The prerequisites for this class is a good understanding of imperative languages and object-oriented programming, as well as computer organization. You should be able to write 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.
The lectures will be held Mondays and Wednesdays from 4pm to 6pm in John Greene Hall 316. I will be unable to hold office hours during the week of 10/23/06-10/27/06.
"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:
There will be individual assignments where you will need
to answer some specific questions in prose or with
small fragments of code as well as larger
individual programming assignments that must be turned in
for grading by a certain deadline. 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.
Students are encouraged to discuss the materials, homework,
and projects together. However, all written assignments
and programs must be done individually. 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.
There will also be suggested excercises that do
not have to be turned in and for these excercises you should
feel free to work with other students including exchange of
solutions.
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 |
|---|---|
| Exercises | 24 Pts |
| Midterm | 15 Pts |
| Final | 15 Pts |
| Class Participation | 10 Pts |
There are theoretically a total of 119 Pts possible Grades will be given as follows:
| Grade | Points |
|---|---|
| A | > 90 Pts |
| B | > 75 Pts |
| C | > 60 Pts |
| D | ≥ 45 Pts |
| F | < 45 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 solaris machines which have all of the necessary software installed. Copy the provided bashrc into your home directory (under .bashrc) in order to set the paths correctly (only works if you use bash). Here is a list of the software programs that you will need (possibly incomplete):
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://gnunet.org/du/$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.
Note that existing assignments may still be corrected. Only the assignments up to and including Class 15 have been finalized at this point. Feel free to look at the other assignments if you want to know what the plan looks like. Feedback is welcome.
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.