Message-Id: <9301292119.AA12725@Athena.MIT.EDU>
To: pisay92@Athena.MIT.EDU
Cc: jud@ceci.mit.edu, pbailey@ceci.mit.edu, aybee@ceci.mit.edu
Subject: questions
Date: Fri, 29 Jan 93 16:23:14 -0500
From: Judson Harward <jud@ceci.mit.edu>

	Let me respond, and Phil or Adam can add or contradict as they see fit.

?How is work organized in the project (AM2, I believe)?  I know there must be
?tons of things to do but I don't know how work is divided.  Is it done by
?volunteering, for example?  Or is it assigned?  Or is it some mixture of the
?two?

	Some mixture of the two.  I discuss what needs to be done with
everyone, and pray fervently that people volunteer for all the pieces.  If you
volunteer, we talk to make sure your skills fit what needs to be done.  If no
one volunteers, I elect someone.  It hasn't been much of an issue so far.  Phil
really wishes that he hadn't mentioned that he had strong feelings about
software control (he's been handling that ever since), but no one has ever
gotten saddled with something they really don't want to do for long.  Among
other things, you don't make quick progress on something you are not interested
in.

?Also, I don't know how directions and major goals and time constraints 
?are set.  Is it Phil and Jud who do this?  Or does everybody in the `working'
?group have a say?  Or maybe the goals are given by MIT or the big sponsors of
?the project?

	Steve Lerman (Director of the Center) sets the overall priorities.  We
brief him on what is reasonable.  I generally am the one who takes him the bad
news, but anyone is welcome to discuss priorities and schedules with him. 
Steve, of course, responds to our sponsors' expectations.

?I got the impression from Jud that if this UROP comes through, basically, what 
?I  would be doing is learning C++ for most of the spring term.  I have to admit,
?although I really enjoy just learning and experimenting with a
?language and studying C++ would enable me to be much more productive in
?continuing on in the summer, I'm not very comfortable about not doing a 
?reasonable amount of `real' work for thos term. Phil told me about checking out
?some relational databases to be used in AM2 (I think).  I would be interested in
?doing that in the spring as well.  That is, if learning about how to go about
?doing this task does not take too much time as to hinder me from being
?`reasonably competent' at C++.

	Our experience is that the productivity of UROPS, particulalrly of
freshmen, varies widely.  The last thing we would ever want to do is discourage
you from "real" work.  C++ is the first priority, but we could always use help
with "real" work.

?I now have a set schedule (of classes) for the spring.  It seems as if, for the
?most part, I'll be able to work from 5pm to 7pm from Monday to Friday.  I
?might also work on weekends if there are tests or an unusual amount of course
?activity during the course of a week.    I was just wondering if there would 
?be people at the lab (is it what you call it, by the way) who would be able to 
?answer questions which I might have at these times?

	Yes, but you should probably arrange ahead of time.  If you are going
to be in every day, that shouldn't be a problem.  If you run into a problem
Tuesday evening, email whoever you want to talk to, and get together with them
the next evening.  To be frank, many of us spend a large part of the day
meeting.  We count on the early evening hours and the weekend to do the work we
weren't able to do during the day.  So, yes, most of us are around, but we may
not be freely available.  Then again, often we are.  I usualy shut my door when
I want to crank.  When it's open I am glad to be interrupted.

?Finally, how much $$$ could I expect to recieve in the course of this term?

	Come talk to me.

						Jud