Nice messages

I try to keep a log of nice notes I get from students and people online regarding the work I do. Since I'm a bit disorganized, I never know where to put these, so I'm going to try to put them here now.

2023

Fall 2023 semester feedback and notes

"I can't believe this is the fourth and final course I've had with you! Thank you so much for taking the time and effort to teach and grade these classes. I'll miss you as a thoughtful and caring instructor and hope I can keep building on everything you've taught."

Spring 2023 semester feedback

Firstly, I'd like to thank you for the semester. C++ is an interesting language to learn, more difficult than any I've tackled before. That is part of why I wanted to tackle this language as apposed to Java or Python. There are certain "Higher level" principals that I have not had the opportunity to refine, such as recursion and certain Object Oriented principals. I look forward to working with you some more next semester, and I am glad they decided to keep you on. You've been a great professor.
The end of the semester is going well for me. Thanks for being a great professor.
I want to say - "Thank you for teaching CPP in a very effective way".
Thank you!! This class has honestly been the least stressful this semester. I was able to work on my own time and actually learned things. I really hope I am able to take you for the rest of my CS classes. Thankyou for this amazing semester.
I love the way your classes are structured. 100%. Your video lectures are great and that gives us the "class-time" to work on labs and ask questions. I have a class where we do group work EVERY class and I am not a fan. I also agree with the bored in-class sentiment.

In regards to the last bullet [point] - I would be thrilled actually. As mentioned above I love your courses.

2022

Student reviews (anonymous)

Absolutely one of the best teachers at this school. I didn't do super well in this class but it was because of me, they did everything in their power to help me even when I had given up. They responded to emails within minutes and were so patient and understanding. It was a privilege to be their student. A truly incredible professor and person.
Rachel was always extremely helpful and easy to reach. I was never afraid to ask questions, no matter how silly they felt. Which is great since I have a ton of social anxiety. I liked how many options they had for zoom office hours, and even after we solved my problem once, they contacted met to make sure we figured out all my issues with my project.
Great course and a great teacher. Thank you for understanding and being so organized. Your method is really helpful for students. Thank you for your time, and I appreciate all the attention and support. Keep the good work and more students will succeed in your hands. Thank you!!
The instructor structures their class in a way that will help students thrive in the actual job in the "real world." This is extremely beneficial to students because they get a feel on what things will be like in their chosen career and help alleviate any stress or anxiety about the future.
The instructor is always available for questions and makes sure we understand the material. They not only care that students do well in the class but are also considerate of the students' well-being and course load.
I love the textbook she wrote HERSELF and provides for free. Extremely effective, boils the points down so well that it was even a bit difficult for me to take notes on.. because it's already so well structured.
Most effective programming teaching methodology I've ever encountered. Took 4 semesters of Java in highschool, and it was SO MUCH HARDER than this.. I've learned more in this SINGLE semester with this professor. She is an absolute asset.
Professor Singh is by far one of the best professors I have had in my college career. Their course is very well organized and has a diverse range of instructional material (taped lectures, the written direction on the class website, zoom sessions) that were made available to me.

The class website in general I found to be well organized and suited for the nature of the class. There were also so many extra things that they did throughout the semester that they did not have to do, like giving weather/road condition reports on the way to campus. Stuff like this surprised me, but was also appreciated.

I think the assignments were well made, although some of them were a little more hand-holdy than others. No one assignment stood out to me as bad, however.

I liked the approach to exams. I never felt the need to cheat, although if there was something I didn't know would always look up the documentation in the textbook or on cplusplus.com (or similar websites). There were even times I used my IDE. (so what I guess I am saying here is whether or not I was cheating depends on your definition) Either way, I think the exam set ups promoted actively trying to use or seek knowledge, which is good.

I think the projects building off each other is good and the 'mock client' is also a nice touch. Having your project get progressively more clean/efficient with new knowledge I found rewarding.

I look forward to taking more of Professor Singh's courses.
Rachel has the most comprehensive online written materials I've ever experienced while taking a course. They should be getting paid large amounts of money to make course materials for all sorts of computer related studies. The material and YouTube content is seriously that good.
Rachel Singh deserves every single award I can think of for a professor. The entire course is designed and created by them and they even made their own textbook (free) and website. They are available outside of class on Discord or Canvas at any hour of the day or evening. Their teaching method is incredibly effective and I learn so much every day.

2021

Hey!
Super weird and out of nowhere but I just wanted to thank ya a bunch for making moosader.com. One of my very first experiences programming was following along with pickn sticks and I've been hooked ever since. Something about being able to make my own games really blew me away when I was smol. I work as a software engineer now and I absolutely love what I do.

Just wanted to extend a thnx for doing awesome stuff on the internet.

♥️,
Mason

2020

Aw, a teacher friend is using me as an example in his classroom. 💜

Course evaluations from students in 2020:

A wonderful instructor full of empathy and a delightful attitude towards teaching!
Professor Singh is by far the greatest computer science professor I have had JCCC. They have made it really easy to learn the topic. They are quick to respond to questions and they are very thorough with each and every topic. I took Java last semester and I feel CS134 did not prepare me for the Java course and while I got an A in CS134 I only "passed" because of rounding. Prof Singh has made C++ so easy to understand that I am finishing this class with a high A and I feel confident in my abilities to write the C++ language with very little assistance because of the way they teach.
The way everything was organized in Canvas was AMAZING. Every instructor needs to sit in and watch how Rachel sets this up, because it made it extremely clear what was due and when to do it. I've missed assignments before because everything blends together and you miss stuff. Not with this class, everything was perfectly clear, from grades to material.
I'm so appreciative of everything she did this semester. One time I was stuck on some code and sent her a message outside of the scheduled Zoom office hours. She quickly responded and actually set up Zoom so we could work on it together. I couldn't ask for a better instructor to teach online classes.
Prof Singh is a very approachable professor who will bend over backward to ensure each students success. They were always available to help and the "co-work" zoom session they set up was so helpful to just log in and work on a project or lab and they were there to assist as needed.
Prof Singh has been an absolute pleasure to work with and without them I would not have been able to get as far as I have gotten
I loved how her assignments started off giving you a lot of instruction and then become more vague as the assignment goes on. Not only does it make sure that I am warmed up, but it helps me test my own understanding of the subject. If I get stuck, I can always go back to an earlier section and use it an an example.
Professor Sing's assignments, labs, and projects were challenging, thought provoking, and still within each students ability. I did not feel once lost and confused like I did with Java. I never felt like I knew what was going on in that course because of the fast pace set. Prof Singh had videos, notes, and links to assist yet not give the answers. They was born to teach and it shows they care.
You can tell Professor Singh puts a great deal of time and effort into creating the lessons for this course! All of her materials are very well done and appreciated--especially for an online class. Additionally, she offered Zoom help meetings 2 or 3 times per week and was always willing to help. This has been a great course and she is an outstanding instructor!!!
Prof Singh is my favorite professor in the computer science department. They were such a pleasure to learn from that I will always go to a class that they are teaching over any other.
I saw that she is teaching the next C++ class and felt so relieved. I was apprehensive taking online classes with a subject like this, but she is an excellent teacher!
Prof Singh is by far the best COMPSCI professor I have had at JCCC.....They have made learning fun, understands struggles, is ALWAYS available to provide assistance as needed. They have the ability to explain things in different ways that helps their students learn.
Prof Singh is the best. I wish I could take my KU comp sci classes with them instead.

2015

I would be greatly honored of THE (pronounced with a long e) Rachel Morris would write me a congratulatory letter.

Usually they tell Eagle Scouts to e-mail politicians and such, but I wanted to request people who left a lasting impact on my life. I do not think I would have developed such an interest in computer science if it had not been for your awesome community outreach on youtube and your moosader website. I still remember looking at the alien lawnmower game in awe of how young you were when you first started and how far you have come. Your art is incredible and your sprites for some reason always always always put a smile on my face- from the tiny evergreen trees to the iconic knight-Rachel on the trusty steed sticking out its tongue.

I thank you so much for sharing your knowledge on your videos and website, and I would greatly appreciate a congratulatory letter from you.

Request for ‘Eagle Scout’ congratulatory letter from Douglas G.

2014

Hi! I just wanted to let you know that in my game development course in UPC (Spain) our teacher shared your website to us. Thank you for your work!

Ruben

Once again, thanks to moosader for the instructional videos on git and version control for making it less intimidating.

neilmakesgames

2013

Thank you for all support and effort to make us love what we were studying, just a few professors are able to do that.

Notes in the final group project from the webdev class I taught this semester.

Dear Rachel,

Hello! My name is Nick, and I'm just your average little programmer stuck in the heart of Kentucky. I would like to give thanks to you because after I first had a handle on C++, I had no idea where I could further take it, and after stumbling upon your tutorials on YouTube so long ago, they were really the thing that made game development "click" for me. A "pickin' sticks"-esque game was my first completed game, and ever since then anything further on I can really only give thanks to you! So, I may just end up being a random message among a fleet of emails in your inbox, but I do wish to express how much you've indirectly influenced me and helped me along with my programming! So, thank you very much, and thank you for being one of many deciding forces behind my decision to pursue a career with programming!

Sincerely,

Nick

I haven't watched your tutorials in years but what really helped me was all of those projects that you let everyone download and view for free. I may not be working on games right now, but there is always time in the future. It should make you feel great that you probably helped thousands of kids learn to program by making games! I know that I wouldn't be where I am today without your old level editor code. It helped me learn basic fileIO and more importantly, gave me a love of creating tools. I also used your teaching techniques to teach other people how to program (with varying success). You may have done much more than you expect when it comes to helping people. :)

Ryan W

I'm working at ___ now!

Just want to thank you again for all the motivation you provided me when I was learning how to code.

Ryan W

I saw your YouTube video about game programming about 3yrs ago you influenced me to learn programming I had no idea how much math was involved I always got a low grade in math and that made me hate it but when I started c++ I learned so much more than I did when i was in school. So now 3years later im in the military about to finish college degree for compsci I just wanted to say a big ThANK YOu and keep doing what you do maybe some day ill be able to influence someone like you did to me

Anonymous

I’ve been thinking this for a while and just want to verbalize it for your benefit: you are a force for good in the world and I appreciate everything that you do under your Moosader banner. I wish that when I was starting out programming, I had more excellent resources like what you provide for people. Plus, you’re funny; that’s pleasant too. Pat yourself on the back.

thedistanceinsidious

2012

Hey, you are the person who got me into game dev and taught me a lot of code! And i love your artsader stuff! :) thanks! <3

Bluefox Game Studios

Rachel, I want to thank you from bottom of my heart for all your programming related stuff. I have tried to learn programming on and off for 15 or so years, but only until finding your stuff I have got the inspiration and clear goals to learn past making silly text adventure games. Thank you

Coledash

I just want to say, thank you for taking your time and making great game programming tutorials. I greatly appreciate this. I was trying to use OpenGL for graphics, but no one gave great or continuous tutorials on it. Go i went to Allegro, and found you. You make it very easy to understand and I am thankful for this.

Technojunkie

...And 5 months ago, I really took off with Moosie's board, when I found it. I mean, when I found Moosie's board, 5 months ago, I got back into coding hard core. This was the community I wished I found years ago.

...I like to hear it from Moosander's point of view. It is far less dry then reading it in a book, PDF or webpage. At least she knows how to make it sound interesting. Heck, she could tell someone to go to hell, and she would make them look forward to the trip.

Duckie

i never thought i would attempt to write a game. ...then i found the Sphere RPG Engine... (that entertained me for awhile)... ...then I found Moosader's YouTube tutorials... ..The first game I finished was Pickin' Sticks with SDL... (it even used a joystick)

rabrant

Hello Rachel,

I am writing to tell you how much appreciation I have for your tutorials. When I first started out researching into making my own game (my background is art) I was so confused in which direction to go. So many people giving advice to go in X or Y direction, which language to study, start with scripting, awwwwwwww! Then.. I stumbled upon your videos! Woah... the light. :) The whimsical fun and informative videos (love your art) made for a nice complimentary side of studying in a instructive but boring(kinda needed to learn) c++ book.

After a year and a half, sometimes in moments of awe or sometimes feeling a bit un-inspired, I would watch your tutorials as motivation boost (and it did work!). Especially in the beginning when I was programming in the console window. White text on black background.. I want to make a sprite move!

Here is the result. Yet, another Pickin' Sticks project. :)

[ video ]

It is a bit weird. Nothing exceptional, but it was an experiment in forcing myself to try something new. Still my first game and quite proud of the achievement.

So again, thanks for your hard work, taking your time to help other people in the journey to creation. I know for a fact it personally helped me go forward. :)

Keep being awesome moosader!

Philippe C

2011

hey, i just want to tell you that we finished our game, it's not that beautiful but our professor was impressed and surprised, because first we are the only group that has a graphics on it XD, and we are very VERY thankful to you... because you inspired us to finish our work and helped in anyway you can. we're really really grateful to talk with you, and we idolize you as a programmer, and we're hoping and wanting that someday, we'll be as great as you are when it comes in programming.... THANK YOU

Nazielle20

Just thought I'd let you know that I've been looking for a Problem Solving approach to Game Programming for SO long. So many sites and people I know have just thrown code around and complex concepts, but you actually give the foundation for knowledge retention and growin' your own abilities. Keep up the good work! Hopefully my Pickin' Sticks will be done in the next few days xD

SuperTommyBoi

2010

Hi Rachel! :D
I'm have lot to thanks to you :D
Finally I have wrote my first own programmed game today , watching you tutorials :D
THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
And don't stop making tutorials!

Marko K

2009

Subject: President of the Australian Rachel Morris Fan Club

HI Rachel,

I'm sure you must be flooded with emails from all over the world. This one probably will be picked up us spam......

In any case I wanted to thank you for your tutorials. And as well tell you I love your games.

I've been doing 'business applications' for the last 10 years and was ready to lose my mind, until ... you tutorials kick-started me with an interest in doing some game development. And as well how I can use Allegro to forward that interest.

I'm a big fan of your's. I even love these tutorial videos you've made. I won't list all the things I like about how you've made them.

Anyway, big thanks!

Matthew Brisbane, Australia