Frequently Asked Questions

Contents:

1. How do I sign up for a Computer Science account?
2. How do I move files from my CS account to my home computer, or
vice versa?
3. How can I print hard copies of my code from my CS account?
4. If I submit my program, than realize I made a mistake, and I submit my
program again, will you only see the second program?
5. Who should I see if I forget my CS password, or can't log into my
existing CS account?
6. What is a "core dump", and why is there now a file called "core" in my
directory?
7. What files should I submit when submitting homework assignments?
Should I submit the object code and executable files?


Questions and Answers:
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1. How do I sign up for a CS account?

Answer:
To sign up for a CS class account, you must be registered for the 
class.  To generate your account, ssh to the server "shell.cs.fsu.edu".
You will be given a series of prompts for login and passwords.  At each of
these (currently there are three such prompts), type:

	newacct

This will activate the automated account generator.  Follow the
instructions on the screen.  You will be prompted for your name and social
security number.  Make sure that you write down or remember the login that
it assigns you, and the password that it asks you to choose.

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2. How do I move files from my CS account to my home computer, or vice
versa?

Answer: There are several ways to accomplish this, but the best is SFTP 
(Secure File Transfer Protocol). The Windows Tectia SSH client (available 
with our departmental license) has a built-in file transfer feature 
(SFTP).  While connected to shell.cs.fsu.edu using the SSH program, 
simply select "New File Transfer" from the Window menu.  The SFTP part of 
the program will open, and you will be able to transfer files between 
your local computer and the remote account.  For MacBook users, there are 
the command-line "ssh" and "sftp" commands available, built into your 
terminal application on your Mac.  See the help file on "Command Line SSH 
and SFTP", available from yor course's content page under "How To".

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3. How can I print hard copies of my code from my CS account?

Answer:
While the SSH client for windows does have a print option in the File 
menu, it will probably only print what is visible on screen at the time.  
To print a copy of an entire code file, your best bet is to transfer it to 
a local machine (via SFTP or one of the other methods mentioned above) and 
print it from a local text editor or word processor.

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4. If I submit my program, than realize I made a mistake, and I submit my
program again, will you only see the second program?

Answer:  
With the current web submission page, you can resubmit whenever you like,
up to the cutoff day. If you resubmit a revised version of a previously
submitted file (with the same filename), the new file will overwrite the
old one.  This way, the version that will get graded, once the submission
form closes, will be the latest and greatest version that you sent.

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5. Who should I see if I forget my CS password, or can't log into my
existing CS account?

Answer: 
If you have problems logging in to your account, or you have forgotten
your password, then you will probably need to see the Computer Science
Systems Group.  You can reach them at the e-mail address:

  help@cs.fsu.edu

If you have forgotten a password, they can reset your account for you.  
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6. What is a "core dump", and why is there now a file called "core" in my
directory?

Answer:

A "core dump" is an action that the system takes after certain run-time
errors.  Specifically, the system takes the contents of a program's memory
and writes it to a file called "core".  Don't try to read this file with a
text editor -- it is not text, and it will look like gibberish.  This file
actually contains binary information about what was in the program's
memory before it crashed.  This file can be examined with a special
debugger program.  This, however, is a more advanced programming and
debugging tool, and it requires knowledge of what a program's memory looks
like.  Such a tool is beyond the scope of this course.  If you get a core
dump, just delete the "core" file -- it won't be of much use to you.  This
is, however, the indication of a fatal run-time error.

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7. What files should I submit when submitting homework assignments?
Should I submit the object code and executable files?

Answer:
No, you should NOT submit any object code files, executable files, or any
other files created by the compiler during compilation.  ONLY submit
source code files.  These will be the plain text files (i.e. the code you
write) whose filenames should end is ".h" (for header files) and ".cpp"
(for other code files).

Note: The web submission page ONLY handles plain ascii text files.  Any
binaries you attempt to send will not go through correctly, so do not send
executables, Word documents, zip archives, etc.

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