Sending me email

Our best form of one-on-one communication in most classes will be email. I invite emails from anyone on just about any topic, but by far the biggest request is for help with class work. It is not uncommon for me to recieve 20 emails a day, so please be patient. In order to make the process go smoothly, I would like to make the following suggestions if you decide to send me an email concerning your work:

• Try to see if you can search handouts, samples, or online documentation before asking your question.
• Take notes during class. I often get email questions pertaining to a topic I specifically addressed in class.
• Present as much information on the problem as possible. For example, if you just say "The program crashes when I run it", I have no clue. But if you say "On line 54 of MTestView.cpp the SetWindowPos function causes an assertion", then I can usually explain it quickly.
• Be prepared to send source code. Usually, with enough detail, we can avoid sending your source code. But, some times I may need it. In this case, see the section 'Packaging your project'.

Packaging your Project

When preparing to send me a project via email, please bear in mind that I am on a dial-up connection at home, where I usually respond to these emails. During a midterm week, it is not uncommon for me to have to sit and wait an hour or more to download all the midterm updates sent by students (Please note: I do not normally accept midterms or final exams via email). Some basic guidelines are:

• Make sure you delete the DEBUG and RELEASE folders of your Visual C++ project first.
• If you must send me an EXE file, make sure you send me the RELEASE version, not the DEBUG version.
• Make sure you Zip (compress) everything for your project into 1 file. This includes the RES folder. Make sure that the folder information for sub-folders like RES is still in the zip file.
• If your project uses a database, please make sure to include the database if I need it for testing, along with any ODBC setup information. If your using a large database, please try to create a small test version of the database for my testing. Zip this file as well.
• If you're using an OCX that is not part of the standard VC++ setup, then please include that OCX file, compressed, and a note that you are including it.
• DO NOT send me final projects, midterms, makeups, or homeworks, unless we specifically agree upon this. Email is for questions, not handing in work.

Things that really aren't fair to do

• Send me a 3 megabyte zip file, 3 times.
• Ask me 5 questions a day, every day. Especially if the answer is easily found in a handout or online help.
• Ask me 'Why do I get an error when my program runs?', but give no other details what so ever.