Lab Assignments:
There is a lab activity for nearly every class in the semester. They are very short, simple activities. These are the basic steps you need to go through to understand the principle discussed in class each week. They're designed to help you not only to understand the technical details, but also to get a feel for what the technologies we're discussing can do, so that you can incorporate them into actual applications. There are application suggestions in many of them as well.

I expect that each student will at least complete the steps outlined in the lab activity each week, so that you understand practically what it is we're talking about. Document any discoveries you make, pitfalls you hit, and details not covered in the class or the lab that you think will be useful for your fellow students and future students in this class.

Projects and Technical Research:

There are three assigned projects during the semester. In addition to the Midterm and Final Projects there is an initial"pcomp imaginary project" which will not be technically implemented.

During weeks 10 and 11 groups will present Technical Research. This is a chance to focus on one piece of technology that you have discovered/researched/reverse engineered, document it, and share it with the class in a 10-15 minute presentation.

Journal & Documentation:
You are required to participate in the course's online journal, which takes the form of a collaboratively-edited blog. The purpose of the journal is two-fold. First, it is a valuable way for you to communicate to me that you are keeping up with the work in the class. I will read the journal to see how students are doing, and the journal should be updated regularly throughout the semester. At a minimum, reference to each week's work is expected, as well as thorough documentation of the three main projects and technical research.

Second, the journal is a place for you to showcase your work and prepare initial documentation. Good journals entries may function as resources for other students.

Grading:

• Participation & Attendance: 15%
• Lab Assignments: 15%
• Imaginary Project : 15%
• Midterm: 15%
• Final + Tech Research: 20%
• Journal: 20%

Participation & Attendance
Showing up on time, engaging in the class discussion, and offering advice and critique on other projects in the class is a major part of your grade. Please be present and prompt. Late attendance and excessive absence affects your grade adversely. If you're going to be late or absent, please email me in advance. If you have an emergency, please let me know.

Please turn in assignments on time as well. For every week an assignment is late, it loses a letter grade, e.g. 1 week late means a maximum possible grade of A-, 2 weeks is a maximum B+, and so forth.

Laptops
I'm all for people taking notes on laptops in class, and there will be occasions when it'll be useful to connect to the net in class for class work, but please don't check email, or IM, or surf the net on unrelated topics, or do your work for other classes in class. That's rude to everyone else in the class.

Parts:
A list of parts needed for the first few weeks follows. You will end up spending money on materials in this class. It can be done reasonably inexpensively, by scavenging parts, reusing parts, and so forth, but more ambitious projects inevitably make demands on your budget.

Books:
Below are recommended texts for the course in general. All of them are good inspirational guides for physical computing and computing in general. They are not assigned, but it wont hurt to pick one up for yourself.

The Design of Everyday Things , Donald A. Norman ©1990 Doubleday Books; ISBN: 0385267746
If you design at all, or work with people who do, read this. A lucid approach to the psychology of everyday interaction and how the objects we deal with could be better designed to match the strengths and weaknesses of the way we think. His predictions about physical interaction design and information design, some accurate and some not, are interesting history lessons eleven years after the first edition.

Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software , Charles Petzold ©1999 Microsoft Press; ISBN: 0-7356-1131-9
In spite of being published by Microsoft, this is one of the best and most readable books on computing I've encountered. Petzold starts with the technology of the telegraph and builds a modern computer from the ground up. In the end our digital technology is clarified and demystified while seeming all the more incredible.
http://www.charlespetzold.com/code/index.html

The Art of Interactive Design, Chris Craw ford, ©2002 No Starch Press; ISBN: 1886411840
Written in a very casual style, this book nevertheless is an excellent and concise summary of what interaction design is, why it is important, and what problems it brings with it. Anyone seriously interested in interaction design, physical or not, should read this book.

Reference material:
The following are good references for electronics hobbyists. Take a look at both, and get one or the other as a general reference, or find an electronics reference of your own (a few more are listed in the books section of the site).

Getting Started in Electronics , Forrest M. Mims III, ©1983, Forrest M. Mims III
A very basic introduction to electricity and electronics, written in notebook style. Includes descriptions of the basic components and what they do, and how they relate to each other.

Practical Electronics for Inventors , 1st Edition. Paul Scherz, ©2000, McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing; ISBN: 0070580782
A more in-depth treatment of electronics, with many practical examples and illustrations. An excellent reference for those comfortable with the basic topics. Don't let the math-and-theory-heavy first chapter scare you off - the rest of the book is filled with useful practical information. The use of plumbing systems as examples to demonstrate electric principles makes for some very clear illustrations of how different components work. Good chapters on sound electronics and motors as well.

A longer list of books for inspiration and reference is available online at the books link.