[Note: if you have not yet provided your instructor with your netid, please do so now via email.] 

We will be using Microsoft's Visual Studio.NET (VS.NET) integrated development environment (IDE) for C# programming.  It's what I will demonstrate in class, and it's what you will use to develop your own programs and turn in homework assignments.  

Unfortunately, VS.NET is a large and complex software package.  Rather than have you install it on your own machine, and to avoid problems with installing it on public machines distributed around campus, we have installed it on three servers that you will be able to login to as a client.  In order to do this, you will have to install on your machine the client software, which is called Terminal Services Client.  This is a relatively small application and is very easy to install; see the installation instructions below.

Alternatively, you can use one of Yale's machines:  All Windows 2000 machines in public clusters have the client installed.  This means that at least one machine in every dorm, most of CCL, all of Connecticut hall, etc. have the client on them.  (The machines in Dunham Lab are being upgraded and should all be running Windows 2000 within about two weeks.)

Installing TS (Terminal Services) Client on your own PC

The installation method outlined below was causing some problems on certain platforms, so here is an alternative that should work on any platform:

1. Click here and "unzip" the file.  (The method of unzipping may vary from machine to machine, but basically the file should be "extracted" into some known directory, such as your "Temp" directory on your hard drive.)
2. Once unzipped, you should see two folders: "disk1" and "disk2".
3. Open the folder "disk1" and double-click on the file "setup" or "setup.exe".
4. Follow the installation instructions.

Here are the original installation instructions, which seem to work best on Windows 2000 machines:

If you are running Windows 95 or Windows 98, do the following:

1. First click here.  In the dialog box that then appears, choose "run from its current location", and follow the installation instructions.
2. Then click here.  In the dialog box that then appears, choose "run from its current location", and follow the installation instructions.

If you are running Windows NT, do the following:

1. First click here.  In the dialog box that then appears, choose "run from its current location", and follow the installation instructions.
2. Then click here.  In the dialog box that then appears, choose "run from its current location", and follow the installation instructions.

If you are running Windows ME (Millennium Edition) or Windows 2000, do the following:

1. Simply click here.  In the dialog box that then appears, choose "run from its current location", and follow the installation instructions.

If you have any problems with the installation process, please contact your TA or instructor.

Running TS Client

Once installed, you can run the TS Client by going to Task Bar | Programs | Terminal Services Client | Terminal Services Client.  A dialogue box should pop up which looks more-or-less like this:

Then:

1. In the "Server:" box, type either "cs112-a.cs.yale.edu", "cs112-b.cs.yale.edu", or "cs112-c.cs.yale.edu".  (These are the three servers.  If one starts behaving sluggishly, you can log out and try another.)
2. Choose a screen area (I usually use the same screen area as my PC, but you may want to choose one size less than that).
3. Click "Connect".
4. You will then see a blue screen, and a warning about this only being available for CS112 students; click "OK".
5. Next you will see a login panel:  Type your netid and password, and select "Yale" in the "Log on to:" box.
6. Click "OK".

At this point you should see a window that looks like a normal Windows window -- everything that you do in this window (which I will refer to as the TSClient Window) is actually running on the server.  When you are finished with your session, go to the Task Bar in the TSClient Window and log out.  The nice thing is that the Terminal Server will remember where you are, so you can even log out in the middle of a VS.NET session.

Speaking of VS.NET, it is sitting on the desktop in the TSClient Window as a yellow/red/blue icon with the label "Microsoft Visual Studio.NET 7.0".  If you double-click on this, VS.NET will begin running as a normal Windows application.  Details on using VS.NET are provided in the Deitel textbook.  If you get an error when trying to start VS.NET, please send me email by clicking here.

Note:

[New!]

When you create a new project in VS.NET, a dialogue box appears that asks you for a location in which to store the project.  You should use the following location:

\\cs112-a\cs112\yournetid\Visual Studio Projects

where "yournetid"  is replaced with your actual netid.