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🆘 Help & Support

**Need assistance? You're in the right place!** *Everything you need to succeed in ENME480.*

📞 Contact

Who Details Best for
🎓 Instructor – Dr. Nikhil Chopra Office Hours: Wed 10–11:30, 2149 Martin Hall • Email: nchopra@umd.edu • Zoom (syllabus link) Course content, grades, personal issues
👨‍💻 TAs – Alex Beyer, Kaustubh Joshi Emails: abeyer@umd.edu, kjoshi@umd.edu • Office Hours: TBD Labs & technical questions
💬 Piazza piazza.com/umd/fall2025/enme480 Official Q&A and announcements
📧 Canvas (ELMS) elms.umd.edu Materials, submissions, grades
🧑‍💻 GitHub github.com/ENME480 Lab code & updates

🚨 Emergency & Safety

  • Complete required safety training before entering RAL and using robots.
  • Never bypass safety systems; stay clear of the robot workspace; hit E-Stop when in doubt.
  • For medical or fire emergencies, call 911 / campus police; follow posted lab procedures.

🧪 Lab Support

Before lab: finish pre-lab reading, set up ROS 2, review safety.
During lab: ask TAs early; report equipment issues immediately.
Attendance: Studios are mandatory; late/missed attendance may affect grades; coordinate via Piazza if conflicts arise.
Homework cadence: posted Fridays 11:59pm, due a week later via Canvas.

💻 Quick Troubleshooting

Ubuntu

lsb_release -a
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
df -h

Python

python3 --version
python3 -m pip install --upgrade pip

ROS 2

ros2 --help
source /opt/ros/humble/setup.bash
ros2 topic list

📚 Learning Resources

🎯 Asking Great Questions

  1. Search Piazza/Canvas first → 2) Try a fix → 3) Share error + steps tried → 4) Minimal code reproducer. Example: "ros2 run my_pkg node fails with ImportError: …. I re-sourced setup.bash, verified PYTHONPATH, and rebuilt. Full stack trace: …"

Last updated: Fall 2025 • Back to Home