- Near the end of the first week of classes I will be setting up WeBWorK accounts; unfortunately they are not done automatically by the registrar. I will send email to your csufresno.edu address to confirm that your account is ready. After this, go to the WeBWorK site for your course (76 or 152) and log in.
- Your login name is your Fresno State e-mail username (e.g. if your e-mail address is abc@csufresno.edu, then your WeBWorK login name is abc)
- Your initial password is your Fresno State student ID number. It is NOT your e-mail password!
- It is recommended that you change your password by clicking on Password after logging in. You can also change the email address to which communications about the course, replies to your WeBWorK questions, etc. will go. Click on E-mail.
- You will see a list of homework sets to be completed. Click on any open set to work on that set. The set 0 is Introduction to WeBWorK. Even though there is a deadline listed, it does not count toward your grade for the course. Nonetheless, you are strongly urged to "play" with it in order to see how the system works.
- You do not have to complete an entire set in one session. Every time you submit a correct answer, the system will record your success and you will see 100% listed as your score, even if you log out and log back in later (some problems have multiple parts and will issue partial credit for some right answers. For example, if a problem requires 4 answers and you answer 3 of them correctly, your score for that problem will be displayed as 75%. Other problems do not give partial credit, such as matching questions).
- You can print out open sets (go to Homework Sets; choose a set, and click on Download Hardcopy), work on them wherever you like, and then log back in and submit your answers.
- As with any computer or calculator, you have to be careful with parentheses. E.g. if you want to enter
 , then you have to type (sin (2x) + 5)/(cos x - 3).
If you forget parentheses and enter sin 2x + 5/cos x - 3 it will be interpreted as  .
This is annoying at first, but it teaches you to use parentheses correctly!
- If you are unsure how to type a certain expression ("how do you type the square root of 3?"), there is a link to a list of functions WeBWorK understands on the sidebar of every assignment. For your convenience, clicking here will also take you to that list.
- You can view your scores by clicking on Grades.
- Almost every page in WeBWorK has an Email Instructor button. You can use this feature to e-mail me questions, explain how you did the problem, and ask what you did wrong.
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- My login and password don't seem to work.
If it is early in the term (first week of classes), your account may not be set up yet. Look for an email sent to your csufresno.edu address to confirm that your account is ready, then try again.
The login is case-sensitive. This means that if your login is abc4u and you type Abc4u or ABC4U, the system will not accept it. Be sure you are typing your login and password exactly as given.
Please note that your initial password is your 9- or 5-digit Fresno State ID number. It is not your email password. After you log in you may change your password to whatever you wish (make sure it is something you will remember!).
- I changed my password, and now I forgot it! What do I do?
Send me email, and I will reset your password.
- How do I type in cos²x?
If you are unsure how to type a certain expression, there is a link to a list of functions WeBWorK understands on the sidebar of every assignment. For your convenience, clicking here will also take you to that list. (To enter cos²x, type (cos x)^2. To enter square root of 3, type sqrt(3).)
- I used my calculator to do a problem, and I'm certain the answer is 1.414, but WeBWorK says it's wrong. What's going on?
WeBWorK expects exact answers whenever possible, or ones correct to 5 significant figures. So if the answer is the square root of 2, then 1.414 is not correct! Type in sqrt(2) instead.
- I clicked on Submit Answers, and it says I have 100% for the problem. Do I have to do anything else to get credit for the problem?
No. WeBWorK automatically saves your score every time you click Submit Answers. In fact, it saves your highest score for each problem. So if you have say, 75% on a problem, then later change one of your correct answers to a wrong answer, it will still record your score as 75%.
- WeBWorK sucks! Why are you making us do this?
Any computer-based system takes a bit of getting used to. Most students tell me that after some initial frustration, they ended up liking the system. I am always here to help if you have any problems.
I assign problems on WeBWorK for several reasons:
- It is a good way for you to get instant feedback on whether you are doing problems correctly. Fresno State no longer budgets for graders (and your poor professor does not have much extra time to grade homework herself!); with WeBWorK you can do problems of a computational nature, and I can focus on giving important feedback on your (shorter!) written homework.
- WeBWorK generates different numbers in a problem for each student, so I can make sure everyone is understanding the material, not just copying answers.
- The system makes it very easy for students to stay in touch with their professor. While I would love it if the whole class could come to my office hours and problem sessions every week, I recognize that this is not always possible. But everyone can email me for help on a WeBWorK problem.
- I finally got the right answer after 38 tries. I'm exhausted! Does the fact that I did the problem wrong 37 times affect my grade?
No. While the system does record the number of attempts for each student, I completely ignore this statistic. The only thing that matters is how many correct answers you have.
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