From: Christopher Potts
Date: July 3, 2011 18:11:17 MDT
To: Class list
Subject: LING7800-007: Computational Pragmatics

Computational Pragmaticists!

This is the first mailing for the LSA Institute course LING7800-007: Computational Pragmatics. I'm writing with a few preliminary notes about the class.

Here's the website:

http://compprag.christopherpotts.net/

I'll be putting all the materials there --- handouts, data, code, etc. The handouts will actually be webpages because this makes copying and pasting code very easy and because the flexible layout is useful for large tables and diagrams.

The materials there are probably buggy right now, but they are still worth browsing if you're so inclined.

Check out the overview first:

http://compprag.christopherpotts.net/overview.html

It explains my general thinking about the course.  It's also meant to put your mind at ease if you're new to programming. (The other pages are sort of dense with code.)

I hope you'll have your own computers while at the Institute.  If you will, then please do install Python, NLTK, and R. Here's a direct link to detailed instructions about what to install and how to test your set-up:

http://compprag.christopherpotts.net/overview.html#tools

If you won't have your own computer with you, or if you're just not that into programming, then fear not --- there are interesting paths through the course that don't involve any programming.  That said, writing code and dealing directly with the data will make for a more rewarding experience.

I made up a *very short* online survey to help me get a sense for where you all are coming from in terms of pragmatics, programming, and hardware:

http://compprag.christopherpotts.net/survey/

It would be great if you did that soon (though no worries if you don't get to it before Friday).

In case you start browsing the material and get prompted for a username and password:

username: [contact instructor]
password: [contact instructor]

Feel free to drop me a note if you have any questions.  See you on Friday!

---Chris