ISMG 3200 - Data Structures with Java 
Fall 2004

• In addition, there are lecture notes available. You will need to print them out, they will be helpful on the exam!!!.

    Software

• You will need a Java editor and compiler.  There are multiple sources for free Java compilers.  See software.html for download sites and preliminary instructions on how to use them.

    Computer Lab

• You can use JDeveloper in the computer lab in KC 216.  You will find Lab hours and Rules here.

Methods

• Be Prepared:It is assumed that you will read the assigned chapters each week. The topics covered in this course are difficult to master without substantial amount of effort. You will need a great deal of time for experimenting and practicing code. Read the manual for the Java software you are using. Your computer and compiler are good teachers. Be prepared to try out things by yourself. Use the debugger, dig into texts, try on-line help. 

• Cheating: All quizzes, tests and programs are to be done individually. Academic Dishonesty is not tolerated and will result in a zero on the assignment, and a one letter grade reduction in the course and reporting of the incident to the College's Internal Affairs Committee. The following are considered Academic Dishonesty:
  • Copying the work of current or past ISMG 3200 students
  • Working collaboratively on individual assignments except to provide debugging assistance
  • Providing assignment solutions (total or partial) to any other ISMG 3200 student!
  • Copying the code or design of a past or current ISMG 3200 project
  • Copying the code or design of internet sites or other sources without crediting the source
  • Using a tutor or any other person to write all or part of your code for you.

  I reserve the right to ask any student to explain the logic used in their programs purpose of each line of code it their assignments.  If a student can not explain what they have done, it will be assumed that they did not do their assignment themselves.

  Cheating on an exam will result in an automatic F for the course!  The penalty for subsequent academic dishonesty incidents can involve removal from the IS program and/or from CU Denver.

• Late work: Projects and Assignments will not be accepted late. There will be group discussions regarding the assignments immediately after they are due and thus it is imperative that work be completed ON TIME.  Assignments received after the due date will receive a 0 - no exceptions.
   
• Email: My courses can be difficult and often students get to places in their assignments where they do not know what to do next. I encourage you to ask questions in class, office hours and via email.  Always include the course number (ISMG 3200) and your name in the email.

  When asking a question via email please do the following:

  • Clearly give me a specific question. 
  • If you have an error message(s) you do not understand put a copy of the error message(s) in the email and attach your code so I can see where it occurs.
  • If your code compiles but runs strangely describe the behavior and attach your code (e.g. I input the id and then nothing happens)
  • If you do not understand what is expected - explain what parts of the assignment you do not understand.
  • If you are having difficulty deciding how to approach a problem - describe to me what you think you should be doing and I will let you know what you have right & where you might be wrong.
  • DO NOT email me and say here is what I have so far what do I do next...
• Getting behind: This is a difficult course and requires a significant amount of work.  DO NOT GET BEHIND.  New concepts build on earlier concepts and if you skip even one week you can find yourself so far behind that you can not catch up with the rest of the class.  Students who miss class or skip assignments usually wind up failing the course.

Course Assignments and Requirements

Learning to decompose a problem and develop a software solution involves doing. Students cannot just listen to a lecture and know how to develop code. To improve students? ability to program I have numerous short assignments and longer projects that give students practice developing and debugging business programs. This is graded and returned as soon as possible so students know how they are doing in my class. This section outlines in great detail and fully explains the course assignments and requirements.  I urge you to read it carefully and more than once!

• Homework: You will complete several short homework assignments during the course of the semester. The goal for homework is for you to become comfortable with different programming concepts and become familiar with how the Java development environment you are using works.   These assignments will checked for completeness only.  It is important for students to try and hand in every homework assignment - even if it does not work 100% correctly!
   
• Programming Project: There is a semester long Programming Project that will be completed in three major sections.  This is a larger scale program designed to resemble real programs that might be used in a business setting. Each programming project segment generally requires a substantial amount of effort on the part of students (15 - 40 hours per project depending on the student) so please allow enough time to complete the project before the due date. 

  Program Code: will be evaluated based on three major criteria: Compliance with project requirements, Quality of the source code and Program performance.  A grading sheet, distributed with each project?s specifications, will specify the distribution of points for the project.

  • Compliance: Projects will be evaluated to determine whether the code meets all of the requirements set forth in the assignment.  That is - did the student write code to do all of the tasks the program needs to perform?
  • Quality: Program quality consists of several factors including:
    • Program Flow: The program should be laid out logically such that the order that the activities that are performed make sense in the context of the problem.
    • Variable Names: Use variable names with a clear meaning in the context of the program whenever possible.
    • Format:  Include adequate white-space in the program to improve readability. Insert blank lines to group sections of code. Use indentation to improve readability of control flow. Avoid confusing use of opening/closing braces.
    • Internal Comments: Main program comments should describe overall purpose of the program. Function comments should describe their purpose and other pertinent information, if any. Compound statements (control flow) should be commented. Finally, see that commenting is not overdone and redundant.
    • Modularity in Design: Avoid accomplishing too many tasks in one function; use a separate module. Also, avoid too many lines of code in a single module; create more modules. Design should facilitate individual module testing. Use automatic variables instead of external variables whenever possible.
    • Solution Quality: The solution chosen should be clear and concise.  Is the solution chosen excellent, better than average, average or worse than other ways of approaching the given problem?
  • Performance: A good program needs to compile, run and produce the correct output. A program that does not compile will receive a zero for program performance.  The program will be tested with a variety of inputs.  To maximize your score your program should not crash for any expected input and it should produce the correct answer.  The program should also facilitate repeated use when used interactively and should allow easy exit. Requests for interactive input from the user should be clear. Incorrect user inputs should be captured and explained. Outputs should be well-formatted (e.g. in a table with headings, labeled, or formatted as currency if appropriate).

  All project segments build on prior projects so skipping a project will make it difficult to complete subsequent projects.  Projects are typically turned in in class on a floppy disk or submitted via email.  When submitting a project, it is the students responsibility to submit all related classes necessary for the project (or else I can not test your code!). If you are using a class provided by the instructor - and have not changed it in any way, you are not required to include that file with your project submission.  Failure to include all the required .java files will result in some loss of credit. 

  If you are not satisfied with your grade, you may request a re-evaluation. Do not change the relevant files on your disk. Re-evaluation may result in a higher or a lower score for the Programming Project.

  Program Quizzes: Following the completion of each project you will be asked to complete a short quiz (ten questions) about what you did in the project.   The results of the quiz will be multiplied by you grade on the project to obtain your final project grade.  The quiz is designed so that if you code your project yourself you should be able to get 100% on the quiz.
   

• Exams: There will be one mid-term exam and one Final exam. The exam will be given in class only on the mentioned dates.  Question Formats include: fill-in-the-blank, short essay questions, writing of algorithms, filling key steps in incomplete algorithms, writing Java programs or functions.  You will be allowed to bring one page of notes into the exam (8 1/2" by 11) written on both sides of the paper. No other notes may be used during the exam and electronic devices of any kind (e.g. cell phones, calculators, laptop computers, dictionaries etc.) must be turned off and properly stored during the examination period.
  
  Failure to attend your exam will result in a zero for the examination.  In cases of extremely extenuating circumstances (i.e. documented circumstances clearly beyond the student's control) a make-up exam may be given.  However, the student must request the make-up exam in writing within 24 hours of the original exam date.
  
  If you know in advance that you will not be able to attend an exam because of extenuating circumstances beyond your control you may request a make-up exam.  Requests for make-up exams must be made in writing at least 1 full week prior to the class section in which the exam is scheduled to be given.  If the request for a make-up exam is approved, a make-up exam will then be scheduled.
  
  24 hours prior to a scheduled make-up exam, it is the student's responsibility to confirm via email that they still plan on attending the make-up exam at the given date and time.  If the student no longer needs to take a make-up exam - the student must cancel the make-up exam via email 24 hours in advance of the scheduled make-up exam time.  Failure to attend a make-up exam will result in a 0 for the exam.
  
  Note: although you will not be permitted to keep any of the examinations, I will bring the examinations to class period following the exams to allow students to review their answers. I will also make exams available for students to review during my office hours.

Grading

Final Grades for this class will be based on your performance in classwork & homework problems, three individual projects, a midterm and a final exam. Weightings will be applied as follows:  

Letter Grades are typically assigned as follows:

Note: Grading policies of the CU Denver Business School state that the average GPA across all students in a class should generally fall within the following range: 2.3 (C+) to 3.0 (B) on a 4.0 scale.  Therefore, if necessary, the ranges above will be modified so the average GPA across all students in the class falls with in the recommended range.