Hi everybody,

Well, we made it through our first day.  Many of you reported back to me that you were able to get the installation of the software going, but several of the Mac users seemed to have some issues getting things up and running.

I did a little further research and came across a few suggestions and resources that I hope help all of you.

1.)  First, it seems that depending on which version of Mac OS X you have, you may or may not already have the Java Software Development Kit already installed.   It really depends on how new your computer is and what version of OS X you're running.

Follow the link here for further details.

http://java.about.com/od/gettingstarted/a/javamacosx.htm

2.)  If it turns out that you already have the Java SDK installed, you can update your version to the most up-to-date version by going through Java -> Java Preferences.

3.)  If you need to manually install the Java SDK, you can go to the same web site that I went to for getting the installation file:

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/downloads/index.html

You'll want to select the JDK download, and select Mac OS X.  You'll have to agree to the license agreement to perform the download.

4.)  CRITICAL STEP:  Whether or not the Java Development Kit is already on your computer or you install it yourself, you are still going to need to copy the seven jar files from my CD and put them onto your own machine in this location:

/System/Library/Java/Extensions

This is critical to making sure that all programs we write for this class end up working properly.

5.)  Finally, after doing all this, you'll need to install BlueJ, which is the actual environment in which we write our code.  I included directions for how to perform the install, but here is a YouTube link that might also help:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcmQ1y6RYDE

6.)  I'll go through in class today how to access the DoesItWork file, and how to verify that everything is up-and-running.

If you are a Mac user and you do end up getting things to work, I would appreciate it if you sent me an e-mail to let me know, and also let me know if there is anything helpful that you did that I can share with the rest of the class. 

Hope this helps all of you.

See you all soon.
Mr. Svetlik
 
     

First Day Excitement

Hi all,

As the school year approaches, I am looking forward to a year unlike any other I've ever had as a teacher at Deerfield High School.  For the first time ever, four sections of AP Computer Science will be offered at our school.  I have been given the rare gift of teaching each of these classes.

More students have signed up for this course than ever before.  And for good reason, I believe... you have much to gain in learning the art of computer science.  Invest yourself fully into what this course offers you, and you will discover a whole world of possibilities awaiting you.  Of the top ten most in-demand or most rewarding careers, computing, computer science, software engineering, and associated career paths consistently place towards the top.

(See http://www.cnbc.com/id/46994473/The_Best_Jobs_for_2012?slide=1.)

AP Computer Science is your first glimpse into this world of computing.  I sincerely hope that those of you who take this class find this to be an exciting, challenging, and ultimately rewarding experience. 
And I will do my best this year to help you find success along the way.

As we move through this class together, I intend for this blog to be a primary way in which I communicate with students.  As I come across new resources, I'll share them with you here.  I might send hints to homework assignments here now and then, too.  So, what I'm saying is that you'll want to get comfortable with this site, and rely on it as we progress through the year together.
I look forward to an exciting year sharing my love of programming with you.

Mr. Svetlik