Programming Tools & Computer Science I

CSC 185 & 201, Spring 2013, Northern Virginia Community College

NVCC CSC 201-002A — Computer Science I — Spring 2013

When: Mondays & Wednesdays, 8:30PM-10:20PM
Where: Alexandria campus, AA-0156
Instructor: Joel Lepak
Email: jal2016@email.vccs.edu
Course website: http://ilzd.org/teaching/2013spring

Important dates

Course description

This is an introductory object-oriented programming course that assumes some prior programming experience.

CSC 130 is a prerequisite, and CSC 185 is a co-requisite. If you're taking CSC 185 concurrently, I'd suggest joining my section if possible.

See course content summary.

Textbook

Walter Savitch, Java: An Introduction to Problem Solving and Programming.

The following rant was about the previous book used, but it applies equally well to this one:

You can use edition 5 or greater. Editions 6 and 7 are a shameless attempt to sell more textbooks -- the Java programming language has had absolutely no changes that are significant to a beginner since Java version 5 in 2004 (before edition 5 of the book was published). In fact, almost all of the changes that are of interest to anyone involve the JVM (the Java virtual machine, the program that executes compiled Java bytecode), not the Java language.

We might also make use of excerpts from books available from Safari Books Online.

Grading

Your grade will be based on the following components:

A failing grade for any one of the components above will result in a F for the course.

The grading scale is:

There is no curve or extra credit.

Homework

Homework will be assigned roughly weekly, and due roughly a week later.

You are expected to write all your own answers, code, and comments for homeworks. Working together is permitted (and encouraged), but each person must write (and explain) the final solution alone. You will be expected to be able to explain all details of every homework assignment you complete.

Use of books and websites for help with homework solutions is permitted, but you must cite any sources you use. Lack of citation will be treated as cheating.

Project

You will choose (or be assigned one if necessary) and complete an open-ended project. You can work alone or in groups of up to 3. The project work will include:

Exams

You may bring one 8.5 by 11 inch sheet of paper filled with whatever notes/formulas/prayers/etc. you want to the exams. Make-up exams are permitted only with a good excuse (travel plans are not accepted as an excuse), and the make-up exam may differ from the original.

Ethics

Any ethics violation will be reported to the Dean, and result in an F for the course. Ethics violations include:

Et cetera

The syllabus is subject to change. I'll give notice and a good reason if any changes are necessary.

No audits will be permitted -- the class is full and there are other students waiting to take the class for full credit.

If you are seeking accommodations based on a disability, you must provide a disability data sheet, which can be obtained from the counselor for special needs, who is located in Room 185 of the Bisdorf Building, telephone number (703) 845-6301.

Schedule

The exam and project dates are set, but the specific topics are only a rough guess.