Open University
Milton Keynes
TU100 My Digital Life
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Original post by fuzzyfeet
SENSE is next to nothing to do with the real world of programming. I have been in programming for over 5 years now and I know around 7 programming languages and SENSE was so back to front for me. They should have taught something useful like basic JAVA in TU100. Instead of drag and drop and SENSE is very limited. Very frustrating. I hate it.
Overall TU100 is average. If you were studying Computer Science like I am, then at a brick uni your first year would involve nothing like TU100. It is pointless and I have no idea how anybody could do TU100 and expect a job from it. Wanna be a programmer but don't want a full degree than study for your Oracle OCA exams etc. Get your CISCO CCNA.
TU100 is basically a GCSE level joke. Their idea of looking at HTML involved learning the <p>, <i> and <b> and that was it. There look at XML was pathetic and does not teach anybody how to actually use XML in the real world.
Though it is level 1 and an introduction to computing apparently.
Overall TU100 is average. If you were studying Computer Science like I am, then at a brick uni your first year would involve nothing like TU100. It is pointless and I have no idea how anybody could do TU100 and expect a job from it. Wanna be a programmer but don't want a full degree than study for your Oracle OCA exams etc. Get your CISCO CCNA.
TU100 is basically a GCSE level joke. Their idea of looking at HTML involved learning the <p>, <i> and <b> and that was it. There look at XML was pathetic and does not teach anybody how to actually use XML in the real world.
Though it is level 1 and an introduction to computing apparently.
Totally agree, waste of time.
Open University
Milton Keynes
If you have already finished primary school you really are not going to find this out of date course very helpful at all. The OU site write up may get you excited but in reality - spend £2 on an arduino and then post a video on youtube and make a post on facebook - you have now learnt pretty much everything you will from TU100 - biggest waste of money ever. It was recently updated and now does recognise that Google Chrome exists!! but much of the OU website does not actually work with the worlds most common browser!! Not really very inspiring for an IT course.
This course although recently updated is now 3 years out of date and not 6 years out of date as it was. The tutors got their masters in the 1980s and have not worked in the industry since.
The OU is fabulous - this course is not worth £10.
This course although recently updated is now 3 years out of date and not 6 years out of date as it was. The tutors got their masters in the 1980s and have not worked in the industry since.
The OU is fabulous - this course is not worth £10.
Oh jesus! I enrolled to this course to start this October. I am hoping to obtain a computing degree and eventually work in computer forensics.
Would you guys suggest against this?! Has anybody gained anything from this course? As you are most likely already aware this course is a compulsory requirement to gain the degree.
Please let me know ASAP, it may not be too late for me to back out. Appreciate your help guys.
Thanks,
Sam
Would you guys suggest against this?! Has anybody gained anything from this course? As you are most likely already aware this course is a compulsory requirement to gain the degree.
Please let me know ASAP, it may not be too late for me to back out. Appreciate your help guys.
Thanks,
Sam
Original post by Ilikepocky
Would you guys suggest against this?! Has anybody gained anything from this course? As you are most likely already aware this course is a compulsory requirement to gain the degree.
My Digital Life is an introductory module designed to bring students of differing abilities and experience up to the same level. All undergraduate courses at any university have something similar. All students are going to find some parts of the module easy, but they are going to find other parts somewhat more challenging, too. Even for things you already know, it can help to reinforce your knowledge about the subject.
I see some people complain that there isn't enough programming involved in the module. Let me just say this now -- Computing is not just about programming. It is a very broad field, and it helps to know about and understand the wider context which you're working in. I previously studied Computer Science at a brick-and-mortar university, and unlike what other people here have claimed, we did study a lot of what is covered in My Digital Life. It wasn't contained in a specific module, instead being spread out across other modules in the first and second years, but it was there all the same. There may be other Computing courses at other universities that don't cover those subjects, but I wouldn't want to study there. These are things that are worth studying, so they'd be doing you a disservice if it's not covered.
As for the complaints about Sense (the programming environment used in My Digital Life)... The important aspect of programming is not the syntax (the brackets, semicolons, commas, etc. that give structure to a program), but instead being able to think about the problem you're trying to solve and come up with the logical sequence of instructions that will provide the solution. The best way to learn to program is to just jump right in and experiment with the logic of the program. You don't want to be worrying about what 'public static void main(String[] args)' is supposed to mean or finding a missing semicolon. Sense allows you to easily re-order instructions and change them around with minimal fuss. It also allows you easily to do things like creating graphical programs that would be rather difficult with other languages. I know people who have had to learn Java as their first programming language at university, and the consensus is that it's a terrible idea. At my previous university, we studied Python first. It was alright, but even then there was quite some barrier to entry and many students had major trouble. I was probably only comfortable with it because I had previous programming experience.
If you already know how to program, then great. If it's really too easy and you find yourself completing your assignments in five minutes, then do some self-study. Try doing something extremely complex using Sense. Until you are able to create a ray-tracer in Sense -- it has been done -- there is still room to learn. Otherwise, try learning another programming language on your own. Learn C. If you already know C, learn Lisp. If you already know Lisp, learn Prolog.
In M250, you can learn Java. So by the end of your degree, you do gain experience with a programming language widely used in industry. Even if you end up hating My Digital Life (though hopefully not!), you're sure to learn a lot from the course as a whole.
There isn't an undergraduate module for computer forensics (though computer security is touched upon in My Digital LIfe), but a Computing degree should all the same prove useful. M811, M812 and T828 are relevant postgraduate modules, should you wish to go down that route. The OU also has a free cyber security course available on FutureLearn.
Original post by steve666
I just failed due to timescales children etc and didn't submit enough of my ema...really need to pass as I'm aloud to re submit...any help?? 
Is there anything in particular you're struggling with? If you haven't already, try contacting your tutor to see if they can help.
Original post by ldjb
My Digital Life is an introductory module...
...see if they can help.
...see if they can help.
This makes a lot of sense to me. As part of my standard grade course in Computing a few years back, we learned both Visual Basic and Scratch; Scratch is extremely similar to SENSE, and I think SENSE may even be based upon it. It wasn't much help since we learned VB first, but almost everyone took to Scratch with much greater ease than Visual Basic, and would most likely have understood programming better if we started with Scratch.
I agree that studying languages in your own time is both useful and important. I've personally learned a fair amount of Python and R from MOOC courses (Udacity's CS101 and Coursera's Data Science Specialisation respectively) in addition to currently being in the process of learning C++ from LearnCpp.com. It's an invaluable experience to learn languages from tutorials, documentation, videos, etc. as you will most likely have to use programming languages you have not been taught in the future.
You also learn Python as part of "Algorithms, Data Structures and Computability" module M269. This is part of the Computer Science route in the Computing & IT (and a second subject) degrees. Java gets further use in "Software Development with Java" module M256, which is part of the Software Development route. Furthermore, you learn about HTML, XHTML, CSS, XML, Javascript and PHP in the "Web Technologies" module TT284 which is part of the Solutions Development route. JS and PHP in particular are used for web programming exercises.
I would also assume that, within level 1 modules, the "Technologies in Practice" module TM129 involves some programming as part of it is concerned with robotics and one of its reviews on the OU site mentions programming languages were involved.
I'm going to be studying TU100 in October along with MST124 and MST125, so I'm hoping it'll be worthwhile. Even if it isn't, it's a required part of the degree and I'll just have to put up with that.
Good luck with your studies, everyone.
(edited 8 years ago)
ldjb, great post and I couldn't have said it better myself :-)
I did TU100 last year and really enjoyed it, particularly the SENSE programming side of things as an introductory software. I would say to anyone who is about to start TU100, to just go ahead and get stuck in with it and if you find parts easy then move on to some of the other parts you found more difficult. After all there is no avoiding this module if you want to gain your degree in IT :-)
Best of luck guys
I did TU100 last year and really enjoyed it, particularly the SENSE programming side of things as an introductory software. I would say to anyone who is about to start TU100, to just go ahead and get stuck in with it and if you find parts easy then move on to some of the other parts you found more difficult. After all there is no avoiding this module if you want to gain your degree in IT :-)
Best of luck guys
Hello there!
I am going to join the Open University this year, and this will be my first module.
I read everywhere that it is quite demanding.
Do you think it is doable if one stopped studying 10 years ago and works full time?
Thanks for your opinions ^^
I am going to join the Open University this year, and this will be my first module.
I read everywhere that it is quite demanding.
Do you think it is doable if one stopped studying 10 years ago and works full time?
Thanks for your opinions ^^
Original post by indifferentsun
Hello there!
I am going to join the Open University this year, and this will be my first module.
I read everywhere that it is quite demanding.
Do you think it is doable if one stopped studying 10 years ago and works full time?
Thanks for your opinions ^^
I am going to join the Open University this year, and this will be my first module.
I read everywhere that it is quite demanding.
Do you think it is doable if one stopped studying 10 years ago and works full time?
Thanks for your opinions ^^
I've found it to be overall really easy. The reading for each week only takes a couple of hours and the exercises don't tend to be much of a challenge. The TMAs take a lot of research and time as they go on but so long as you start on them a few weeks in advance you'll be fine.
Original post by Urist
I've found it to be overall really easy. The reading for each week only takes a couple of hours and the exercises don't tend to be much of a challenge. The TMAs take a lot of research and time as they go on but so long as you start on them a few weeks in advance you'll be fine.
Thank you very much
) Hope I will manageAlso starting in October. Mandatory module for my Computing and IT Degree.
What does everyone plan to specialise in?
Undecided between Software Development and Networking.
Slighty edging towards Software Dev. That 60 point CISCO Networking module looks brutal. Have a real interest in programming too. Love the problem solving and I seem to get on with the whole 'computational thinking' concept.
What does everyone plan to specialise in?
Undecided between Software Development and Networking.
Slighty edging towards Software Dev. That 60 point CISCO Networking module looks brutal. Have a real interest in programming too. Love the problem solving and I seem to get on with the whole 'computational thinking' concept.
Original post by RhaegoTarg
Also starting in October. Mandatory module for my Computing and IT Degree.
What does everyone plan to specialise in?
Undecided between Software Development and Networking.
Slighty edging towards Software Dev. That 60 point CISCO Networking module looks brutal. Have a real interest in programming too. Love the problem solving and I seem to get on with the whole 'computational thinking' concept.
What does everyone plan to specialise in?
Undecided between Software Development and Networking.
Slighty edging towards Software Dev. That 60 point CISCO Networking module looks brutal. Have a real interest in programming too. Love the problem solving and I seem to get on with the whole 'computational thinking' concept.
As far as I can tell, computational thinking is very much the focus of the computer science specialisation too. I'll be taking that next year alongside my statistics modules, and it sounds really good. Combining that with the software development modules and web development modules would give you as much, and as wide of a variety, of programming as possible, but networking is a great thing to learn too.
Good luck!
This thread has gone in some pretty weird directions over the years. I'm glad to see what ldjb wrote about it last year, as it confirmed that my thinking on TU100 was most likely correct.
I'll be starting on a BSc (Hons) Computing & IT degree with this module in October, and have just been scanning around to get a good feel for it. The comments about it being useless in a career seem to miss the point of the module. The main point of the module seems to be getting one used to the coursework requirements for this course and discipline. I frankly don't expect to learn much from the content of the module (though i hope I'm wrong), but am quite looking forward to feedback on my TMAs to help me learn what the tutors and assessors are looking for.
A secondary (though important) aim would be an introduction to many of the concepts that will be explored in advanced modules later in the course. While not necessarily useful or applicable to a career, it can give you a feel for how much you enjoy working with the concepts and help choose your course path.
With reference to Sense, even before Urist confirmed it, I had a suspicion that it was similar to Scratch or a dozen other drag-and-drop programming languages. My five-year-old son loves these. Again, the point is not to teach you a useful language, but one assumes to introduce you to the basic concepts of all languages, such as if-then-else flow, for loops, accepting input, etc. Useless for a lot of people in the course, but everybody has to start somewhere. My son giggles with glee when his nana can't make the elf walk to the gift on the Google Santa Tracker programming game, but the point of the OU is supposed to be accessibility. These tools are great because the building blocks of programming are literally represented as visible and movable blocks.
I've been working in the industry for about 20 years, and have no real need for the degree other than as an example to my children. That said, it's of great personal importance to me, and something I've always wanted. I dropped out of US high school two years before graduation, had to study for an equivalency exam via distance learning, and was always too busy with work for traditional distance degree courses.
Technology finally made distance learning less of a struggle than it was when I got my equivalency diploma. I've been enrolled twice with different universities only to be forced to quit almost immediately. Once was to move to the UK ahead of Theresa Mays' immigration policies, once was the birth of my second son. I'm hoping this time it will stick.
My current plan is to go through the networking path, with the web development module as an optional. I'm also taking MU123 maths, because I just want it to be easy. It's hard to translate my US studies to UK terms, but I'd say my maths are well above GCSE level, but so-so compared to A level maths. I took the MT124 eval. I got everything right though half of it, but it took me forever to remember rules I hadn't used in 25 years. When it started to ask me to solve polynomial exponential fractions, I just stopped trying. Who has time for that? Especially when i can state categorically I'll never need it for either the degree or the field.
I'm glad to see there are a few others on the course staying in October here. It's always nice to share the pain.
I'll be starting on a BSc (Hons) Computing & IT degree with this module in October, and have just been scanning around to get a good feel for it. The comments about it being useless in a career seem to miss the point of the module. The main point of the module seems to be getting one used to the coursework requirements for this course and discipline. I frankly don't expect to learn much from the content of the module (though i hope I'm wrong), but am quite looking forward to feedback on my TMAs to help me learn what the tutors and assessors are looking for.
A secondary (though important) aim would be an introduction to many of the concepts that will be explored in advanced modules later in the course. While not necessarily useful or applicable to a career, it can give you a feel for how much you enjoy working with the concepts and help choose your course path.
With reference to Sense, even before Urist confirmed it, I had a suspicion that it was similar to Scratch or a dozen other drag-and-drop programming languages. My five-year-old son loves these. Again, the point is not to teach you a useful language, but one assumes to introduce you to the basic concepts of all languages, such as if-then-else flow, for loops, accepting input, etc. Useless for a lot of people in the course, but everybody has to start somewhere. My son giggles with glee when his nana can't make the elf walk to the gift on the Google Santa Tracker programming game, but the point of the OU is supposed to be accessibility. These tools are great because the building blocks of programming are literally represented as visible and movable blocks.
I've been working in the industry for about 20 years, and have no real need for the degree other than as an example to my children. That said, it's of great personal importance to me, and something I've always wanted. I dropped out of US high school two years before graduation, had to study for an equivalency exam via distance learning, and was always too busy with work for traditional distance degree courses.
Technology finally made distance learning less of a struggle than it was when I got my equivalency diploma. I've been enrolled twice with different universities only to be forced to quit almost immediately. Once was to move to the UK ahead of Theresa Mays' immigration policies, once was the birth of my second son. I'm hoping this time it will stick.
My current plan is to go through the networking path, with the web development module as an optional. I'm also taking MU123 maths, because I just want it to be easy. It's hard to translate my US studies to UK terms, but I'd say my maths are well above GCSE level, but so-so compared to A level maths. I took the MT124 eval. I got everything right though half of it, but it took me forever to remember rules I hadn't used in 25 years. When it started to ask me to solve polynomial exponential fractions, I just stopped trying. Who has time for that? Especially when i can state categorically I'll never need it for either the degree or the field.
I'm glad to see there are a few others on the course staying in October here. It's always nice to share the pain.
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