As soon as possible after being accepted into an upcoming Deep Dive Coding Java+Android Bootcamp program, all students should start on the pre-work, which is broken down into the following sections:
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System accounts (Complete by 3 weeks before bootcamp start date.)
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Introduction to coaches & instructors (Complete by 3 weeks before bootcamp start date.)
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Environment preparation (Complete by 2 weeks before bootcamp start date.)
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Basic Java tutorials (Complete by 1 week before bootcamp start date.)
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Other tutorials & assignments (Complete by the start of class.)
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Final preparations (Complete by the start of orientation.)
As a general rule of thumb, expect to spend about 60 hours on the pre-work—which must be completed prior to the first day of class. Unless explicitly noted in the instructions, completion of all tutorials and other tasks in the pre-work is required.
Failure to complete
The consequences of a failure to complete the pre-work depend mostly on how much pre-work has been completed, the diligence of the student in communicating any issues encountered along the way, and the responsiveness of the student to status inquiries and offers of assistance from instructors and staff.
In some cases, a success plan may be put in place to help the student manage their time towards completion of outstanding pre-work during the first week of class. (There will not be time available in class for completion of any outstanding pre-work, and the student will still be expected to complete the regularly assigned homework and in-class work.) This option will not be available under any of the conditions listed immediately below.
Barring an unforeseen emergency, any of the following conditions will result in the student being dismissed from the bootcamp prior to orientation or prior to the start of class:
- The student has not completed environment preparation prior to 1 week before the start of class, and does not respond to requests for a status update within 2 days after that cutoff.
- The student has not completed environment preparation prior to orientation.
- The student has not completed the Java and Git tutorials prior to the start of class.
- The student has not completed the syllabus quiz prior to the start of class.
- The student has not completed the first draft of the personal Android project proposal prior to the start of class.
Other notes
Important: When typing commands shown in the instructions, or creating folders and files with specified names, always assume that spelling, delimiters, and casing (use of upper- and lower-case characters) are important.
System accounts
Complete by 3 weeks before bootcamp start date.
The first thing you will need to do is create (or request) accounts on the key systems that we’ll be using in the rest of the pre-work and early in the course. Complete the items in this section as early as possible after registering for the bootcamp.
Apply as a CNM non-traditional student
Activate CNM email service
Create a JetBrains account
Create a GitHub account
Create a CodingBat account
Introduction to coaches & instructors
Complete by 3 weeks before bootcamp start date.
Our instructors, coaches, and managers want to get to know you before you begin the bootcamp.
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After setting up your accounts, please fill out the “DDC Coaching Form”. Note that you may be required to log in with your CNM credentials, in order to view and complete this form.
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If you have not already done so, please contact our Student Success Manager, Sue Andres. Sue would like to meet with you as soon as possible to learn more about you and your goals. Establishing an early relationship with your coach allows us to personalize your success plan. Please let Sue know when you would like to meet so she can coordinate with you and her schedule. Sue can be reached at sandres1@cnm.edu.
Important: After contacting Sue to set up a meeting, please proceed with the remaining pre-work, even before you’ve had your meeting with Sue.
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Some of you have already communicated with Nick Bennett and Todd Nordquist, the bootcamp instructors. However, to help them get a clearer picture on the makeup of the cohort, please fill out—if you have not already done so—the “Development environment & experience/education” survey.
Environment preparation
Complete by 2 weeks before bootcamp start date.
Before completing the pre-work reading, tutorials, and exercises, you must install the required software components. Note that just this core set of tools will require 15GB+ of disk space, and you might end up needed at least that much more for your exercises and projects during the bootcamp; we recommend starting with 50GB of disk space free.
For best results, perform all of the environment preparation steps in the order listed.
We recognize that many of these installation steps are complicated, and can fail in unanticipated ways. We’re committed to doing all we can to help students succeed, and this includes helping resolve any installation issues. However, it’s the student’s responsibility to ask for help in a timely fashion—i.e. with sufficient time to address the issue prior to the start of the bootcamp. As a rule, we will not be able to dedicate time in class to installation of the tools listed here.
Also, please note that the final step in environment preparation, “Meet with instructors for environment preparation review”, is one of the critical milestones in the pre-work: If a student has not completed that step by at least one week prior to the start of class, and has not contacted us regarding issues that are delaying or preventing completion—and particularly if we are unable to reach that student to check on their progress—the student may be dismissed from the bootcamp prior to orientation.
Important note on OneDrive for Windows users
We strongly recommend that your bootcamp directory not be included in the folders synchronized via OneDrive (or via any other continuous backup tool). Further, issues arising from OneDrive conflicts will not be considered grounds for deadline extensions on assignments, tests, or projects. During the environment preparation phase of the pre-work, instructors will make every effort to help students modify their OneDrive configuration (if applicable) to avoid such conflicts, but it is each student’s individual responsibility to ensure that their system configuration (including OneDrive and other cloud backup/synchronization services) is set up and maintained in accordance with the requirements of the bootcamp.
Bootcamp directory structure
Git
SSH key generation and GitHub configuration
Java Development Kit (JDK) 11
Java Development Kit (JDK) 17
Android SDK
IntelliJ IDEA Ultimate
Google Style Guide plug-ins
Postman
Flowgorithm (Windows only)
Lightweight text editor
Password manager
Meet with instructors for environment preparation review
Basic Java tutorials
Complete by 1 week before bootcamp start date.
In this portion of the course pre-work, you’ll get an introduction to basic concepts, syntax, and structures of the Java language, as well as a few key classes in the Java standard library. Please note that the expectation is not that you will learn Java through this pre-work introduction (after all, that’s the main point of the bootcamp itself); instead, you will be introduced to concepts and terminology that we will clarify and reinforce with the lectures and exercises in the bootcamp.
"Hello World!" with IntelliJ IDEA and GitHub
"Hello World!" in Android
Building blocks of the Java language
Other tutorials & assignments
Complete by the start of class.
Besides Java, it’s expected that participants in the course will have an introductory exposure to command line interfaces, Git, XML, and Markdown—all of which are used extensively in the bootcamp. The tutorials here are intended to provide a basic introduction to these topics.
Command-line interfaces & shells
Introduction to Git & Markdown
Introduction to HTML & CSS
Introduction to XML
Personal Android Project Proposal
Final preparations
Complete by the start of orientation.
There are some final steps which are best handled just before starting the bootcamp. There will be some time (but not a lot) in the orientation session to deal with any issues you might encounter in completing these steps.