Modeling and Design

CS 2390 Fall 1995

General Course Information

Where and When

Class meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30 -11:00 am in College of Computing, Room 101.

Lab sessions will be held on Wednesdays in the Baird Sun lab from 3:00-4:30 pm for Section A and 4:30-6:00 pm for Section B. Please make sure you have an OIT account prior to the first lab session.

Course Description (from the General Catalog):

Software specification and design techniques; object-oriented design and programming; discrete event simulation.

Instructor's additional remarks: This course will emphasize object-oriented analysis, design and programming. Examples of the OO style will be presented with the development of graphical user interfaces and simulations. The majority of the programming will be done in the Smalltalk language and environment. There will also be an introduction to C++ with exercises and some survey of other object-oriented programming languages. There will not be much discussion of other design or programming paradigms.

Prerequisites:

CS 1502

Learning objectives

By the end of this class, you should be able to:

Instructor:

Dr. Gregory Abowd

Teaching Assistants:

Steve Klivansky

Jay Yan

Required Textbook

Peter Coad and Jill Nicola. Object-Oriented Programming, Yourdon Press, Prentice-Hall, 1993. ISBN 0-13-032616-X.

Additional handouts

Occasionally there may be additional material handed out to supplement information in the book and lectures. Where possible, an on-line version of the handouts will be made available via the Web class syllabus.

Electronic information

We will try to make as much use as possible of electronic information exchange. The three major electronic means of exchange will be electronic mail, a class newsgroup and a class World Wide Web (WWW) home page. If you aren't already familiar with these Internet-based tools, now is the time to find out.

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.

WWW

You are currently reading text from the WWW class home page for CS 2390. There are a variety of ways to access this page using any of a number of WWW browsers (lynx, Mosaic, netscape, etc.). For example, you can traverse links directly from the College of Computing home page (look for the link to "Classes using World Wide Web" under the category of "Academic Information - Student Services"). Or you can access this page directly by opening the URL (that's WWW-speak for location) http://www.cc.gatech.edu/computing/classes/cs2390_95_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 quarter. You should make it a regular habit to consult the syllabus. Other Web locations of interest include:

Newsgroup

The newsgroup for this class is git.cc.class.2390. Occasionally, this newsgroup will be used by the instructor or TAs to make general announcements to the class outside of lecture time. You should make it a habit to consult the newsgroup on a regular basis. Students can post general class-related announcements to the newsgroup.

Grading

Grades will be based on the following weighting scheme:

Non-graduating students
Category Weight
Homework assignments (4-5) 40%
Lab assignments (up to 10) 10%
Two exams 10% (each)
Final 25%
Participation 5%

Graduating students
Category Weight
Homework assignments (4-5) 55%
Lab assignments (up to 10) 10%
Two exams 15%(each)
Final n/a
Participation 5%

Homework

Four or five design and/or programming assignments will be assigned during the quarter. For each design assignment, a written report detailing the analysis and design will be required and must be handed in at the beginning of class on the day it is due. All programming assignments must be handed in electronically to the TA by 9:30 am on the day the assignment is due. Homework will be marked down 10% for each day it is late, with or without an excuse. The assignments will be posted on the Web syllabus. Homework will be graded and returned within one week of receipt. Any questions about grading of homework should be directed to a TA within one week of return date.

Labs

Weekly lab sessions are mandatory and will be monitored and graded by the TAs. Lab assignments will be available via the Web syllabus. The lab will be the best time for you to have access to advice on the programming environments used in the class (VisualWorks Smalltalk and Borland C++). When we study C++, we will probably have to adjust the lab meeting place in order to access the Borland C++ environment.

Students should send mail to help@cc.gatech.edu whenever their "banana" allocation is more than 85% consumed. The note should indicate all CS courses in which the student is using OIT Prism facilities and any extenuating circumstances.

All other problems with OIT facilities, including disk quota modifications, will require that the student contact the OIT Customer Support Center. Phone the Support Center at 894-7173, send mail to support@oit.gatech.edu, or go by Room 140 of the Rich Building during business hours (8am-5pm).

Exams

There will be two exams during the quarter and a final exam, all of which will be based on reading, lectures, lab and homework assignments. The instructor will provide a study guide for exams one week prior to the exam date. Exams during the quarter will be returned within one week. Questions about exams grading should be directed to the instructor 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.

Class participation/Attendance

A good portion of your grade will be determined by class participation. If you don't attend class, you cannot participate, and your grade will reflect that. I expect that each student will attend all lectures and contribute constructively to the discussion. Lab attendance is mandatory and will be reflected in the lab grade assessed by the TAs. 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.

Class policies

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 codes 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.

Above all, I would like to adhere to the reasonable person principle.