CSSE1000 Prac Index

Schedule

Prac	Week	Prac Title	Other pages and files
1	2	Basic Logic Gates	Breadboard Info, Pinouts
2	3	Combinational Circuits	Pinouts, adder_4.circ, adder_4_hex.circ
3	4	Flip-flops and Sequential Circuits	Pinouts
4	5	Sequential Circuits 2	Pinouts
5	6	AVR Studio Introduction	AVR Resources, Software Download, prac5.asm
6	7	AVR Assembly Language Programming
7	8	AVR C Programming	C Tutorial 2, WinAVR_C_Tutorial, prac7-1.c
8	9	AVR Input/Output - Timer/Counter & Tone Generator	prac8-1.asm, prac8-2.asm, prac8-3.c
9	10	AVR Interrupts and Serial I/O	prac9-1.c, Lecture examples
	11	Prac Exam
	12	Project Work
	13	Project Work

Guidelines

Students should sign-up for and attend a weekly prac session. Prac activities are carried out in assigned pairs. You should only attend the session you are signed up to. Attendance at other sessions (and earning marks at other sessions) will not be permitted unless prior approval is sought from the course coordinator. In some cases (non arrival of partner, odd number of students signed-up) you will need to undertake your prac individually. If you arrive more than 30 minutes after the scheduled start of the prac you must undertake your prac individually if lab space permits. If space does not permit, you will receive 0 for the prac. (Arriving more than 10 minutes late means you will receive 0 for preparation.)

Pracs commence in week 2 of semester and will be held in 47-401 - the Computer Systems teaching laboratory. Note that:

you MUST wear covered footwear in this laboratory. You will be denied entry if you are not wearing appropriate footwear.
you MUST fill in the OH&S declaration as soon as possible. You may be denied entry if you have not done this.

Before you come to the Prac	Do the preparation (usually answering a few questions) in your Prac workbook. (Not required for prac 1.) If you have any questions you should ask on the newsgroup, or at the Thursday Q&A (Contact) session, or at your tutorial session, or during a consultation time. For this reason, do not leave your preparation to the last minute. Not knowing how to do the preparation is not an excuse.
When you come to the Prac	Make sure you: Arrive on time - you may be denied preparation marks and/or be denied entry if you arrive late. Bring your prac workbook - your preparation and work must be recorded in this Wear covered footwear Have completed the OH&S declaration
After arrival:	Find the bench position to which you've been assigned and introduce yourself to your partner for the session. Have your preparation assessed. If you have any questions, ask the tutor. Proceed with the prac tasks. Document your work in your prac workbook. Do not hesitate to ask for help. Have your work and documentation assessed by the tutor. (If you don't have your work assessed earlier
Tutor task:	Once you've completed the required tasks and documentation and had them signed off by the tutor as fully correct, you will be given another task to complete. Have your work and documentation assessed by the tutor when completed.
Challenge task:	This is optional. Feel free to attempt it if desired.
Before you leave:	Turn off the power to all equipment. Tidy your work bench. Return all equipment to their original places. Log off your computer.

Assessment

All pracs are assessed according to the following criteria. Each element is worth 1 mark and you will be awarded 0, 0.5 or 1 out of 1. Each prac description will specify what is required for each of the marks.

Preparation (except Prac 1): You must complete all of the required preparation in your prac workbook. Full marks will be given for legibly completing all preparation tasks. Half marks will be given if work is at least half complete and legible. Zero marks will be given otherwise. Correctness is not required if you have made a reasonable complete attempt (but you will be asked to correct mistakes before continuing with the prac). This mark is individual. Your work will only be assessed if you are present in the lab no later than ten minutes after the scheduled starting time of the prac session.
Functionality: You must complete the required task(s) and demonstrate your working hardware/software to the tutor. Both members of the pair will receive the same mark. If the tutor does not assess your work as being correct and there is sufficient time remaining in the session, you may attempt the task(s) again and be assessed again. Assessment begins with 30 minutes remaining in the prac (if not marked off earlier). Full marks will be given for fully correct hardware/software/results. At the discretion of the tutor, half marks will be given for a partially correct attempt or a fully correct attempt at an earlier prac task.
Documentation: Your experimental results/outcomes for all tasks and a short conclusion must be written in your prac workbook. If you were required to correct your preparation, this will be assessed at this point also. Full marks will be given for complete documentation. Half marks will be given for mostly complete documentation. Zero marks otherwise. This mark is individual.
Tutor task: The task will vary from pair to pair and will only be given to you if you have achieved full marks for both procedure and documentation (both students) and sufficient time remains in the prac session (at least 15 minutes). If less time remains, you may be given the task but it will not be assessed. Full marks will be awarded if you complete the task correctly, document it in your workbook (both students) and are able to demonstrate understanding to the tutor (if required). Half marks for mostly complete & correct. Both members of the pair will receive the same mark.

Make sure the tutor enters your mark in your workbook and signs and dates the entry. The tutor should also record your total marks on their marksheet (for both students).

Workbooks

You should obtain a workbook, in which to write your prac notes, answers and results. Workbooks are individual - even if you are working in a pair, you should both keep complete notes. The workbook should be an A4 bound notebook. All preparatory exercises, working notes and diagrams, code listings etc. should be included in your workbook (as glued-in printouts if necessary). The workbook is the only thing you're permitted to bring into prac exams. All loose pages, insecure printouts, etc will be removed before the prac exam. You should use the same workbook throughout the semester, and only use a new workbook when the current one is full (but still bring the old ones to the Pracs as you may need to material from an earlier prac for help).

Keeping a workbook is a good introduction to professional practice. Many people working in industry or research are required to keep workbooks. These fully document the thoughts and steps behind any experiments or development. It is common commercial practice that each page of a workbook is signed and dated at the end of each day and often that this is witnessed by some independent person. Some organisations require that workbooks be kept in a fire-proof safe each night. The workbooks are legal documents which can be used, for example, to support patent claims.