Should Professors put tentative syallbus online prior to registration?

It's that time of year again when Ratemyprofessor.com complains of sudden influx of traffic and Facebook walls are filled with questions like 'Which professor should I take for Microeconomics?', 'I heard Dr. #### is a tough grader'. I wonder if professors read their profiles on these pages. At least they would know what students think candidly about their style of teaching.

I am also sorting between few courses even though my course schedule is pretty much already laid out. Engineering at Trinity maintains a very strict curriculum with limited flexibility, if at all. Surprisingly, my best course each semester so far has been a non-engineering course. No wonder, who likes solving differential equations or calculating moments of a couple on Thursday nights and weekends? First Year Seminar (Frankenstein and Beyond) taught by Dr. Mackenzie Brown was my favorite course during first semester and Globalization and International Development(SOCI/ANTH 4362) taught by Dr. David Spener is my favorite class this semester.

I want to take Special Topics in International Politics (PLSI 3349) but am not sure if I want to take PLSI 3349-1 (War, Conflict and Alliance) or PLSI 3349-2(The European Union in International Politics). Sadly, the course catalog has no description about these courses since they are special topics offered only during particular semesters. And this is where ASR's new initiative to request professors to put tentative course syllabus online prior to registration will be useful. Hopefully, it will cut down on number of add/drops, help students make wiser, more informed decisions and also less W's will appear on student transcripts. Students often argue that unless a test/exam has been administered for a course, they should be allowed to withdraw from the course without getting a 'W' on their transcript. But professors and administration thinks that would simply create more volatility in course operation and class size.