Using WebAssign

WebAssign is a web-based homework system we will be using for most of the homework. There is an excellent guide to using WebAssign on the WebAssign web site - please read through this before submitting the first assignment.

Please contact Prof. Duffy if you have any problems, particularly if you have problems logging in.

The web address for WebAssign is:
http://webassign.net/student.html
You need a WebAssign access code. This comes bundled with the textbook (look for a cardboard package about the size of a CD) if you buy the text at the BU Bookstore. If you have a textbook from another source you can also purchase an access code for $11.95 directly from WebAssign with a credit card. To do this log into WebAssign using the information below and then hit the button for registering with a credit card.

You will need to enter three pieces of data to log on to WebAssign or to order an access code from WebAssign. These are:
Username: Use your regular acs login name
Institution name: bu
Password:
Your password is your BU student number in the form U12345678. No dashes or spaces!

** Note that if you have used WebAssign previously at BU, such as in Chemistry, then WebAssign will be looking for your old password.

Getting the most out of WebAssign

You have six chances to submit each assignment. Use your submissions wisely. Note that you can submit the answers to each question individually - you do not need to fill in answers for the whole assignment first. Each time you submit, WebAssign tells you whether you are right or wrong, and then you get more chances to correct anything you got wrong.

Things to keep in mind when using WebAssign:

• Start early.
• Come to office hours for help.
• Feel free to work together with other students, but try to do as much as you can on your own.
• Do not hit the refresh button on your browser - that can count as a submission.

WebAssign offers several advantages over traditional paper homework. These include:

• Numbers and variables can be randomized, so nobody can simply copy answers from anyone else.
• Grading is done automatically, so everyone is treated equally and your grade is recorded soon after the assignment deadline.
• The teaching fellows can spend less time grading and more time in office hours helping you.

In general WebAssign expects numerical answers to be within 1% of the correct answer, so do not round off until the very end.