What are the options for a CSE student if he does not want to go for IT sector?

It happens many a times, a choice you made with passion and commitment turns to be not a so good one some time later. One decides to become an engineer although he knows that he is an artist at heart. There are many reasons for that. May be u chose to becone engineering due to peer pressure and parental demand or any such reasons. But when time comes for second thought, one has to use that ocassion in a very deliberate manner. One should think through the whole consequence of staying in a field in which he/she has no inherent interest or making a new choice. This is NO doubt very difficult situation for person involved and all people concerned and may even be painful. But mistakes must be amended. Here are some instances where a person showed a need for making a change in career direction.

• Just after the announcement of final year results last year (2009), a passed out student came and told me " Sir, suggest me a career in which there is no programming".
• Another student told " At the heart of hearts, I know that I neither enjoy programming nor I can make justice to any programming career. I am looking out elsewhere"

In this context, the above question " What are the options for a CSE student if he does not want to go for IT sector?" become very pertinent. Please comment here. I expect answers within a broad specutrum. At one extreme it could be change of entire career path and on the other hand to stay back and continue in IT sector. In the middle it may a field which harness IT knowledge of our students.

Is it wise to take up a SAP course in this recession time??If yes which stream is in demand now??

WE have opened a new forum for answering our student questions. Here is the first one. You may answer this, add u r comment, provide informed guidance


Is it wise to take up a SAP course in this recession time??If yes which stream is in demand now??

Approximate Algorithms

Algorithm documents steps to be followed in the sequence in order to accomplish a goal. Be it adding two numbers or controlling a satellite involves algorithms. Much of the power for modern day gadgets comes because much of the work can be expressed as algorithms and gadgets can built-in with algorithms. For instance, in a mobile or a cell, the alarm feature is implemented using a simple algorithm which compares current time with alarm set time and beeps when they become same. Most of our day to day tasks can be expressed in terms of definite steps, there by be converted into algorithms. For instance, withdrawing money in an ATM involves a definite set of actions. However, there are some situations and challenges in which a definite answers can not be possible. Technically such situations are called NP-Complete. Approximate algorithms are used in those context. An algorithm returning a near-optimal solution is called approximate algorithm. This technique does not guarantee the best solution. The goal of an approximation algorithm is to come as close as possible to the optimum value in a reasonable amount of time which is at most polynomial time. To know more about them, see the followings

1. Approximate Algorithms

2. Approximate algorithms

3. Approximate Algorithms

XDR™2 Memory Architecture

The XDR™2 memory architecture is the world's fastest memory system solution capable of providing twice the peak bandwidth per device when compared to a GDDR5-based system. Further, the XDR2 memory architecture delivers this performance at 30% lower power than GDDR5 at equivalent bandwidth.

Designed for scalability, power efficiency and manufacturability, the XDR2 architecture is a complete memory solution ideally suited for high-performance gaming, graphics and multi-core compute applications.

Initial systems can achieve memory bandwidths of over 500GB/s into an SoC. Each XDR DRAM can deliver up to 38.4GB/s of peak bandwidth from a single, 4-byte-wide, 9.6Gbps XDR2 DRAM device, and the XDR2 architecture supports a roadmap to device bandwidths of over 50GB/s.
Capable of data rates of 6.4 to 12.8Gbps, the XDR2 architecture is the latest generation in the award-winning family of XDR products. With backwards compatibility to XDR DRAM, the XDR2 architecture is part of a continuously compatible roadmap, offering a path for both performance upgrades and system cost reductions.

Courtsey: Jeevan
More information http://www.rambus.com/us/products/xdr2/index.html

To be certified or not to be certified?: DEBATE

With uncertainty in job market and with no "definite word" from campus recruiters students are bit worried but have started exploring possible ways forward. One of the paths they wish to explore is earning some certification such as SAP,DB2, CCNE to name the few. In this context, we have initiated a debate and consider the following questions.

• Should one go for certification at all ?
• If so when, while he/she is still a student or after graduation?
• Which certification to be considered ?

SAP

DB2

CCNE etc

Kindly share your views, opinions, comments and recommendations so that junior can make an "informed" decision.

Know Your Engineering Self

Over the last six semester each one of you have been exposed to over a dozen of core computer courses such as programming, algorithms, data structure to name the few. Undergoing these courses might have produced different feelings in each one of you. Some one might have liked programming and other might have been fascinated by data structure. Same can be said about all other courses. Although all course are essential and important, they are not equally appealing all. Last year, a passed out student asked me to suggest a career that has no "programming" in it". While I appreciated the student's frankness in acknowledging her disliking to programing, it also revealed an essential fact that not all computer science course are every one's cup of tea. Sooner one finds his cup of tea -i.e course to which he has aptitude, the better position he is in to go ahead in career. So the point is some may like algorithm so much so that they can find a project that involves a design and analysis of a new algorithms.

But one thing is true of every student: you have imbibed those computer courses to different degrees, varying levels and appreciate them in different ways. The sum total of impact created by these courses on you is your engineering self.

This engineering self must be the basis of your project work decision. It must be the starting point. It must be used as " foundation" to build up your project idea and even your career domain. The project work should be used to transform your engineering self into effective professional self.

Final year project work: The Purpose

The overall purpose of an engineering project work is very clear.

• A chance to compose a task to make use of all you have learnt in the previous years in some meaningful way to produce something useful. For instance you may come out with a project idea that uses the knowledge and skills that you have learnt in the data structure, algorithms and DBMS courses. Or it may use your knowledge of compiler design or networking theory or protocol. The list "ideally" includes all courses that you have undergone in the previous semesters.
• Well , if all that project work uses or demands is your previous learning, then it would not be interesting at all if not thrilling. All the exams of previous semesters must have already tested your skills in those subjects. So what is more a project is expected in a project work is the additional learning it prescribes in order to complete the project successfully. For instance you might have learnt some network protocols, but implementing them in a project needs further learning on it actually behaves in real-world situations. Another example is that your project may be implemented using Java and but implementing certain features make you learn AJAX or such similar tool.
• But most important objective of a project work is that it provides a chance to test your engineering self. (more on this in next post)

Of Final year project

Final year engineering students everywhere are preoccupied with project works and they are right in being so. Project work represent an entirely different ball game compared to all kinds of work they have done in the previous 3 years or 6 semesters. Project work is totally new to them and is a clean slate to begin from. It is unstructured, open-ended and a blank canvas. Earlier they have been used to theory and lab courses. Theory courses came with a predefined syllabus and prescribed text book(s). Lab works are described as "term works" to be done in the lab. Compared to them project work is a completely strange proposal. Even the strategies they had adopted to meet the challenges of theory courses and lab works - namely choosing chapters for study or testing luck with selected term works may not be helpful here. What is more important to note that, each student handled this task- preparing for theory and lab exams in his/her own way. It was a common goal (successful completion of theory and lab course) and a personal approach or strategy. On the contrary project work demands the determination of common goal and group approach.

Over the last few days, I have seen students coming together to form batches, explore domains to choose project from and criteria to choose a project and determine its worthiness. In the following blogs, I shall be presenting my ideas on how to go about project work.

Final Year Project Work: Seeking senior's input

As you all know it too well project work in the final year represents one of the most important and also a difficult task for most students. Unlike the theory and lab courses in the previous semesters, project work is altogether is a different ball game. Since senior students had once faced this challenge, and " had been there and seen that" experience, they can share it with current students. In particular you may help them in

• Knowing all the project options open to them
• Criteria to choose a project
• which project is good one: application/implementation(protocol/algorithm)
• Which domain: networking, databases
• Which way to go: Open source/proprietary

Kindly provide u r inputs as comments this blog

Active Directory: Information & details sought

One of the current batch students are doing a project that involves ACTIVE DIRECTORY component. In case u know any information about it, its applications, advantages, references, Kindly add them as comments here