeps CS work engaging
  Writing a great essay is satisfying, but a more abstract pleasure

Course Mechanics..

Links on Course Page

• cs106a.stanford.edu - links to everything from there
• Juliette Woodrow - our super head TA
  Contact her if you need a problem solved
  Best to email before class
• Link to "Python Guide" written detail
• Videos available after lecture within 2 hours - links on course page
  The videos will be sufficient for you to follow along with the course
  When we get back to in-person:
  We like in-person lecture attendance
  Our room does not quite have enough seats for everyone anyway

Office Hours

• Maintained on the course page, so look there
• Nick's first week office hours / Zoom - right after class
  See link on course page
  Mon 2:35 - 3:35
  Wed 2:35 - 3:35
• Juliette will have hours Wed Thu - see course page
• Starting Sun at the end of week-1, the official "LaIR" will open with tons of help hours in the evenings

Python Language

• Using Python3
• Python is "programmer friendly"
  get things done easily
• Not just for CS people
• Very popular for data, all sorts of things

Pedagogy Notes

• Lab in lecture - reinforce
• Education research, Carl Wieman (Stanford)
  Do a little activity with what you just saw
• Typical schedule
  Give out homework on Wed
  Lecture on that topic through Fri
  HW is due Tue or Wed following week
  So we always give you the weekend

Lecture Notes and Exercises

• I'll provide notes like this each day
• Often including links of code exercises to try
• I go through pretty fast .. do examples etc.
• After lecture, you should, say, 60% understand the ideas
• You will likely need to review the examples to solidify
  Maybe after class
  Maybe when the homework comes out on these topics
• Ultimately, you want to be able to solve the lecture problems without peeking at a solution

Nick's Theory of the 10 Week Quarter

• We're going to go quite fast at the start of the quarter
• Reduce the load at the very end
• This first material is weird but not that difficult
• Just hang in there, this will give us more time later

Please read the syllabus for other details - linked off course page