CMSI 185 Home Page

CMSI 185 - Computer Programming- fall, 2008 Home Page and Course Syllabus

Brief contents

Class Meetings and Personnel

Laboratory Assistants: Keck Lab, Doolan 114. The Keck Lab is open, typically, from eight to fourteen hours per day. The schedule will be posted on the door, and if the lab is open, there will be a lab assistant on duty. All of them are excellent Java programmers, and Christian Mueller, in particular, is "connected" to this course.

Objectives and Topics

This is a course about algorithms:
- what they are;
- what they can, and can not, do;
- how to construct correct ones;
- how to express them in a modern-day computer programming language.
We will design algorithms for a bunch of numerical and non-numerical problems, and we will do lots of programming in Java, emphasizing sound principles of software (and just about every other kind of) engineering, such as specification of requirements; modular construction; simple interfaces; component testing; robustness; and user-friendliness. We will also have some things to say about the history of computing, computer organization, translation and interpretation of programming languages, programming paradigms, sorting and searching, recursion, program correctness, computational complexity and intractability.

This course is not, by itself, intended to be a comprehensive study of the Java language and its many features; roughly a third of the lectures focus on material that might be called algorithmics, dealing with some of the main ideas in computing that are likely to survive (even) Java. Computer science majors- and some minors- should take the continuation course, CMSI 186, in the spring: it is a workshop that will add, considerably, to the Java that is covered in CMSI 185.

Prerequisites

There are no formal prerequisites, but be prepared to deal with some relatively lightweight mathematics.

Textbooks and Materials

Optional- Any introductory programming book that uses Java, e.g., Deitel and Deitel, Java- How to Program (the sixth edition is current, but virtually any edition will work; click here to navigate to the website for this book), or Liang, Introduction to Java Programming. Strong suggestion: Wait until we have made our first few Java programs, then look at a bunch of books at your favorite bookstore and pick the one that seems most friendly to you.

Optional- David Flanagan, Java in a Nutshell- any recent edition will do. (Click here to navigate to the website for this book.)

You do not need your own computer; however, if you happen to have one, we will be using Java, for which all of the necessary software and documentation are widely available- and free!

Coursework and Grading

Expect, roughly, a new programming assignment each week; a midterm exam; and a final exam.

In evaluating the quality of your work, we will take into consideration your homework, midterm exam and final exam- with emphasis on the exams.

These may be modified by a plus or a minus, e.g., a grade of B+ indicates very good work.

Miscellany

Class will not meet on Tuesday, September 2; on designated undergraduate holidays (check the registrar's online schedule); or on Thanksgiving Thursday.

You should try to work, as often as possible, in the Keck Lab. At any given moment it is equipped with around 25-30 (mostly, Linux-based) machines, and they all have the appropriate software installed. Even more important: most computer science students, lab assistants, and professors tend to hang out there, easily making it the most programmer-friendly lab on campus.

This site is frequently updated with links to homework assignments, solutions, practice problems, and miscellaneous announcements; the links will appear in the next two sections. It is your responsibility to regularly monitor the site for information; the last line gives the revision time and date.

Homework Assignments

None at this time.

Illustrative Programs and Homework Solutions

Revised: August 26, 2008