Summer 2001

First Course in Java

U.C. Berkeley Extension, EDP 305805
Instructors: Alex Aybes. M.A., and Thomas Albert, Ph.D.
June 5 to July 5, 2001
Tuesdays and Thursdays 6:30 - 9:30 p.m.
EDP 305805
U.C. Berkeley Extension Fremont
Contact email: send to both Alex: javamaniac@mac.com and Thomas: java@WORDesign.com

 Alex            Thomas
UC Berkeley Extension course description: http://www.unex.berkeley.edu/cat/315549.html
Syllabus: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Description  

Java is fast becoming the programming language for tomorrow, especially with the explosion of the Internet. 
World Wide Web pages are becoming interactive embedded applets for content, animation, graphics and sound. 
This is possible using Java with its promise of platform independence. 
“Write Once, Run Anywhere” might become a reality for software development, whether the programmer or end-user runs Windows, Macintosh, or UNIX.
Java uses a syntax similar to C/C++. However, people not familiar with C/C++ should have no difficulty in learning Java. 
This course is intended for such an audience. It focuses on Java as a programming language (syntax and semantics) and the basics of object-oriented programming. 
This 10 session course (3 hours per session) will cover the following:
  • Data Types
  • Variables and Constants
  • Assignment and Initialization
  • Relational and Boolean Operators
  • Control and Flow Constructs
  • Classes and Objects
  • Basic Object Oriented Programming with Java
  • Understanding Java Applets
  • Graphics Programming with Java
Students completing this course should be able to write basic Java applications and undertake advanced courses in Java.

Structure

The class consists of 10 sessions (5 Tuesdays and 5 Thursdays) during 5 weeks (June 5 to July 5).
Lectures sessions are from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. with a 20 minute break from 7:50 to 8:10.
There is no lab in this class.
We encourage student-instructor discussion.
NOTE: We teach as a collaborative workshop. All work is public. We might look at any class member's work in class together.

Workload

You are required to complete 9 assignments, as well as take a Midterm exam and a Final exam.

For the assignments, we encourage students to work in teams of two.
We encourage you to use a text editor such as:

Exams can involve multiple choice selections, filling in blanks, or writing short pieces of sample code.

Our goal is that the Tuesday to Thursday assignments take you, on the average, no more than 3 hours, and that the Thursday to Tuesday assignments take you, on the average, no more than 6 hours. The actual homework time will vary from student to student.

The textbook is required, and reading the chapters we suggest will help you understand the lectures. 
However, we do not formal require you to do the weekly readings.

Textbook

Teach Yourself Java 2 in 21 Days, 2nd Edition
by Laura Lemay and Rogers Cadenhead
680 pages, list price $29.99
Sams Publishing, September 2000
ISBN: 0672319586
Official Book Web Site: http://www.naviseek.com/users/rcade/books/21java/, includes instructions for configuring the SDK

Grading

Grade               Score (in %)
A            81% -100%
B            71% - 80%
C            61% - 70%
D            51% - 60%                                                                         
F            <51%

Criteria for Grading Assignments
Attendance

You are responsible for completing all work assigned in this class. You do not have to contact us with a reason of absence.

Withdrawing

If you decide to withdraw, it is your responsibility to make sure that U.C. Berkeley Extension processes your withdraw request and removes your name from the final grading form. If your name appears on the official grading form, we will assign you the grade you earned at the end of the five weeks.

Academic Dishonesty

The mid-term and final exam must be each student’s individual work without the help of others, books, or notes.
If you cheat, you fail that exam.

Submitting Assignments

If you do not have access to email, please contact one of the instructors to make arrangements for submitting assignments as paper printouts. We strongly discourage paper submissions because we cannot run your program unless we retype your source code.
We prefer not to accept floppy disks because of the risks of a computer virus.
In general, we request that students submit each assignment as a zip archive (or tar) consisting only of plain text with the source code and sample output.
Do NOT email us executables or attachments of any kind. Also, do not paste the code into the body of an email because line breaks change in the email reader.
We advise you to verify the quality of your work before you submit it.
The due date of each assignment is on the Calendar.
We remind you that Timeliness is one of the evaluation criteria (Late Penalty: We subtract five points each day an assignment is late.)

The email body should have a header (see description below), your source code, and sample output.
The email header should follow this format:

Note: The instructors post grades at Tally of Homework Assignments

Software to Develop Java Code

Download Sun's JDK (Java Development Kit) for free at http://java.sun.com/products/jdk/1.2/index.html
You will need to compile and run your Java source code, and we support this official JDK.

For this First Course in Java, we recommend that you write your source code using whatever text editor (Notepad, Word, SimpleText, vi) that you are most familiar with. There are integrated development environments (IDEs), but we do not provide support for them. In addition, gaining familiarity with any new tool involves a learning curve that will cost you time. We list them for your information only.

Course Syllabus by Alex Aybes and Thomas Albert. Last updated 06/26/2001. 
Copyright © August 2000 granted to the Regents of the University of California.