Spring 2026 Syllabus (Schedule)
Classes meet M W F 1:25 - 2:15pm in Lilley Library 006.
This contains a detailed explanation of course policies and the basis for grades.
This link jumps to the closest day to today's date. Review the schedule as we get
started to get a sense of how this course will work on a daily basis.
All the Tools You Need As We Begin:
Download and install the following software on your own personal computer(s) on or
before the first day of class. These software tools are available in our campus computing
labs, too.
- <oXygen/>.
(You will probably have this installed from DIGIT 100 or 110.) The DIGIT program has purchased a site license for this software, which
is installed in Burke 153, Kochel 77, the Lilley Library computers, and Witkowski 109, as well as the computer labs in Hammermill. The license also permits
students enrolled in the
course to install the software on their home computers (for course-related use
only). When installing this on your own computers, you will need the
license key, which we have posted on our course Announcements section of
Canvas.
- AntConc: (You may have this installed from DIGIT 100.)
Free corpus text analysis tool.
- We will ask you to install Python version 3.8 or
higher on your computer, and install PyCharm Edu to assist in learning and
writing Python code with syntax checking. Follow instructions and links from
Pycharm ( https://www.jetbrains.com/help/pycharm/quick-start-guide.html#meet ) paying attention to what you need for your own computer systems.
Feel free to download and explore Pycharm Edu on your own before we start
working with it together: https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm-edu/. Also, configure
Anaconda so it is available to work within Pycharm following this guide: https://www.jetbrains.com/help/pycharm/conda-support-creating-conda-virtual-environment.html. (We will provide guidance on this in class.)
- Zoom: Make sure your Zoom installation is up-to-date, and you are ready to
connect. Sometimes we will record portions of class meetings and tutorial sessions for future reference to share over Zoom. Look for these in Canvas Announcements and use the Zoom menu option in Canvas to access these meetings.
- We will use GitHub for for sharing code and for project management. Create an account (choose the free options) at the https://github.com and install the GitHub client software for your operating system on your own machine on your computer. (We will explain how to use git and GitHub this in our course.)
- We will use the Slack chat platform for discussion and for asking questions (see https://slack.com/help/articles/218080037-Getting-started-for-new-members). Download and install the Slack client, configuring your account to use use your Penn State email address (the official address, which looks like xyz123@psu.edu, and not an alias based on your name that you may have set up), so you can join our Slack workspace: DIGIT-coders. When you receive an invitation to join this workspace you should accept.
- Later in the semester we may ask you to install a local copy of the eXist-db
XML database, which you can download from https://exist-db.org/.
- Not much coding experience? Don’t worry! Past students
in this course
who never saw anything like markup or XML code have designed projects (like these) and even spoken about them at academic conferences! You will learn to develop
your own digital tools and how to manage digital projects as teamwork.
Class Web Resources:
| Week 1 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 01-12
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W 01-14
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F 01-16
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| Week 2 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 01-19
|
Martin Luther King Jr. Day: No classes. |
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W 01-21
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F 01-23
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| Week 3 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 01-26
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W 01-28
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F 01-30
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| Week 4 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 02-02
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W 02-04
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F 02-06
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| Week 5 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 02-09
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W 02-11
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F 02-13
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| Week 6 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 02-16
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W 02-18
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F 02-20
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| Week 7 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 02-23
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W 02-25
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F 02-27
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| Week 8 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 03-02
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W 03-04
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F 03-06
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Sun 3-08 – Sat 3-14 |
Spring Break |
Enjoy this week! |
| Week 10 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 03-16
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W 03-18
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F 03-20
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| Week 11 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 03-23
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W 03-25
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F 03-27
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| Week 12 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 03-30
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W 04-01
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F 04-03
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| Week 13 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 04-06
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W 04-08
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F 04-10
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| Week 14 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 04-13
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W 04-15
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F 04-17
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| Week 15 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 04-20
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W 04-22
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F 04-24
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| Week 16 |
Class topics
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Do before class
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M 04-27
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W 04-29
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F 05-01
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Finals Week: May 4 – 8
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To Complete
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W 05-06
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