Parts 1 and 2 are due Thursday, January 31, before class. The rest is due next Tuesday, February 5.

1. Apply for a cs410 account on the CS Department's unix system. Apply for that account even if you already have a unix account, so that you are put on the proper mailing lists.

   I will use the official mailing list to send you email at the address yourUnixLogin@cs.umb.edu. I will expect mail to me from that address. If you use another email account (gmail, hotmail, your company) you risk having your mail end up in my spam bucket. I'll probably find it there in time, but there's no guarantee.

2. Find the questionnaire on the course home page at www.cs.umb.edu/~eb/410/, print it out and fill it out.

3. Register for the cs410 wiki ... (I'll tell you how soon.) Do not try to register for the wiki from last spring's course.

4. One of the goals of this course is to polish your presentation skills. That will call for oral presentations later - for now we'll start with how you present yourself when you apply for a job. (That's probably something that interests you. If so, you should check the Career Services information on the course links page.)

   A prospective employer will want to see your resume, of course. If the resume looks promising, he or she will look at your home page to find out a little more about how you see yourself. Your assignment is to prepare an up to date resume, create a home page, and post the resume there.

   Turn in hard copy of your resume as well.

   I will not specify a format or a style for either the resume or the home page. Anything tasteful will do. The resume should be reasonably compact, and easy to view on line and to print (Microsoft word is OK, but pdf is better. There are free services on the web that will convert .doc to .pdf.). The home page should show a photo of yourself as well as a link to the resume. It may contain other stuff too. Links to UMB and the UMB CS Department would be appropriate. Links to other sites (particularly professional ones) that you visit often will provide a viewer with feeling of how you approach your work. You may also include more personal information if you wish.

   If you need a photo, ask a friend with a digital camera to take one for you.

   To create a web page served by the cs department you should make a publicly readable public_html directory in your unix home directory and put a publicly readable file index.html there. Then write webmaster AT cs.umb.edu asking him to tell the department web server your page is ready. You should see it then next day at www.cs.umb.edu/www/people/students/undergrads/.

   Once your page is being served you can edit it at will; no need to inform the webmaster of changes.

   This is not a competitive exercise (although job searches sometimes are) so you should feel free to look at what your classmates (and other present and former undergraduates) have done.

   Your resume and web site must be completely free of errors in spelling and grammar and contain no broken links. (Such errors can cost you an interview!) I recommend that you get proofreading help - even if you are a native speaker of English.

   If you already have a home page it may already be visible. If not, write the webmaster. In either case, take this opportunity to update it, proofread, and test all links.