The prerequisites for this class is a good understanding of imperative languages and object-oriented programming, as well as computer organization. You must be able to write and debug non-trivial programs in either C/C++ or Java. You must have a good understanding of basic data structures such as lists, stacks, trees and hashtables.
This is a class on concepts of programming languages. There will be programming assignments designed to make you use and implement various concepts. Programming assignments may involve writing code in C, C++, Java, ML, Prolog and other languages. You do not need to know these languages already; however, you will be expected to pick up some Java quickly on your own.
The lectures will be held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2-4pm
in John Greene Hall 316.
The Debian GNU/Linux lab is in John Greene Hall 216.
In order to get a door code for the Computer Lab please visit
the labcode webpage
(after signing up for an account).
The code is updated on weekly basis.
"Modern
Programming Languages: A Practical Introduction", by
Adam Brooks Webber, Franklin, Beedle & Associates.
This will be the main textbook for the class covering most
of the material. The textbook also contains various
suggested excercises.
"Version
Control with Subversion", on-line book (no need
to buy a copy). You must know how to use subversion as
a developer (not as an administrator) in order to submit
your assignments. Use this book as a reference if you
encounter problems. Basic knowledge of chapters 1-3
should be sufficient.
Specific topics that will be covered:
Midterm and final exam will consist of questions where you will need
to answer some specific questions in prose or with
small fragments of code. In parallel to the course you
will develop a growing large programming project in Java
on your own. Each of the stages of the project must be turned in
for grading by a certain deadline. For some of the
larger assignments, a subset of the testcases used for grading
will be provided. You are
encouraged to write additional testcases and are
specifically allowed to exchange those tests with other students.
Students will also be
expected to research and present a programming language in
class towards the end of the term.
Details about these student presentations will be announced
in class. The basic expectation is that you will learn
enough about a less common language to give a presentation
(with slides, examples and demonstration) on the advantages and
disadvantages of that particular language.
Students are encouraged to discuss the materials, homework,
and projects together. However, all exams
and programs must be done individually without consultation
of other students (including students from previous years).
Academic
dishonesty includes, but is not limited to: plagiarism,
cheating in exams, unauthorized collaboration and
falsifying academic records. Violation of any of these
may result in a grade penalty on assignments, an "F" in
the course, dismissal from an academic unit, revocation
of admission, suspension from the University as well as
being roasted over a slow fire.
The textbook contains a large number of smaller exercises.
You are encouraged to do those assignments on your own or
with other students. Understanding of all of the textbook
as well as additional content presented during the lectures
will be required for good results on midterm and final exams.
Generally, all assignments are due before class on the
date specified with the assignment. Exceptions to this
rule (allowing later submission) may be announced in
class.
The different kinds of assignments are weighted as follows:
| Programming assignments | 55 Pts |
|---|---|
| Midterm | 15 Pts |
| Final | 15 Pts |
| Presentation | 15 Pts |
There are theoretically a total of 100 Pts possible Grades will be given as follows:
| Grade | Points |
|---|---|
| A | > 90 Pts |
| A- | > 85 Pts |
| B+ | > 80 Pts |
| B | > 75 Pts |
| B- | > 70 Pts |
| C+ | > 65 Pts |
| C | > 60 Pts |
| C- | > 55 Pts |
| D | ≥ 50 Pts |
| F | < 50 Pts |
You will need various applications for the class, all of which are freely available
for various operating systems. Personally, I'm using Debian GNU/Linux unstable.
If you have any problems installing the software, you can always use the department's
Debian GNU/Linux machines which have most of the necessary software installed (in
order to get the rest, copy the provided JTB and JavaCC scripts and JAR files into
your home directory, edit the shell scripts to contain the correct absolute path to
the JAR file and make them executable. Finally, add the directory with the shell
scripts to your PATH).
Here is a list of the software programs that you will need if you want to use
your own system:
Each student will get access to a subversion
repository. Assignments must be committed to that repository by the respective
deadline. Students are encouraged to use the repository for version control while
still working on the assignment. Only the last version commited before the deadline will
be used for grading.
In order to access your subversion repository, you must first request an account.
For this, you first need to generate an encrypted password. On any GNU/Linux or UNIX
machine (or even a Microsoft system with Apache) enter
$ htpasswd -nb $USER PASSWORD
where PASSWORD is your desired password. You will not be able to change the
password later. Send the output of the command to
grothoff@cs.du.edu to request
an account. Once your account has been created, you should do an initial check out:
$ svn checkout https://svn.cs.du.edu/courses/comp3351/f2008/$USER
$ cd $USER
You should then proceed to create a directory for the first project
and commit it:
$ mkdir P1
$ svn add P1
$ svn commit -m "comment"
Afterwards, you can add the files to submit just like you added the directory.
Make sure to commit the final version with all files (hint: svn status)
before the deadline. It is also a good idea to do a seperate checkout and
verify that the result works.
$ mv $USER comp3351
Note that existing assignments may still be corrected. Feel free to look at the other assignments if you want to know what the plan looks like. Feedback is welcome.
The final exam will be at 2pm in JGH 316.
Grades will be e-mailed to the e-mail address given with the request for creating the subversion account. For how to interpret the e-mailed grades please contact the TA.