Free Stanford Classes

yoursecretninja · **Posted:** Sat Sep 03, 2011 1:59 pm

I'm sure some of you have seen that Stanford University is offering three free courses as part of a new experiment this fall. And for those that haven't heard you may be interested. The classes are here:

http://www.ai-class.com Artificial intelligence
http://www.ml-class.com Machine learning
http://www.db-class.com Databases

Is anyone here taking these classes this fall? Personally I'm going to be taking all three as I'm not heading back to uni until January semester. Registration is already open for the AI class and the other two classes should be opening up soon but you can register your email address with them so they know how many people are interested in taking the courses.

Cheers!

ultimatebuster · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 10:50 am

I'm in high school.. Is it bad if I really want to take the advanced class?.. (AI/Machine learning)

ProgrammingFun · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:31 am

ultimatebuster @ Sun Sep 04, 2011 10:50 am wrote:

I'm in high school.. Is it bad if I really want to take the advanced class?.. (AI/Machine learning)

I'm also interested (and also in highschool)...do they give a degree or something upon completion?

Amailer · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:34 am

4. Will students receive a Stanford certificate or grade for completing the course?
No. You will receive a statement of accomplishment from the instructor, which will include information on how well you did and how your performance compared to other online students. Only students admitted to Stanford and enrolled in the regular course can receive credit or a grade, so this is not a Stanford certificate.

--

So no grade or anything, therefore even high school students can apply.

ProgrammingFun · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:34 am

Thanks...I just read that and was going to edit my post. Laughing

Amailer · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:35 am

I myself am interested in the Database class, can't take it however no time Sad

ProgrammingFun · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:37 am

Amailer @ Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:35 am wrote:

I myself am interested in the Database class, can't take it however no time Sad

I have no time either...but since it's free, I'm going to attempt all 3 (preping for extreme overloading)...and I'm gonna get my dad to register so he can fill in for me when I can't Mr. Green

Insectoid · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 12:26 pm

If I don't pick up a job this year I might enroll in AI or databases.

I can't find any info on what you need to know in order to complete this course successfully. Is it Java or C++? Is it even code-based, or just theory? Do I need to be familiar with oop?

The videos on the site are little more than "We have this badass awesome course". The registration page lists both basic and advanced tracks- Are the assignments optional, and those who do them get credit towards the advanced track? I have no idea how busy I'm gonna be this year, and I would like access to the assignments without any obligation to complete them.

Either way, registering can't cause any harm, so you might as well go ahead. I predict a colossal drop-out and failure rate due to the ease of enrolling but lack of commitment.

Also, I suggest reading the TOS.

Quote:

Registration and participation in the Initial Course Offering and Online Course is restricted to those individuals over 18 years of age

Your parents will have to give consent if you wish to take the course (I don't see why they wouldn't though).

EDIT: Found my answers in the FAQ. Go figure.

ProgrammingFun · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 12:40 pm

Insectoid @ Sun Sep 04, 2011 12:26 pm wrote:

EDIT: Found my answers in the FAQ. Go figure.

Are you gonna post them here or will I have to go there myself? Laughing

yoursecretninja · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 1:12 pm

Quote:

I can't find any info on what you need to know in order to complete this course successfully. Is it Java or C++? Is it even code-based, or just theory? Do I need to be familiar with oop?

Once you register you get access to the course outline. For AI it states that you should have a solid understanding of linear algebra and probability. It says you will be writing algorithms and should be familiar with a programming language but which one does not matter. Also, there are two tracks: An advanced track which is inline with the course students at Stanford are taking and a basic track which by the looks of it doesn't have any assignments and has simpler quizes.

Not sure what the deal with the database course is yet as registration is not yet open.

ProgrammingFun · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 6:08 pm

Just registered both myself (basic) and my dad (advanced). I really wanted to do advanced but I don't think I will have the time (though it would be good to know for any future game development) and I also want to do the database one.

Apparently, you can change options later so we'll see.

ultimatebuster · **Posted:** Sun Sep 04, 2011 11:13 pm

I'm doing advanced for sure. I believed I could do it (Got a month for linear algebra, Khan acadamy videos ftw? Also got a teacher that would probably teach me these stuff as required)

Does this course require calculus? (If not, I would still feel that all the calculus I learned is somewhat useless as I never used it... >.>)

Also this course is probably gonna help me with robocode, and (actual, physical) robots

Insectoid · **Posted:** Mon Sep 05, 2011 1:04 am

Yeah, calc is useless.

ultimatebuster · **Posted:** Mon Sep 05, 2011 9:24 am

Insectoid @ Mon Sep 05, 2011 1:04 am wrote:

Yeah, calc is useless.

...

My point is that I haven't used it yet.. >.>

Insectoid · **Posted:** Mon Sep 05, 2011 9:59 am

You probably won't use it much at all, if ever.

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