Long Awaited Update

With much happening, there has not been much opportunity to provide an update in the last months. Many items of work have been completed and many serious obstacles have been encountered with regard to workload and personal health.

To begin with however, is what has been covered to date. Since half term the Multimedia unit has been started with significant delay in both lectures and assignments proving to be a very uneventful and frankly dull unit so far and fast becoming my least favourite to date although assignment one has now been completed and assignment two is due to be set soon.

This has however, provided me with a major opportunity to seriously prioritise the course content. With the slow moving nature of multimedia, efforts have been more focused on the two units where work has been moving at a more acceptable rate. This has meant that work has been submitted and completed for networking and databases at a high standard with good results. However, this has also presented major problems to me personally and my personal health as a result of workload and short amounts of time between launch of an assignment and the first submission deadline for exceptionally large assignments meaning some work has not been completed to my personally desired standards.

This has resulted in a significant stress level resulting in some work falling behind schedule. In order to counter this, many prioritising lists have been drawn up on a regular basis identifying what work is due and when to help with time management. This has so far proved successful and has helped to reduce stress levels helping me to focus on pieces of work due in with a pressing deadline.

Despite this negative phase I am having, some good has come about from the much disrupted Web Design unit which has been marked to a Distinction which is much desired and a very pleasing result. Databases and Networks is not far behind this with a similar outcome expected after final marking.

Another Half Term...

The course is now moving faster having gained much momentum in the last few weeks. Many assignments have been set and reviewed with several deadlines fast approaching. At this point, the state of play is now as follows:

• Networks Assignment 1 Handed in
• Databases Assignment 1 Handed in
• Web Design Assignment 2 Handed in
• Networks Assignments 2 and 3 set
• Databases Assignment 2 set
• EPD Assignment 1 Due at half term
• Web Design Assignment 1 resub due at half term

Much has been covered and learned since the last post ranging from the OSI model in networks and associated networking protocol to the normalisation process in databases.

It has become apparent that I have not successfully managed my time in the last few days resulting in myself being overtired and unable to concentrate. This will be something that I will review after 1/2 term to ensure it is not likely to happen again.

Progress on databases is coming along nicely with the planning and designing stages of a database well under way and due ontime.

Networks has not had much attention paid to it lately as far as assignment work goes in order to help prioritise the more pressing deadlines. Being the stronger of the subjects, I do not see myself having problems keeping up with this and submitting it on time.

Web design has been completed successfully and now awaiting the final results for both assignments.

New Term Update

Much progression has been made since the last entry on this blog and a few problems have arisen which have required attention to help prevent hindrance to course progression and assignment hand ins.

Lets start with what has been done and a working update. Firstly, Computer Systems has been completed successfully to Distinction standards following much in depth research on the third assignment which involved specifying the required components for a computer system.

Having successfully achieved Merit standard on the first assignment, the focus of assignment three was to achieve Pass and Distinction criteria. This was successfully done on the first attempt but a resubmission of assignment two was prepared and submitted to ensure the criteria were achieved - with a successful outcome.

The Procedural Programming unit has had all first submissions marked and returned and to great success for an area of computing I have not touched upon for a few years. Some modification has been required to confirm a Pass grade which has only required a few minor changes to the second assignment. The results of resubmissions will hopefully confirm a Merit grade with minor alteration required to achieve this on top of the Pass.

Web Design somewhat ground to a halt in the run up to Christmas, due mainly to lecturer absence resulting in being unable to progress beyond the initial design stage as approval for the designs was required. However, the unit has since gathered momentum after Christmas and progress is rapidly being made on the website and its creation. The unit has been extended in order to allow extra time to complete which will be used to every advantage to ensure it is finished to required standards.

Progress on the EPD unit has been somewhat slow with the majority of time spent on the other units with closer and more pressing deadlines. Progress on this unit is now moving at a good rate with the first assignment due shortly.

With the new term, new units have started with progress being exceptional to date These two units being Network Technologies and Database Design Concepts. Much is to be studied in these, once again building on level three knowledge.

First assignments are due with Networks handed in last week on time. Databases has had an extension to help ease work flow and pressures from other looming deadlines. This is due to be handed in on time.

Following this, an assessment on the status of the individual units is to be made to help with effective planning for the rest of the half term before the new Multimedia unit starts.