[Index of Problem Sets]

Problem Set 06—Notes and link to solution

Here are some general comments about Problem Set 6.

At some point in the course each of you needs to transition from following the recipe to actually using the recipe. Some of you already have. But at this point in the course we start to see a symptom of just following the recipe start to crop up &emdash; when the problems get hard some people start dropping recipe elements. For many people that is problem set 6.

Remember, you were never writing the recipe elements for us. You were writing them so that when the problems get hard they would be there to help you.

• We write the signature first because it really helps to be clear in our minds what type of data the function consumes and produces. If it isn't completely clear to you then you can go past the signature and come back, but don't ignore the signature!
• We write the purpose next because it really helps to start crystalizing more about what the function produces.
• The examples which will LATER become tests also help us get more clear about what the function does. The harder and more confusing the function is the more time you should spend on the examples. For really hard functions you might spend hours on the examples before going on to the template.
• We don't any longer require you to write an @template as part of the function design, but you very much still should figure out a template origin strategy and write a template. Ignore the template is like saying ``No, I'm not going to bother thinking about what this function has in common with other functions, I'm just going to start banging away and see what I come up with.'' The harder the problems get the less well that approach is going to work.

So the main feedback on problem set 6 is that it was much easier to do if you allowed the recipe to help you get there. Remember that, going forward the problems become much harder especially in modules 9, 10 and 11. You learned the recipe so it could help you &emdash; let it!

The solution for this problem set is:

• pset-06-solution.rkt