Computer Science I for majors by James Tam

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CPSC 231: Mini-Assignment 2

Due at 4 PM. For assignment due dates see the main schedule on the course webpage.

New Concepts to be applied for the assignment

Description:

Write a program that will prompt the user for his/her age in years. It will repeatedly prompt the user (using a loop) for the age as long as the person enters a value less than the age cut-off (18+). If the age is nonsensically low (less than zero) then an error message should be displayed before prompting the person again e.g. "In order be typing at the computer you need to have been born first". Once the user enters an age that meets the cut-off, the program should let the user know that the age requirement has been met e.g. "Age requirement met!"

Example execution:

Enter your age in (whole) years (18+): 17   <= Too low, re-prompt
Enter your age in (whole) years (18+): 0    <= Too low, re-prompt
Enter your age in (whole) years (18+): -1   <= Nonsensically low, display error message
In order be typing at the computer you need to have been born first
Enter your age in (whole) years (18+): 114  <= Age requirement met, stop prompting
Age requirement met! You must now pay $$$ to actually use this program (.\|/.)    <= End program

 

You can still practice applying good style in your solution as well as writing documentation. Unlike the full assignments you will be just graded on program functionality for the mini-assignments.

D2L configuration:

Marking

Points to keep in mind:

  1. Due time: All assignments are due at 4 PM on the due dates listed on the course web page.  Late assignments or components of assignments will not be accepted for marking without approval for an extension beforehand. Alternate submission mechanisms (non exhaustive list of examples: email, uploads to cloud-based systems such as Google drive, time-stamps, TA memories) cannot be used as alternatives if you have forgotten to submit work or otherwise have not properly submitted into D2L. Only files submitted into D2L by the due date is what will be marked, everything else will be awarded no credit.
  2. Extensions may be granted for reasonable cases by the course instructor with the receipt of the appropriate documentation (e.g., a doctor's note). Typical examples of reasonable cases for an extension include: illness or a death in the family. Example cases where extensions will not be granted include situations that are typical of student life: having multiple due dates, work commitments etc. Tutorial instructors (TA's) will not be able to provide extension on their own and must receive permission from the course instructor first.
  3. Method of submission: You are to submit your assignment using D2L [help link]. Make sure that you [check the contents of your submitted files] (e.g., is the file okay or was it corrupted, is it the correct version etc.). It's your responsibility to do this! (Make sure that you submit your assignment with enough time before it comes due for you to do a check).
  4. Identifying information: All assignments should include contact information (full name, student ID number and tutorial section) at the very top of your program in the class where the 'main()' method resides (starting execution point). (Note other documentation is also required for most assignments). Not necessary graded for mini-assignments but still a good idea to do this.
  5. Collaboration: Assignments must reflect individual work; group work is not allowed in this class nor can you copy the work of others.  For more detailed information as to what constitutes academic misconduct (i.e., cheating) for this course please read the following [link].
  6. Execution: programs must run on the computer science network running Python 3.x. If you write you code in the lab and work remotely using a remote login program such as Putty or SSH then you should be okay (assuming you don't login to a non-Linux computer). If you choose to install Python on your own computer then it is your responsibility to ensure that your program will run properly here. If it's not running in the lab computers using Python 3.x then it won't be awarded credit. It's not recommended that you use an IDE for writing your programs but if you use one then make sure that you submit your program in the form of text ".py" file or files.
  7. Use of pre-created Python libraries: unless otherwise told you are to write the code yourself and not use any pre-created functions. For this assignment the usual acceptable functions include: print(), input() and the 'conversion' functions such as int(), float(), str(). Look at the particular assignment description for a list of other classes that you are allowed to use and still get credit in an assignment submission.