CS 4470 Introduction to User Interface Software
CS 6456 Principles of User Interface Software
Fall 2003
General course information and policies
Electronic information
The use of electronic technology in the classroom will play a critical
role in this class. We will use electronic means to disseminate
information about the class, such as the lecture schedule (syllabus),
readings, homework and project assignments. We
will try to make as much use as possible of electronic information
exchange. The three possible electronic means of exchange will be
electronic mail, a collaborative Web discussion space (if students
request it) and a class
World Wide Web home page.
Electronic mail
Probably the most dependable way to contact the instructor is by e-mail. Whenever you send
e-mail,
please make sure you include your full name on the message, as it is
sometimes difficult to decipher student mail addresses. If you do not
get a response within one day, please resend your email.
WWW
You are currently reading text from the class Web pages for CS
4470/6456.
There are a variety of ways to access this page using any of a number
of WWW browsers. For example, you can traverse links directly from
the College of Computing home
page (follow Course Information link and then Class Websites). Or you
can access this page directly by opening the URL
http://www.cc.gatech.edu/classes/AY2004/cs4470_fall/.
The class syllabus, indicating lecture topics, reading, homework and
lab assignments, will be posted on the class Web page and will be
continually updated throughout the semester. You should make it a
regular habit to consult the syllabus. (Note: Since the
syllabus is constantly updated, make sure you explicitly reload the
page to ensure that you are looking at the latest version of the
page. )
Students doing project work will use the collaborative Web
discussion space (CoWeb), described next, to post any relevant project
deliverables.
Discussion spaces
In the past, we have made use of a class newsgroup, but its use has
dwindled substantially for a variety of reasons. As an alternative, we
will be making use of a collaborative Web discussion space, called a
CoWeb. The CoWeb for this class is http://swiki.cc.gatech.edu:8080/cs4470.
Students are free to structure some of this CoWeb space for their
benefit. Certains parts of the CoWeb will be structured for various
class items, such as project deliverables.
Grading
The final grades will be calculated based on the following
weighting
scheme. This class is a combined graduate and undergraduate course, and
there are different expectations and evaluation for those two
groups. The following is a breakdown of the assessment that is
planned to apply for undergraduages and graduate students. As the
expectations of the graduate students is that this course will be an
introduction to research in the area of user interface software, we
have structured the class Please note that graduates will be required
to do more work in
the project. It is possible that this weighting scheme will be
adjusted as the semester progresses. Any such changes will be
announced to the class.
Grade weighting
| Category |
Ugrads |
Grads |
| Homework 1 |
10% |
10% |
| Homework 2 |
10% |
10% |
| Homework 3 |
10% |
10% |
| Homework 4 |
10% |
10% |
Homework 5
|
10%
|
n/a
|
Homework 6
|
10%
|
n/a
|
Project (3 parts)
|
n/a
|
40% |
Exam 1
|
20% |
20% |
| Final Exam |
20% |
n/a
|
The final letter grade will be determined based on a curve that
respects the relative distribution of grades throughout the
semester. However, an overall average above 90 will result in an A,
between 80-90 a B, between 70-80 a C, between 60-70 a D. Students
taking the class pass/fail must receive a B or better to pass.
Students auditing will not be required to complete homework, projects
or exams.
Homework
Every student will be expected to complete the first four programming
assignments, planned for the first half
of the course. Details on the requirements for successfully
completing the homeworks will be given in the assignment on the Web.
The work is expected to be completed by individuals and not in
collaboration with others. The homework is due by class time of the
announced due date. The grade for a homework assignment will
be marked down 25% for every day it is late.
Exams
All students will be expected to take the first exam, given roughly at
the middle of the term. All undergraduates will be expected to
take a written final exam during exam week. All exams will be
based on readings, lectures, and homework. The first exam will be
graded and returned within
one week. Questions about exam grading should be directed to the TA
within one week of the return. Adjustments in exam grades will be
rare and could equally well result in a lowering or raising of the
grade.
Project
Graduate students in the class will be expected to complete a
multi-part project during the second half of the course. The second
half of the course will consist of a collection of lectures
on advanced topics beyond the traditional 2-dimensional graphical user
interface. Students will be expected to complete a significant
project based on at least one of the advanced topics presented in
class. These topics will be presented in an overview lecture
approximately halfway through the semester. The project consists of
three separate
activities. The first is a written paper that serves as an overview of
the topic area and based on a collection of readings. The second
activity will involve an instructor-approved impementation task in the
topic area. The third and final part of the project will consist of a
presentation and demo of the work done on the project.
Class participation/Attendance
A good portion of the learning in any upper level class comes from
intelligent discussion involving the instructor and the students. If
you don't attend class, you cannot participate, and your performance
in the class may reflect that. I expect that each student will make
an effort to attend all lectures and contribute constructively to the
discussion. The instructor reserves the right to use judgment of
class participation to adjust the final overall average for any
student.
I want to know who you are, so please make an effort to speak in
class and talk to me outside of class. If by the end of the quarter I
don't know your name, it won't necessarily be my fault.
Students are expected to attend all lectures on time.
Students are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner.
This expectation includes showing up for exams at the appointed time.
Late make-up exams will not be given. Any conflicts with exam times
should be brought to the instructor's attention as soon as possible and
in all cases PRIOR to the examination period.
Students are expected to follow the university's code of academic
conduct. Cases of suspected academic misconduct will be immediately
forwarded to the Dean of Student Affairs, and will be pursued to
resolution. This is an unpleasant process for all involved, so please
do not put yourself in this situation. Group projects are expected to
be done collaboratively.
Individual homework assignments, unless otherwise indicated, are
expected to be done by individuals without collaboration. The
take-home final is also an individual assignment, with no expectation
of collaboration.
Above all, I would like to adhere to the reasonable person
principle.
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