3.7
Quality2.0
Difficulty21%
Would Retake120
Reviews21%
Would Retake
120
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
51
4
30
3
17
2
16
1
6
What Students Say
“I taught myself most of the material”
COMP1012 - 3.0 rating“I wouldn't recommend Gordon to anyone”
COMP1012 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
18%
Textbook Required
62%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.83 avg changeRatings by Course
126
5.0
(1)127
5.0
(1)27126
5.0
(1)74329
5.0
(1)074126
5.0
(3)Difficulty by Course
127
3.0
1260
3.0
047127
3.0
USAGE1
3.0
COMP1250
3.0
Reviews (120)
No Comments
Was not clear at all on material; gave us hard final exam.
Boyer was my worst prof ever
Nothing gets him excited
Boring, and bad at teaching... Change to a different prof if you can.
a big baby. yup. he doesn't know how to teach!
nice guy, poor course, bad design
No Comments
No Comments
Friendly but no structure, difficult to learn
Good guy, good teacher. But a little disorganized.
Cool professor. Explainations were okay. Classes were worth going to.
Good prof, really laid back, explains things well
No Comments
No Comments
Underqualified for upper year courses. Good for 1st/2nd yr.
Easy going. Funny. Might not be good at tougher courses though.
Decent Prof
Dressed like a gym teacher
No Comments
Has no organization--don't expect to learn much in his class
Very friendly and easy to talk to.
Really nice guy, but lectures are a little boring sometimes which makes it hard to learn.
Good first year prof. Explains things well, a little slow if you already know some of your stuff.
The guy is nice and all, very good attitude. Teaching skill is just horrible. No organization, no preparation. And teaching materials that's behind other class, which is the downfall in final exams. (Gotta change your style little pilsbury boy)
Maybe he should learn how to teach, learn the class material and show up on time once in awhile. Not impressive. Plus, even if his heart's not in it , we're still paying for him to teach us...
Was late to class, was a little disorganized but was clear and would explain anything that you didn't understand. I felt jumped on final though.
Guy couldn't show up on time if his life depended on it. It appears he just "wings" every lecture, but somehow I still was able to learn enough to get an A
Great, helpful guy!
He needs to learn how to do the good preparation before teaching the class.
Knows his stuff. Very friendly and happy guy. Told us that when he gets nervous he eats. Says he gets nervous often. Enjoyed his class. His corny jokes are very fitting.
Super helpful and funny. Assignments & tests are difficult, but that's the department's fault.
Fair prof, enjoyed his class, very approachable, humorus, and was never late, although started the class late sever times due to talking to students.
Goes into great detail about topics to make sure everyone understands.
Sometimes is a bit late for class and sometimes doesn't come too prepared to class, but he still explains the course material very well and makes sure that everyone understands.
such a good professor.
Nice guy, EXTREMELY good one-on-one with help for assignments. Lectures are pretty dull unfortunately. Don't think he started class on time once. Ultimately a pretty good prof tho.
Great teacher for computer usage, useless class, just meets a science requirement, and he understands that, so he treats people great and helps with explain assignments great. GPA booster with boyer. He's a joker to, so makes the lectures better.
Great prof. Boring course, but not his fault... He's very reasonable and responds to emails in a timely fashion.
AWESOME PROF. Come to class. He does every single assignment for you, all you have to do is copy what he does in class. He also gives you very good "hints" for what quiz and exam questions will be. He is very approachable. Gord Boyer is the best prof for Computer Usage.
Gord is great for 126. He goes over the Assign's in detail and provides hints for quizzes and exam. Funny guy, looks hillarious in his nerd glasses. Assign's are frustrating but marked easy. Exam was easy. Boring class but easy A.
No Comments
I have to say he is a lazy guy! but it's true he is a good instructor, I can see the spirit of hacker from his heart. :D
While Gord may seem to take his time explaining some of the course material, in the end it works out well because he explains the material very well and wants to make sure that everyone understands. He also goes over the assignments and labs and explains what needs to be done and often gives hints, which really help.
he is a good professor in 126,gives detail of all assignment, good lecture.
I didn't like the course at all but he's an excellent prof. EXTRA helpful,understanding, patient and great with students. The assignments are ok with all his help. Thumbs up!!
Gord is an awesome guy! Computer usage is a boring course, but he tries to make it entertaining by telling jokes and such. Assignments are a piece of cake as long as you go to class. Runs out of steam often, so usually lets you out early! Awesome guy, I would totally recommend him!
Good prof. Does the assignments for you in class and takes his time so that you know exactly what to do. Give helpful hints for tests and exams. Overall great guy and makes class as entertaining as Computer Usage can get.
Boyer's great, take comp usage with him. He does the assignments in class, and lets the class go early almost every single time.
He is very nice!
Sure he's a nice guy, and the class is super easy. But, he's always late for class, hopeless when it comes to handing assignments and quizzes back, and maybe its just because the material is slack, but i find his teaching style to be really really dry and very boring.
He is a nice guy although he is terrible for handing tests and assignments back in a prompt manner. His teaching style did not hold my attention at all!!! he just reads powerpoint slides in class. He does however go over the assignments in class which is very helpful
Yes, he needs to be allot quicker at handing back assignments and quizzes but he's a great teacher. Very helpful after and outside of classes. Does a comprehensive run through each assignment so you'll never have a problem with them. Some quizzes were a bit tricky and there needed to be more time allowed to do some. I didn't mind him being late for class all the time though. Gave me time to eat my lunch and review for quizzes!
Best. Prof. Ever.
The main reason I'm giving this a very high rating is because he was probably the second greatest prof I had at UofM. He was VERY helpful and always left his office door open to you if you needed help after class. His lectures were fun and easy to understand. If you're looking for a good prof, check out his class first.
Good prof, explained things very well.
man i thought this class was a GPA booster, but each time gets harder and harder...if you don't know anything about computers ( especially ACESS and EXCEL ) go take some biology or chemistry...I HIGHLY DISRECOMMEND this course for those who has to complete science requirement.how could the final be 50% of your grade? I couldnt' believe it...
AWSOME!!!Goes through every assignment in class!
This guy took forever to get marks back to students. We are now done all of the classes and we have done 4 quizzes and 4 assignments. Only marks we have back are Quizzes 1 & 2 and Assignment 1. Assignments 2-4 were all on coding and would have been helpful to see the results prior to the next assignment. I only went to class on quiz days!
The prof likes to talk about his dogs a lot. Not the most exciting prof... but a nice guy, and extremely helpful. Just make sure you go to the classes because they are beneficial when it comes to the assignments. Easy A+ if you come to class and pay attention. I'd suggest you take him for any computer usage courses.
This guy is awesome! He let us out early on Fridays, gave us hints with an extremely helpfull outline to study for the midterm/final, and helped with some skeletal code for the assignments. I have nothing bad to say about him or the class. I can't believe people complain about hearing him talk about his dogs...
He had no idea how to use Office07. Honestly, he said "well I'm still learning this stuff too" more than 10 times. Seriously. Half the time, some girl(s) in the middle row would shout out how to do something he was trying to demosntrate. THEY shoulda taught the class. He is SO BORING & made me absolutely hate compU. I refuse to take compU2 w/ him.
Grea prof, made ever assignment and quiz very stress free.
He is awesome! Very entertaining and very nice. The assignments for COMP 1260 tend to take a fair bit of time, but that wasn't really his fault. He will help you with pretty much anything that you have questions with. Sign up for his section and you are bound to have some good times!
Gord can make your heart skip, sweep you off your feet and get into the centre of your house.
This guy can teach!
GO TO CLASS! you'll get an A forsure! it is somewhat broing, but seriously how exciting can a class like this be.. in my opinion.. Very nice prof, and always willing to help
He's amazing! Make sure you go to class because he takes you step by step through your assignments. He also talks in a way that is really easy to understand and is pretty laid back. He's helpful, and very easy to approach. He dedicates time to answer questions for assignments, so no worries on that part! I highly recommend taking courses with him.
I absolutely hated CompU, but he was a very nice and down to earth prof who's pretty laid back.
Well what can I say; one of the best profs in University! I've had 2 classes with him and he made them enjoyable. If you ever have trouble he's more then willing to help also, he goes through the assignments in class (so get a lap-top!) The only thing to watch out for is... quizes and the final you actually have to study...:P Highly RECOMMENDED!!!
Great prof, super helpful.
great prof -one of the best i've had. very helpful in and out of class. i recommend this prof!
He's a nice guy and pretty funny, but his lectures are mostly boring and attendance is the lowest I've seen. Durocher prepared all of the notes, exams, and assignments; if you want to really learn, register in Durocher's section. Boyer often couldn't answer questions posed in class, and frequently showed up 10 minutes late and dismissed early.
He's a good prof, but rarely did I even attend class since I found myself falling asleep every time I went. I just bought the notes package, used the texts for clarification, fiddled around with the assignments on my own, and showed up for quizzes. Boom. A+. Going to class is pretty much optional - you can easily learn this stuff on your own.
you won't have to go to class. and don't. he is very dry. interesting guy, but has no energy to maintain interest for a 50 minute lecture. when zapp subbed his class for a couple days, he covered everything taught so far in a much clearer way (and with lots of great anecdotes/jokes/etc). boyer has potential to be great one day; perhaps more coffee.
To start off, Gord is always late to his class. He tends to mumble his lectures and likes to occasionally go off topic. He reads right off his slides, but also some days does 3/4 of the assignment for you in class. He also never ever looks at anyone when he's lecturing... it's either the ground or the ceiling. Overall, easy course but a bit boring.
He seems like a good guy. I received an A and all I did was come to class when he went over how to do the assignments. Either than that, class gets boring becuz he isn't too fun in class, but I guess this topic isn't too fun to teach. Don't bother coming to class on other days cuz it's just common sense about the stuff he teaches
He is very helpful professor, every time you ask him question, he will very welcome to answer you. His class does a liitle boring, but it cannot be his fault, if the course all about the theory it would not a lot of fun. Overall he is a great prof.
Most boring course that the uni offers, this guy makes it worse. Goes through everything but it is hard to catch everything because you're falling asleep because of his monotone voice. Don't take this prof if you have room in other time slots.
Translates complex concepts well.
he's laid back and willing to help out and answer questions. he's able to explain the course material fairly clearly-good prof! i wish i had him for programming practices...
He seems like a really good dude. He's not particularly enthusiastic but who can blame him? He's teaching a class for computer usage that covers such things as "What a mouse is."
Poor prof. Teaches a computer class by writing on a projector. Has a hard time using the computer and often switches to using his laptop because of this. Classes are very boring. Tests are very easy though, which is a bonus. Does not use trick questions. Easy class but has to be self taught.
monotone voice & never failed to put me to sleep in every class. he may be boring but goes through the assignments. very easy class. no midterm. 4 tests and counts the top 3. 4 assignments that are not hard but abit time consuming. final exam is 20 short answers and the rest are multiple choice. did i say very easy class? well it is.
the classes seemed really easy....but the final exam was really tricky and difficult...the exam may ask questions out the materials and make u lose a lot of marks....becoming difficult
Seems like he doesn't really know what he's doing but is an easy marker
Very nice person. Was very patient and helpful with assignments. Assignments were easy but useful in understanding course material. Does iClicker questions on textbook readings. Also goes through assignments in class so that you know how to do it.
Has no energy, and speaks in monotonic voice which makes his lectures incredibly boring. Reads directly from slides which were created by another professor. Seems like he has no idea what he is doing. Avoid if possible
Really clear, teaches to the test, very easy prof. If you are worried about being over worked take this class, if you are very ambitious and want to study a lot, maybe take the class with a different prof. Personally I find his teaching pretty great and clear. Respectful of students totally, and isn't a tight-bum wrt due dates. Very respectful too.
very easy going
Very easy course, one of the easiest markers I've ever had. The issue is marks come back SUPER late. Only had 1 assignment and 1 midterm back before the final exam. He wasn't very enthusiastic about teaching which reflected in him showing up late and leaving early every class. All notes were put online though, and he was easy to get a hold of.
Really Good Prof! explains things clearly.
Doesn't read notes, he only ever shows you how to do the assignments. Would recommend the other prof unless you are a visual learner.
Dr. Boyer is a good professor: assignment expectations are very clear, explanations are thorough where needed, and will even demonstrate how to complete parts of the assignments in lectures. I was a proficient programmer prior to taking COMP 1012 and I have this to say: THE EXAMS ARE TOUGH! Be prepared to write programs with pencil + paper.
He is a pretty funny guy, and does seem to be willing to help. He is always late and downloads the other prof's lectures at the beginning of class and uses them as his own. He will give a fair portion of the assignments in the lecture. Sometimes hard to grasp actual concepts and ideas when done independently. Exam and midterm are really tough.
The course is easy but the explanation is not really clear but you can meet him after the class for more explanation. The lectures can be long because we don't have activities to do in the class but it is easy to pass the course.
Boyer was an alright prof, just uses the other profs slides and kinda jumbles around trying to explain some of it. Talks super quiet, try to sit near the front. If you need help with an assignments, he will definitely help you although you might not really understand his explanations. pretty much taught myself all the material with the textbook
Lectures are dry, but can be very useful as he covers useful information for completing assignments. Very helpful when giving feedback or help on how to do the parts of assignments or working out bugs in your code. I found his lectures to be somewhat unclear but I think that's just the nature of compsci courses. Overall good prof.
Great prof. Always willing to answer questions and is patient doing so. Emails back almost always on the same day, weekends included. Just watch out for the readings. The notes PowerPoints and iClicker quiz readings can be super time consuming.
He will give you the answer to the assignments a few days beforehand so easy A if you dont want to learn the material. If you had a question - he never was able to answer it. Gave the most boring lectures of all time.
-Very easy course. -Boyer doesn't care if you skip class - What's taught it mostly common knowledge -no textbook -
Teaches from slides that he posts regularly. Answers questions when asked in a reasonable manner. Nice guy. Very humble.
He's a good professor that is willing to give help with your assignments or just understanding materials. Very good at answering email questions if you're too shy to approach him. His voice is very mono-tone but he knows what he's talking about. Does assignments in class so make sure you attend classes when he works on them and follow along.
Terrible. Speaks in a monotone voice that nearly puts me to sleep every lecture. Reads directly off the slides with no clarification. Can't even get his own examples working half the time. Literally Googled how to use a function during a lecture, saying "I don't bother memorizing all of this." Avoid, or be prepared to teach yourself from the book.
Gord is a nice guy, but he is very quiet and boring. He will go through assignments very thoroughly but he will just read through notes posted on website. If you have taken Comp Science classes prior to taking this course, you'll get a high mark without trying. But if you haven't, work hard!!!! Get the book, watch youtube videos & STACKOVERFLOW
His lectures are boring and he spends most of the class writing code and then it doesn't work and he spends the rest of the class figuring out why. I taught myself most of the material. If you can take this class with another prof then chose the other prof
Many say this is hard class, but really the key to passing is to familiarize yourself with the program and to pool lots of time into HW. The profs don't really teach in this class it's mostly self taught. The same goes for Boyer, but he's willing to help on HW and will correct and help code. Tip: Try to get labs at the beginning of the week.
I wouldn't recommend Gordon to anyone! He speaks very quietly and and it's SO HARD to stay awake with his lulling voice and he explains things so poorly. In the beginning he would do most of the assignment for us until the other prof told him to stop. The the course is very difficult and the 5 assignments take about 30 hours each.
He is really hard to follow during the lectures but that's not news for anyone taking computer science class at U of M. His assignments are straight forward, he gives detailed instructions on where to start the assignment and he will help you if you are stuck. He posts his notes online and that is everything that you need to pass the exams.
It was his first time teaching 2190, I'm pretty sure. He didn't know the material at all, and I think he learned more than us that semester. He has all the energy of a sea turtle, and the quiet voice to match. On the plus side, it was a very easy course, thanks to style. His grading was fair. Very approachable. Take this course, it's almost fun.
Don't bother going to the lectures. All he does is read off the slides and stare at the ceiling all class. I slept through 90% of lectures and got an A. Assignments take a very long time. As long as you go to all the labs, you should find the class isn't too hard.
Says final exam will be theoretical, and it's all practical. Don't take this course unless you've taken operating systems or have some industry experience, because he doesn't cover sockets, processes or threads at all and they're essential
Very dull, but a good guy. Really good at helping with assignments, will practically do it for you, but lectures are a snoozefest.
GB is my favourite instructor ever and is the best joke teller around.
Lectures were very boring. Just read off slide. Homework was complicated and took a lot of time to do
Boring lectures. Easy mid term, harder final- assignments took a lot of time. If you go to his office hours he is very helpful and will pretty much do the assignment for you.
Show the output of the assignment on due day, which was different from my understanding to the assignment instruction... OMG
Not a difficult teacher. You have to attend lectures because notes aren't posted online. Posted the only thing close to an exam review a day before the exam which is not the most helpful.
He seems nice enough, but gives very boring lectures. The assignments were underspecified, easy to misinterpret and had contradictions. I like to finish assignments ASAP so I can move on, but was burned multiple times when he and the other prof decided to change or even further flesh out an assignment at the last minute. Absolutely infuriating.
This prof is highly skilled and knowledgeable. It was tough to understand for an intro class, I bet he would be great for an advanced course though.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
18%
Textbook Required
62%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.83 avg changeRatings by Course
126
5.0
(1)127
5.0
(1)27126
5.0
(1)74329
5.0
(1)074126
5.0
(3)Difficulty by Course
127
3.0
1260
3.0
047127
3.0
USAGE1
3.0
COMP1250
3.0