My classes at the University of Illinois at Springfield just started this week. I’m taking three CS classes. They’re online, so I don’t have to travel to Springfield. That’s fortunate, because it would be a terrible commute from California!
In each class the instructor has had us introduce ourselves in an online forum.  Unsurprisingly the majority of my classmates are in Illinois. There are four in California (including myself), and one each in Colorado, Florida, Kansas, North Carolina, New Mexico, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Wisconsin, and a few others who didn’t state their location.
Perhaps in the future I might actually be able to meet my classmates in California, Colorado, and Oregon in person. I visit family and friends in Colorado and Oregon whenever I get a chance.
I’m taking:
- CSC 376 — Computer Organization
- CSC 385 — Data Structures and Algorithms
- CSC 387 — Foundations of Computer Science
Given my extensive experience in programming and embedded system design, I don’t expect any of these to be too difficult. I’ve skimmed the textbooks for 385 and 387; the textbook for 376 should arrive here tomorrow.
I’m not taking any math classes this semester. I wanted to take MAT 332 — Linear Algebra, which is a prerequisite for several of the more advanced math classes I will take for my minor. I took a linear algebra course at De Anza college last summer, but the UIS math department says that I have to take “upper division” linear algebra. At least the course I took previously should give me a headstart on MAT 332. Anyhow, by the time I was able to register for classes this semester, MAT 332 was full. That’s OK, since I was able to take an extra CS class instead.