Category: Student Insights

An update on education

Carl Setzer

This is from one of my assignments this week, and it seemed like a great blog post. So, enjoy!

  • What was the most pressing issue(s) you had to deal with during this course?
    • My biggest challenge this quarter was time. All my courses took more time than my past ones. With that, I had a few side-projects that were more time-intensive than I was anticipating. I often was submitting assignments right on the edge of their being due. This, not something I like! I value proactivity and being solidly ahead, exceeding deadlines. With that, I like to have time for an in-depth review of my readings afterward. That was not easy to make happen.
  • How did you overcome it or remedy the issue(s)?
    • I dealt with this mainly by being more thoughtful. I made it a point to slow down as I read and take better notes at that point. I recognized that I might not have the time to re-read every chapter, but I could take the time to review my notes. So it was critical for those notes to be valuable. I also leaned heavily on things like Quizlet, a flashcard app, which I have on my phone and iPad, and I use this on my PC as well. That enabled me to review things at more random moments. A quick flip through flashcards while waiting at the doctor’s office, dentist’s office, bank, etc. In this time of Covid, I have spent a fair amount of time waiting in lines. Being able to squeeze every bit out of my days has been vital.

Valuable Coding and IT Tools

Carl Setzer
Photo by Josh Sorenson from Pexels

As an Information System student, there are a handful of tools recommended to me by my instructors that have been critical. Every one of the tools below is free. Anyway, here’s my list:

  • Notepad ++: a richly powerful text editor. It’s what I’ve done most of my HTML and CSS in, and what I’ve done a lot of my JavaScript. I have shifted, though, back to Visual Studio, at least for now. I used Visual Studio for my Visual Basic class, so I’m pretty familiar with it.
  • 7 Zip is a great Zip file tool.
  • Agent Ransack, which boosts your PC’s search utility.
  • Winmerge: a great tool for comparing files. It has helped me a few times to find that one damn character I was missing.

Anyway, what tools do you use? That you find indispensable?

 

Featured Image by Josh Sorenson from Pexels

At The End Of A Long Day

Carl Setzer

Mondays are pretty long for me. First, two of my classes tend to have 4, 5, or 6 projects due. And then I have a “class” from 6-8 pm, taking two hours out. There is value in the lectures, of course (else I would just skip and work), but I feel like I’m butting up against the “last minute” every week. I’m a little bit ahead today, which feels good. I actually got a little bit of what’s due tomorrow done. So, yay me!

My preferred state is to be at least a week ahead. Since two of my courses didn’t open until the first day of the quarter, and the third one opened up a day in advance, I hit the ground running, so to speak. And it’s felt like I’m squeaking by every week.

In reality, I am creeping ahead, slowly but surely. I just worry that one illness, or losing a day because of no power (yay Seattle winters!) will break everything. In the end, I guess I just work my way through everything. Do my best, learn every day, and drag myself forward.

Onwards!

Some Key Tools I Recommend

Carl Setzer

I’ve been pretty successful at my coursework, and I attribute that to a few key tools. Here are the 4 I use every day, and would deeply struggle without.

  1. Evernote: this is my note tool, and so much more. I add articles I’ve read, reading notes, lecture notes, and I can scan handwritten notes which are able to be searched (for the most part). It is also my journal and where I brainstorm/mindmap for projects and other workflows.
  2. Todoist: Organizes my task list. Since I have more on my plate than just school, I use Todoist to input everything I need to get done. I have mine synchronized to my Google calendar, so I can have it all in one view. Assigning times to tasks is really important for me so that they become done.
  3. Acrobat Reader, Adobe Creative Cloud Student Edition: I use various Creative Cloud apps regularly including Photoshop, InDesign, and PremierPro. I also work some in Illustrator. Reader, though, is the thing I use the most. I mark up articles, presentations, and the like. I expect I would find a cheaper alternative if all I was doing was work in Reader, but as I use the whole suite, it’s a handy product.
  4. Grammarly: I love this grammar and spelling checker. It has upped my game as a writer, which is rather important in this student thing.
  5. Quizlet: I use this to create flashcards. Great for reviewing content before a quiz, or to review content for any reason. It’s also nice that I have this on my phone and iPad. Makes reviewing while I’m out and about (which isn’t very much right now) easy. Or if I want to chill out on the couch.

Anyway, those are the main tools I’m using right now. I find these critical to my current life. What digital tools are part of your daily work? Whether you’re a student or not, I’m curious to know.

About the featured image: Photo by Andrew Neel from Pexels

Windows Programmer Calculator

Carl Setzer
Windows Programmer Calculator

It may be because I’m still pretty new at this whole programming/coding thing, but I was pretty stoked to discover this feature within the built-in calculator that comes with Windows 10 (it might be part of older versions of Windows. I just don’t know). I’ve built Excel sheets for these conversions to check my work. This is actually easier and less clunky. Sure, I can do these manually, and I’m getting better at doing so in my head, but it’s good to have the ability to check my work easily.

Along with this, a friend of mine let me know about HiPer Calculator for Android phones.  I look forward to trying it out. I downloaded the free version, but there is a “Pro” version for $3.49. I’ll see how the free one works. Trying to be frugal and all that.

Do you have any tools that you love and recommend to an up-and-coming developer? I’d really love to hear about them. Leave a comment!

 

Some Thoughts On Being A 21st Century Student

Carl Setzer
person writing on notebook

I have a few favorite tools that really make school more effective. One: I get my textbooks on Kindle. I have the Kindle app on my computer, plus I have it on my phone and iPad. Having my books wherever I find myself is great. Plus, I can hit ctrl+F and search the whole book quickly. This has been really helpful when I’m struggling to remember “that one command”.

Also, I have Grammarly’s app installed. Being able to spell and grammar check in the browser is a great time saver.

Lastly, I love using Evernote to take notes. I often use paper, and also the note feature within the Kindle apps. But I can scan the papers, and import the Kindle notes, so all of them are in Evernote. Again, being able to search is powerful, and being able to review whenever I have a few minutes of downtime is great.

Life Change Update: July 17, 2020

Carl Setzer

I’m well into the second quarter of my education to become a web application developer. Last quarter I took the first of two graphic design classes, along with a Management class (introduction to Human Resources) and the 100 level Computer Information Systems class. The HR and CIS classes were fine. I learned a lot, and they helped bring me back to speed (it’s been decades since I’ve been a full-time student). However, it was the design class that pushed me hardest. It’s been ages since I studied design. And I value it, so I really want to do good work.

I’ve posted many things I did on my portfolio page. Below are a few I feel the most proud of.

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think.