Microcomputer utilization in basic programming courses

Abstract

Traditionally, classroom demonstrations of computer programs have been done on time sharing terminals connected via modems, phones, and phone lines to the university “central” computer. As anyone who has ever conducted such a demonstration knows, this approach is, to say the least, unreliable. It is not uncommon for professors standing in front of their classes to find that one of the elements in the electronic path from the keyboard to the computer and back to the monitors has failed or that the response time of the central computer is now measured in minutes instead of seconds. The result is that the students, while they may be entertained, certainly lose the value of the “on-line” demonstration. This paper discusses an alternative approach to classroom demonstrations—namely the use of the microcomputers.