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If it's a university, then entry is based upon the combination of your SAT or ACT score and your application letter. It has nothing to do with high school.

Incorrect. Some schools stopped requiring standardized test scores (SAT/ACT) years ago for undergraduate admissions. And I don't know of a U.S. university that will admit an undergraduate student who doesn't have a high school diploma, GED, or proof of secondary education. Three examples, one private, two public (not including my alma mater, which also had the same requirements):

Carnegie Mellon University

University of Virginia

University of Maryland/University College (UMUC) -- also doesn't require the SAT/ACT for "most" degree programs

UMUC BS CS. UMUC is the online/extension arm of the University of Maryland.

The specific degree isn't important if you are trying to get past the HR filter. University of Maryland (UMUC) http://www.umuc.edu/students/academics/ has online programs. A lot of US military personnel take courses without ever being on campus.

I've been thinking about doing a security related degree, and University of MD University College (UMUC) has both a Master of Science in Information Technology: Information Assurance & a Master of Science in Cybersecurity. The Cybersecurity one, to me, looks like it's for people who already work for the government, which is not me, so I'm leaning towards the IA. (The IA has also been around for a while while Cybersecurity starts this fall.) If anyone has any thoughts on either of these I'd be interested. If not, maybe someone else will find the links useful!
http://www.umuc.edu/programs/grad/msit/information_systems_assurance.shtml
http://www.umuc.edu/programs/grad/csec/index.shtml

I've been thinking about doing a security related degree, and University of MD University College (UMUC) has both a Master of Science in Information Technology: Information Assurance & a Master of Science in Cybersecurity. The Cybersecurity one, to me, looks like it's for people who already work for the government, which is not me, so I'm leaning towards the IA. (The IA has also been around for a while while Cybersecurity starts this fall.) If anyone has any thoughts on either of these I'd be interested. If not, maybe someone else will find the links useful!
http://www.umuc.edu/programs/grad/msit/information_systems_assurance.shtml
http://www.umuc.edu/programs/grad/csec/index.shtml

I've been seeing ads for a new degree program in "cybersecurity" at UMUC (second-career oriented portion of the University of Maryland). But I really wonder how effective such a degree could be if the person in the program isn't required to do some basic programming. From what I can tell, they aren't... they take "network essentials" and classes that include "penetration testing," but if the graduates of this kind of program are up against skilled hackers who are comfortable with bit-banging, I guess we're kind of screwed.

Because we don't call our schools "University College"?

Mitchell314, meet University of Maryland University College.

My dad got a degree in a technical field--CS or something related, IIRC--and he never even had to take a calculus class at all. He took classes overseas while in the military through UMUC. It does happen.

This is an economics blog, so you tell me: why don't the computer companies compete on boot-speed?

7 to 10 years ago that might have been a problem but these days with people booting at most once or twice a day (and the majority just putting their laptops to sleep or not turning their machines off at all) I don't see why we should even be discussing this topic.

I can't. No one can; there are simply too many. But I have a few strategies.

None of which are acceptable. This person needs to learn more about security and a different way to go about handling their passwords. Based on the techniques I use I am able to remember every single password for every single site I use with 99% of them being different (I have some legacy passwords on sites that don't require security in the first place but that's because I'm lazy).

There will never be a global repository for public keys, for the same reason there isn't a single ID card in your wallet.

Never is a long time and just like the sci-fi writers of the past getting stuff wrong, this guy is likely to get this wrong as well. If the slippery slope continues to degrade as it has been for the last 7 years, I have a feeling that we will see a different world stage with the players running that stage handling things a little differently than we would have thought about 10 years ago or even today...

There are probably zillions of books and classes on basic computer and Internet skills, and I wouldn't even know where to begin to suggest one. Okay, that's a lie. I do know where to begin. I would Google "basic computer skills" and see what comes up.

This tutorial is the first hit. While interesting, I don't believe it's someone who is interested in learning basic computer skills is going to stumble across -- even if you told them what to do. I work with those that don't even have the most basic computer skills and believe me, when you tell them to Google something it isn't processed like it is by those that have at least some basic skills.

Maybe where you live, but not in the US. Go here for a collection of University policies on ownership of copyrights. You'll find few, if any, claim student works.

I've taken courses through University of Maryland University College which takes the cake as far as redundant names.

This is slightly offtopic, but I'm hoping some people will catch this question and give me their advice. Please resist the temptation to mod it down.

I work full time as a software engineer (eg, I design and write software). I graduated with a degree in CS and Economics a year and a half ago from a well-ranked state school, but my GPA wasn't very good. Getting married, getting a job, and growing up a bit has changed me a lot, though, and I want to increase my education.

I'm thinking of trying to get a Masters of Software Engineering (MSwE) from UMUC. I don't have the time or financial situation to go back to regular UMD for a MS in CS full-time, much as I would like to, and I've heard anecdotes that the department doesn't like to waste time on part-time students. And, frankly, I don't really care for another two years of algorithms - that's not what I'm interested in as a professional (although, obviously, I try to keep on top of new developments).

Is this worth my time? I don't want to spend 3 years on this, and then find out that employers see it as a joke degree, and actually have it _devalue_ me. But I would like to go back and get some graduate education, even if the school is less than stellar.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

-Erwos

"Ultimately, here is my take. A degree is a degree. Obviously the more recognized the name the better, but don't fret over that too much. Try to avoid programs that give "life credit" for working in a real job, or offer things like "Bachelor's Degree in Computer Studies"." For some folks with lots of military experience or those who have been working for a while this may be true. Experience is the key. My degree is from UMUC http://www.umuc.edu/. Before my hearing failed I took courses at the campus. Now that I can't do that I'm finishing the last course of my undergrad studies on-line. The school has lots of support for those in the military and any current military folks get the same rate for tuition as I get and I live in Maryland. My employer has paid for about the last third of my degree and isn't complaining about the course being on-line. I'm being qualified for a cochlear implant. If this lives up to the advertizing I'll be able to take courses at school again which is what I prefer. The advantages should be obvious: Three hours of the subject at hand without constant interruption (I have three kids), networking with others in the industry and the chance to meet other people in a mostly pleasant environment. Some courses at the college offer the advantages of both through the use of the same setup they use for on-line classes as a research and study aid. I find on-line courses a bit harder than traditional classes. The Professors don't give subtle hints about what to commit to memory and what to skim over. You manage your time carefully and interact in the class or you get docked 10% of your grade. It's real easy to goof off if you are so inclined. Some Professors spend lots of time with the class and actively participate and some seem to do as little as they can get away with - the first group I suspect enjoy the format where the second bunch does not. I have been given a chance to finish what I started a while back. Without on-line courses I'd be out of luck. I'm considering graduate school as the next step. I may go back to UMUC. A lot depends on how much of my hearing is restored beteen now and then. I need the implant as much for professional reasons as for academic reasons. I also have in the back of my mind that wherever the degree comes from there are employers that may not require a degree from you but that add it to the group of considerations that ultimately result in your being hired. If you want the degree and are short on options an on-line degree isn't a bad option at all. Just make sure of the reputation of the college or university and of your own commitment to the degree completion.

That's nothing though - there's a California University of Pennsylvaia located in the wonderful town of California, Pennsylvania. It is a legitimate college, however the name is very misleading. They're neither California University nor the University of Pennsylvania.

I think the biggest joke has to be the University of Maryland University College. It's not named after a city in another state, but is it a University or a College? Is it affiliated with the University of Maryland? Why does 'University' appear twice in it's name?

"Where did you go to school?"

"I went to the Stanford College University of Arizona University College of Texas University College, in Montana"

The current UMUC tuition per semester hour is $423 for undergraduates. It's more for graduates. Tuition would be less than this for Maryland residents or active-duty military.

The current UMUC tuition per semester hour is $423 for undergraduates. It's more for graduates. Tuition would be less than this for Maryland residents or active-duty military.

The current UMUC tuition per semester hour is $423 for undergraduates. It's more for graduates. Tuition would be less than this for Maryland residents or active-duty military.

I am currently attending UMUC and majoring in computer science, and their online courses are good.

Off then to Africa to get me a member of either the San or Khwe tribes who talk by making clicking noises. Maybe I can install linux on one of them!! Either that, or maybe a dolphin...

IIRC, it's more of a rule of thumb than actual law. I first saw it on a sign posted in my uni's library. There were differing amounts for each type of work. For text, it was 1000 words or 10%, whichever is less (IIRC, there was no entry for source code, so I just went with text, and only mentioned 10%, as ``words'' really don't apply to code). I Googled around to confirm the numbers, and found quite a few sites mentioning it.

A search for "1000 words" "fair use" should bring up plenty of results. This chart is a pretty good source. Here's another one (you'll have to scroll down quite a bit on this one tho).

Again, it seems mostly like a widely-used rule of thumb than actual law, but it seems like a good guideline. And even if it didn't really apply, the other provisions of fair use do.

So the Word team organized a special dev team that focused entirely on WordPerfect document import, "reverse-engineering" the WordPerfect file format .... but in particular their goal was to have no errors at all on printer.tst. Later the Word sales force used that same file when talking to customers as proof that Word 6.0 could open WordPerfect files flawlessly.

So what changed? Word of today does not open WordPerfect files -- hell, it doesn't even open Microsoft Works files! He seems to understand that this is a huge deal to users, but the modern Word program ignores this basic need.

For instance, I teach a class online. Part of the requirement is that students submit papers throughout the semester. Being an open minded and computer literate kinda guy, my syllabus allowed students to submit papers in any common file format.... Only to find that Word XP garbles anything that's not Word -- even other Microsoft products! Unbelievable. Fortunately, I have access to WP and OfficeStar -- but even then, opening Works files was nigh impossible until I found that one of my old laptops came pre-installed with it.

So I guess I just don't get it -- he understands the issue but ignores the solution. A perfect example of why Word is the choice we live with rather then the choice we desire.

University of Maryland University College has just such an accreditation; it also has an extensive online curriculum. I have seriously considered going back to school with them (but haven't yet, so I can't comment on their quality. But the advantage of the accreditation puts them head-n-shoulders above every other online Uni that I've found, at least in the US.)

University of Maryland University College has just such an accreditation; it also has an extensive online curriculum. I have seriously considered going back to school with them (but haven't yet, so I can't comment on their quality. But the advantage of the accreditation puts them head-n-shoulders above every other online Uni that I've found, at least in the US.)

University of Maryland University College has just such an accreditation; it also has an extensive online curriculum. I have seriously considered going back to school with them (but haven't yet, so I can't comment on their quality. But the advantage of the accreditation puts them head-n-shoulders above every other online Uni that I've found, at least in the US.)

For example, you can get undergad degrees in programs like accounting, business administration, computer and information science, english, environmental management, fire science, history, human resource management, humanities, information systems management, legal studies, management studies, marketing, psychology, and social science.

Most Universities have no way to support someone who is a full-time employee and a full-time student. They will schedule all the classes during the day when you can't make it.

My wife is currently getting her second BS in Computer and Information Science while she works full-time through the University of Maryland University College. They are a leader in online education, and you can take all your classes for this degree online.

Next semester she's taking Unix Systems Administration, and after that I'm going to give her root and let her admin our servers ;)

Most Universities have no way to support someone who is a full-time employee and a full-time student. They will schedule all the classes during the day when you can't make it.

My wife is currently getting her second BS in Computer and Information Science while she works full-time through the University of Maryland University College. They are a leader in online education, and you can take all your classes for this degree online.

Next semester she's taking Unix Systems Administration, and after that I'm going to give her root and let her admin our servers ;)

Check out this write-up.

Wireless cost benefit analysis done by a university.

I started my current round of torture (otherwise known as graduate school) back in January of 1998. In that time I have actually come to respect some of the thinkers in the business management community. Right now I'm enrolled in a class that (so far) deals with "discontinuous change". Comparisons have been made between this type of change and incremental change.

I'm sure we all would love to have stability and be able to plan out our projects to their proper conclusion - some small changes along the way wouldn't necessarily hurt. So far this class has shown me that we no longer live in that kind of world. That world passed about 100 years ago. Now we face challenges from people we didn't know existed and change occurs faster than ever. Sometimes these managers don't cut off development because they want to screw people over or because they're incompetent. Sometimes they do it because they see threats or opportunities out there and want to take action to deal with it. That can mean they would ask technical people like us to make major adjustments or take a whole different path altogether. It's not necessarily the case management puts up with quick and dirty solutions - it's because they need something to deal with any urgent issues that arise.

I hate this kind of change as much as the next person. But would you want to deal with this change yourself? Someone else posted earlier that he'd rather have others deal with policy, research and management and he'll deal with the "coalface".

I think that, on top of being frustrated with projects being cut off at the knees, people are frustrated with not knowing what is the overall reality they have to deal with. That's part of my reason for going for my MS degree - so I'd be better clued in as to what is happening with me and my org and be able to possibly do something about it.

Is a Computer Science degree the only way to go? If you can be more flexible, check out the online degree programs at University of Maryland University College. You could, say, get a BS in Computer & Information Science; supplement this with a calculus sequence at a local school and you should be set to move on to a MSc. in CS. Or, with a BS in any subject, look at UMUC's MS in Software Engineering...

Check out the University of Maryland University College . They have an excellent program to give you college credit for documentable practical experience.

The Catholic Church was all for teenage boy bands.

They called them choirs and the singers were eunuchs or castrati (no testicles for you!) Because the boys never got the puberty boost of testosterone their larynxes never dropped and their voices stayed sweet and girl-like.

We probably should be calling N*SYNC - N*NUTS
(They would have had to have this done before they hit puberty of course.)
http://faculty.ed.umuc.edu/~jmatthew/naples/Castra ti.html
http://www.cix.co.uk/~velluti/cast.htm
http://wa.essortment.com/castratihistory_rzna.htm

check out University of Maryland University College, or Continuing Ed at UMass Lowell.

See their main page, and also the Distance Education page.

See their main page, and also the Distance Education page.