Here are some random bits of advice/notes regarding the course:

1. The syllabus is a work-in-progress. Please review it daily as I will add things to it throughout the semester.
   
   
2. I'm experimenting with MP3 files on ASU on iTunes U this Fall. So you should subscribe to our class site, so you are notified when I put up a new file. Here's how. First, go to http://www.asu.edu/itunes/ Then click on ASURITE login here (it's right below the big Go To ASU on iTunes U button) and login.
   
   That should take you to the ASU on iTunes page (if not click on that button). Once you are on the page, scroll down towards the bottom of the page where it says Courses. If you scrolled down to Courses 2006-7, you've gone one section too far. Under the Courses area, you should find a button that says 2009 Fall. Click on it. That should take you to the page that shows the button for our class. Click on it. Then click on subscribe.
   
   
3. To get the most out of the course, you are going to need to watch the films more than once. My advice is to watch the film the first time strictly for pleasure. Then watch it a day or two later in a more analytical way.
   
   Personally, I prefer watching a movie before getting someone else's views on it. Thus, I am recommending that you watch the film Double Indemnity before listening to the 2 MP3 files I have uploaded for you that give you background on the film (and, thus, have some plot spoilers in them). So, if you've never seen the film—and like me you prefer to watch a film the first time without any preconceptions—don't listen to the MP3 files until after your first viewing.
   
   
4. You should take some notes about each film and text as we go along as you will naturally forget some of the details as the semester progresses. Both the midterm and the final will contain some questions that aim to simply test your knowledge of the film and text. Essentially, these are the questions that get at did you really read the text and watch film or did you just rely on summaries. Believe me, it quickly becomes evident who has and who hasn't.
   
   
5. There will be both homework forums and discussion forums for each adaptation that we cover. FYI, you won't be able to see your fellow students' responses to the homework questions until after the homework due date. I'll discuss the homework further in a separate link.
   
   Unlike the homework forums, the discussion forums will be transparent. I hope that you will really engage each other and me in your discussion/opinions about the texts/films. We have some excellent texts and films this semester that should inspire some compelling discussion. Not only is this one of the most enjoyable parts of the course but I believe it is one of the most valuable as well.
   
   Indeed, that is the reason why homework/discussion is weighted so heavily in determining your final grade. In addition to discussing the texts/films feel free to include questions and/or other information you know about them in the discussion forum. (By the way, I've tried to space the texts so that you have shorter ones between the longer ones.)
   
   
6. When you turn in your homework responses, I require you to cut and paste them into your post because this makes it much easier for me to review them without having to open each attachment separately. However, you should always compose your homework responses in your Word Processing program and then cut and paste them into your response. The reason for this is that blackboard has been known to crash and it is really disheartening to lose an hour's work because blackboard crashed and you have no way of recovering your response. At least if your computer crashes, you can often recover most of the file you were working on.
   
   
7. Another bit of advice regarding homework: Don't try and answer the questions in one sitting. Instead, do a question or two a day. Typically, this will result in better responses.
   
   
8. It's never too soon to start thinking about ideas for your paper. One thing that you may want to consider writing about is comparing various adaptations of the text as many of them have been adapted more than once.
   
   
9. I do not accept late homework. If you know ahead of time that you are going to have a problem with a due date, notify me early on and I can usually give you an extension. If there is some last minute problem, that may not be the case.
   
   
10. Email. Be sure to check your ASU email regularly. When I send out email updates to the class via blackboard, the emails go to your ASU gmail account. Please do not ask me to send them to another of your accounts. If you like, you can arrange to have your ASU email forwarded to another email account that you check regularly. However, if you do so, it is still your responsibility (not mine) to make sure it works effectively.
    
    When emailing me early in the semester, please identify the course (e.g. ENH 332 online) you are enrolled in. Eventually, I'll get everyone's names down, but early in the semester it can be confusing with over a hundred new students in the various film courses I'm teaching, particularly, when I'm teaching more than one section of the same course.
    
    
11. Sometimes students mistakenly assume that since this course is about film it will be fun and easy. They are only half right. The course is fun; however, it is also challenging. To do well in the course you will have to apply yourself and really engage with the material. Trust me, the midterm and the final require that you really know the texts/films in order to get a passing grade. However,
    if you do truly engage yourself with the material, the homework, and the discussion, you will not only enjoy the course but also learn a great deal.
    
    
12. Again, welcome to the class. I am really looking forward to getting to know you all and to discussing these texts and films with you.