CIP Review

When i first heard of a module called CIP from friends in the opposite sem, i thought to myself about how boring this would be, cos what i had expected was something really quite different from what exactly happened throughout the module.

First things first.
PBL 1 and 2
PBL 1 was certainly more interesting as we were required to think critically into the problem to explore the different parts of the project of which we had to come up with solutions to. Setting up a company's computer systems, that certainly wasn't as easy as i first thought it was. Trips down to Sim Lim Square provided me with some basic information that i needed, such as the prices of hardware and softwares, and of course, introduced me to wider brands of computers.
Through countless efforts in research, we were able to come to a concensous on the various softwares and hardwares needed for the different departments of Futuristic Technology Pte Ltd. Working on the powerpoint itself was definitely better than expected too:)

PBL 2 was more of a split effort since there were relatively different problems. This PBL was one which i felt had greater relevance to the contents of our syllabus as we could look to the textbooks for reference, unlike PBL 1 which required more in-depth research both in the Internet and from the market. This is also one reason as to why i feel PBL 2 required lesser of critical thinking as compared to PBL 1.

On the whole, i truly enjoyed both PBLs and the process of which we had to come up with solutions for them. It is something i will definitely recommend for future Year 1s.

Tutorials
It is definitely true to say that the tutorial assignments which we had were enriching as they taught me the many more functions of MS Words that i had not been aware of before. Applying the skills to the MS Words Proposal for PBL 1 was also somewhat an enjoyable process as it felt very good to see a much better looking professional proposal as compared to the ones i had done before. However, i feel tutorials could be more engaging by allowing more communications between the tutor and students as our tutorials were relatively boring with the exception of the assignments every tutorial.

Tutor
I have to say that Mr Leong's feedback for PBL 1 gave us great motivation to work even harder for PBL 2 as we knew what we had to improve on and thus, had a clearer goal throughout the process of coming up with solutions to the various problems. He provided us with constructive advise for both PBLs and welcomed questions all the time. However, i felt that he could have provided us with more guidance before we commenced on both PBLs, such as introducing the main concepts of each PBL and advising us on the required fields for each solution. Still, i thought he did a relatively good job in general.

Syllabus
The overall syllabus covered was very good as it touched on many important areas and enriched my knowledge of computers, softwares and hardwares, and certainly covered more areas than i had expected.

Macromedia
This assignment was definitely one of the most interesting assignment of all as it allowed us to explore deeper into creating websites and the use of flash. The use of Flash especially, is something i felt caught more of my interest than dreamweaver as the final product was more beautiful than the actual website itself:) The skills which i gained from this assignment will without a doubt, serve as a stepping stone for future advances in these areas, especially now that the society is so e-based and managing a business without having websites seem almost impossible.

Out of all assignments and both PBLs, the one i truly enjoyed and appreciated most was the use of Flash as i mentioned above as i learnt a lot just by coming up with a short snippet of an introduction to my website.

The most useful thing i learnt from this module would of course, to be more computer savvy and to be capable of looking at my computer and being able to, in a way, see its inner side:)

As i have always mentioned, being able to work together with such a great team was always something i loved most. The groupwork made me grow by teaching me to be independent while allowing myself to trust others and being more open to opinions. Great teamwork made this whole process of CIP a truly enjoyable one, so thanks so much again to my group:)