What made you want to become a comp. sci. professor?

• I’ve always love computers.  Well, to be more specific, I’ve always loved anything that lights up and has buttons.  (I’m easily amused...)  I enjoy nearly every facet of technology.  Couple that with coming from a family of teachers (my mother’s a teacher, my sister is a teacher, my wife is an elementary school librarian, my father-in-law is a professor, my uncle was a professor... etc.) and you can see the inevitable outcome.

What did you like best about college? / Did you enjoy Wake Forest?

• I lived on the same hall for three years at Wake with a great group of guys.  Just hanging out with those guys, learning from them in discussions that ranged from politics to religion to technology, and being part of several fantastic campus organizations really had an impact on me.   

Do you like Wake or Virginia better? I transferred from Wake.

• HA.  Actually, the two schools are much more similar than I ever imagined, which is great.  Virginia has the close-knit feeling that Wake does, but with more resources for CS and Engineering.  It’s a great combination.  As for which is better... give me four years here before I have to make that call...

I can't think of any now.

• That’s fine.  You can ask later.  I’ll be here all semester.

What was your doctorate thesis?

• Why you would want to subject yourself to this...  The title is “Analyzing Software Development Artifacts Through Singular Value Decomposition to Guide Development Decisions.”  Basically, I take software change records and defect records, do some matrix math, then tell you where your system is likely to explode.  Something like that.

As a fellow Wii gamer (and since we'll all have wiimotes), we should probably take a class or two to have a WiiSports or Super Smash Bros. tournament... (just kidding)

• We shall see... :-)

Did you always intend to teach computer science?

• Believe it or not, yes.  Well, there was a brief moment I thought about law school.  But I got over that fast.  Law school is harder than getting a PhD.  Trust me.

Do you prefer Call of Duty 4 or Halo 3?

• COD4.  No contest.

Do you think the glass is half empty or half full?

• Half full.  Unless it’s something like three day old coffee.  Then it’s thankfully half empty.

Since you are not planning on giving out stickers, can you give out candy instead?

• As my bathroom scale will tell you, I am not adverse to candy in any way, shape, form, or fashion.

Have any kids?

• Not yet...  I just got my PhD in August.  There’s only so much a man can handle at once.

What is your favorite video game that you have ever played?

• Aargh.  I hate this question.  If I only had to choose one, probably it’s Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.  If I might add to the list: SMB3, Link to the Past, Super Metroid, Rock Band

Where are you from?

• Originally from Salisbury, NC.  Lived there for 11 years, then moved to Rock Hill, SC, moved back to Salisbury, then Winston-Salem (Wake), then Raleigh / Morrisville (NC State), and now here.  

Would you be able to connect me to an IT friend that is working for a company?

• Perhaps... but first do well in my class :-)

What do you think is the one most interesting aspect of computer science?

• One?  That in the field of CS, you can have several people in the room who say they are computer scientists and they won’t have any clue what the other people are talking about.  CS ranges from operating systems, binary logic, and architecture, to all the crazy stuff I do, like software engineering and software reliability.  It really is a diverse field.  (I’m sure other fields are too - it’s just what I like about CS as well.)

What's your favorite computer program? And why?

• Avoiding answering the gaming question again, I’ll say Firefox.  A dedicated team of people around the globe creating a piece of software to challenge a goliath with the purpose of making the web safer for everyone.  You have to respect that.

Have you ever heard of the man named Sean Kennedy? He has an internet show basically. Talks somewhat about computers among other things. Ive watched many of his shows and you both have the same way of saying things...its not a bad thing he has lots of great ideas. If your interested in looking at some of his stuff http://patrolling.rantmedia.ca/ there is the link. i think you will see what i mean.

• Actually, no.  And I’m a huge fan of internet-distributed media (like podcasts/netcasts and IPTV), so I’ll have to check him out.  I invite everyone to check out the TWIT.tv network of netcasts for great tech news.

What exaclty would we use a wii mote for?

• Depends on what your group is interested in.  Music making, painting, dance/movement... we will explore this more later.

Why should I take this course? Convince me here!

• Technology reason: computers are becoming more and more pervasive in society.  The rate that computers have been adopted (basically the past 20 years) is markedly faster than, say, the car was adopted.  Granted we all don’t know how a car works or could build one (like me, for example), but having a working knowledge about computing is important and will be more important as time passes.  Liberal arts reason: there’s a lot of cool stuff out there in music and language and art.  Learning how all this relates could/should/hopefully will give you a better insight into your own field.  Selfish reason: I’m a nice guy.  And we’ll have some fun.

Why do you use PHP and that other language to introduce people to programming in this course? (I wasn't sure if you were saying "Hascal" or Pascal for the second language.)

• PHP and Haskell.  Why those two languages?  Well, PHP is one of the most used languages on the web today.  Giving you an insight as to how the Internet works and how computers communicate is a big goal in this class.  Haskell is important because you need to know that, just like spoken languages, there’s more than one way to get a message across.  Some programming solutions are more elegant in a different language, and talking about algorithms and complexity will be another focus in the class.

I remember you saying that you play "Call of Duty." Do you always play video games?

• “Do I always?”  No.  I could never get away with that.  I have too much work.  My “pile of shame” is gigantic.  “Have I always played games?”  Oh, yes.  From Intellivision and Atari through the NES and SNES to my current setup of Wii, 360, PS2, and DS, I have always played games.

Do you prefer UVA or NC State??

• UVa vs. State is slightly easier than vs. Wake.  The College of engineering at NC State is effectively in a business park away from campus.  You don’t feel like you’re at school.  I got to missing things like... other people... and grass.  I miss a lot of people from State, but UVa is much nicer.  

What kind of programming have you done in the past? / What types of computer programs have you written for entertainment and research?

• I love web development.  I've done websites for non-profits, computing conferences, fan sites, and a bunch of others.  I'm still learning good visual design (computer scientists are not automatically graphic designers...), but it's still fun.  I've also done programs that measure software reliability for my research, along with a tool that can monitor changes to code when done in response to bug fixes.  I did do some development in industry - I interned at IBM, Wachovia, and a medical software company.

Why does my computer (runs Vista) run at the same speed as my old laptop (runs XP) even though my new desktop has an Intel Dual Core? (I realize this question is not really about you.)

• Speed with computers is always a fluid thing.  Without any more information, the next thing I would check is the amount of RAM.  XP did fine with 512MB, but 1GB was much better.  Vista really needs 2GB to run decently.  

What did you think of the book for this class? Interesting?

• The book was recommended to me by Dave Evans, and yes, I do find it interesting and a whole lot better than "a standard textbook."  We'll also use some web resources in this course that I like.

Do students have a name for you other than Mr. Sherriff (unless you prefer to go by Mark)?

• Mark is fine.  Mr. Sherriff is fine.  Prof. Sherriff is fine.  Dr. Sherriff sounds weird.  Thankfully, I've been told that that's not "in" around here.

Tuh-MAYTO or Tuh-MAHTO?

• Tuh-MAYTO.  Unfortunately, for the longest time I pronounced novice as NO-VICE.  I'm serious.

Have you always worked in academia?

• As far as official "jobs," yes.  This is actually my first "job."  Everything else was an internship, co-op, or when I was a adjunct lecturer at NC State.

Why did you decide to teach at UVA?

• When I came to interview at UVa, I already had some job offers from other schools.  But the bottom line is that nowhere made me feel more at home than UVa.  The CS faculty here is fantastic.  Here I get to be at a top-tier university and still concentrate on what I love - teaching.

Will this class be difficult for someone that is not very familiar with comuter programing?

• I will teach this class with the expectation that no one knows how to program.  That's what the course description is, and that's what I'll do.  Now, early programmers often have a learning curve they have to get over.  Learning about computational thinking and how to translate your ideas into a proramming language does take practice and patience.  But, I'm confident that everyone in here can do it.

Will it be hard to get an A or B+ in this course?

• If you do the work, come to class, and put some effort into learning the material for the exams, then no, I don't think it will be hard.  Sorry for the trite answer, but really, that's what it boils down to.  Is it a hard class?  Hard and unfair, no.

Do you feel as comfortable with the arts as you do with computer science? In other words, would you say that you've been adequately trained, and are now well-versed, in the areas of the humanities which you're planning on tying in with CS?

• A very interesting question.  Here are my creditials for this particular class: I graduated from a traditionally liberal arts school, where I did take courses in a wide variety of arts and literature classes.  I have been involved in community theater for seven years, having roles in several plays and musicals (my favorite was singing in The Who's "Tommy").  I have been the director of two church handbell choirs and the Wake Forest University Handbell Choir (7 years directing) and have been ringing for 16 years.  I have sung in several church choirs and have taken courses in digital audio maniuplation.  I also played the viola (believe it or not).  I probably know more about children's literature than any other CS professor.  I certainly don't claim to be an expert in anything other than CS, and I'm sure I'll learn as much in this class as all of you.

What class of Wake Forest did you come from?

• Class of 2002.

My high school History teacher is a WF alumnus and he is still gung-ho with WF school spirit. Is this common among WF alumni?

• I'll put it this way: for the Orange Bowl, 3 out of 4 living alumni went to the game.

Can we have a pizza party some day? (I'm kidding a little bit.)

• We'll certainly see.

I hurd you like mudkips?!

• MUD.  KIP!

Do you take cream or sugar in your Java?

• I actually don't like coffee that much... so, yes.  Both.  Lots.

Sorry about that.

• You'll find I'll tell certainly my fair share of groaners over the course of the semester.

Why?

• Why not?

What music do you like?

• I actually listen to more talk radio and podcasts, but if you check my current iPod playlist: Linkin Park, Stone Temple Pilots, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The Black Mages.

And what is Cheerwine? I saw you drinking it and I was wondering if that was legal during class.     

• HA!  Cheerwine is a soft drink made in Salisbury, NC (where I'm from).  It's kinda like a cherry Dr. Pepper.  Kinda.  No, it's not a wine, but I do enjoy when I catch people with that question.     

Do you have a specialty within the category of "computer science" and what is it?     

• I do - my speciality is software engineering, and within that, software reliability, agile development, testing, and software engineering education.        

Does your last name imply you came from a line of sheriffs? Just kidding!     

• Actually, probably so.  "Sherriff" comes from the "reif" of a "shire," or officer of an old British county.     

Would you rather do a backflip or a front flip in a car? You're going to land it and you will not get hurt (neither will the car).     

• Uh....  backflip?   

Since Ive never taken a computer science class before and I am really not that great with technology, how approachable are you? And if I become annoying will you tell me?

• I like to think I am very approachable.  Read my course evals from previous years for other opinions about me.  Well, don't read the very last comment on last semester's 201 eval.  Apparently that person doesn't think I am... :-(