<p>So I'm a freshman in Pratt taking EGR53 this semester, and I've got about 3 chapters of assigned reading each in 2 Matlab textbooks (Palm and Chapra). On top of having a lot of pages, I feel like reading these won't be that helpful. The lectures already cover many topics. I'm probably going to forget the commands and whatnot as soon as I finish the page, and I could probably learn these things better by actually working on something and figure out how to do things along the way. My question is, do other students typically read these textbooks or just take notes during lecture and practice on their own? I'm perfectly fine with reading if it's worthwhile.</p>
<p>I took this class 5 years ago so things may have changed a little, but if Dr. G is still teaching it, I’d say you should pick between 1) paying attention in class and taking good notes or 2) reading the textbook. If you go with #1 (assuming you stay awake in the mornings) then you may need to occasionally refer to the book but for the most part the lectures are sufficient. If you are like me who constantly falls asleep or surfs during the 8:30 class then you’ll have no choice but to read the book. But I wouldn’t do both as it’s too repetitive (unless you are a repetitive learner). Most of your learning will be done through hands on coding in problem sets and labs.</p>
<p>My lecture is actually in the afternoon, when I don’t really feel sleepy at all, so I think I’ll just skip the book readings. Thanks a lot!</p>