Introduction to COM379

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Introduction to COM379

• COM379 (Part-Time)
• University of Sunderland
• Harry R Erwin, PhD

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Purpose

• The purpose of COM379 (Advanced Object Oriented
  Design) is to prepare an advanced beginner for an
  entry-level programming position in an
  organization that uses object-oriented design.
• This module corresponds to CS111o and CS112o in
  the ACM model curriculum. For further
  information, see http//www.acm.org/sigcse/cc2001
  /cc2001.pdf

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Responsibility

• Dr. Harry Erwin is the Module Leader for COM379
  at the University of Sunderland. You will see I
  in these presentations from time to time. Thats
  Dr. Erwin speaking based on his experience. Mr.
  James Malone and Mr. John Murray will be the
  section leaders for this class.
• My primary research areas are computational
  neuroscience and auditory neuroethologyHow bats
  do it.
• I also have 35 years of experience as a software
  systems engineer (mostly at TRW) on
  high-reliability systems. I supervise final
  year/MSc projects and PhD research in intelligent
  systems, security, and software engineering.
• E-mail harry.erwin_at_sunderland.ac.uk or
  herwin_at_theworld.com

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Objectives

• Be able to synthesize and document an
  object-oriented design using object-oriented
  analysis and design techniques.
• Develop an awareness of the development processes
  that underlie OO development.
• Learn the principles of designing and
  constructing Engineered Interactive Interfaces
  (GUIs).
• Develop a critical awareness of the concepts of
  event driven and client server application
  development.
• Choose and implement appropriate OO solutions
  from problem descriptions, using a toolkit.
• Critically appraise, evaluate, and implement
  designs using Java.
• Understand current development practices and
  environments.

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On Programming

• When you interview for a position as an
  entry-level programmer/analyst, youll find that
  employers expect you to be able to program
  fluently.
• Programming is not an easy skill to learn, but is
  the foundation for everything else we teach.
• Mastering programming is like mastering the
  pianopractice is the key to your success.
• So plan to practice programming several hours a
  week. Work on your own projects if ours are not
  interesting.

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On Practicing

• Ref Philip E. Ross (2006) "Secrets of the Expert
  Mind", Scientific American, 295(2)46-53, August
  2006.
• Expertise has turned out to be knowledge-guided
  perception (apperception)structured knowledge,
  not analysisand that is the result of intensive
  training, not talent.
• However, what matters is not experience per se,
  but "effortful study, involving continually
  tackling challenges just beyond one's competence.
• Plan on doing this if you want to make the most
  of my modules.

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Mistakes are Good

• You learn by your mistakes.
• As you continue to practice you will make
  mistakes. You will identify these mistakes and
  you will correct them. As a consequence you gain
  experience. You can then draw upon this
  experience and produce better quality code
  quicker.
• However, without initial practice none of this
  will happen hence, when called upon to produce
  code you will simply make mistakes.
• Make your mistakes when practicingwhen they
  dont matter.

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Tools

• We will use the following
• Java 1.5 or 5.0
• Eclipse 3.2
• JUnit 3.8.1
• Abbot 0.12.0
• webct.sunderland.ac.uk for communication,
  discussions, and submitting coursework.

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Scope of the Module

• Terminology
• Theory
• An Object-Oriented Programming Language (Java)
• Object-Oriented Methodology
• Design Patterns

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Outline

• 48 Lectures
• 24 Tutorials
• 1 TCT (1 hour midterm)
• 2 Projects
• 1 Comprehensive Examination

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Texts

• Key texts that students are strongly encouraged
  to buy
• T. Lethbridge and R. Laganière, 2001,
  Object-Oriented Software Engineering,
  McGraw-Hill, ISBN 0-07-709761-0.
• D. Flanagan, 2002, Java in a Nutshell, fourth
  edition, O'Reilly.
• http//www.patterndepot.com/put/8/JavaPatterns.htm
  (a free download!)
• Support texts students should have access to
• Texts in the OReilly Nutshell series (Java
  Foundation ClassesJava EnterpriseJava
  ExamplesUML in a Nutshell).
• I. Graham, 2001, Object-Oriented Methods, 3rd
  edition, Addison-Wesley. A post-graduate text for
  advanced students.
• Gamma, et al., 1995, Design Patterns,
  Addison-Wesley. Also advanced.
• Other texts, papers, and websites will be cited
  from time to time.
• Cetus Links http//www.cetus-links.org/

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Lecture Topics

• Java 2 (1.4.2 SDK) (6 lectures)
• Definitions
• Theory (concepts and principles)
• Methods (41 methodology)
• Design Approaches
• Patterns

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My Informal Marking Criteria

• A first is supposed to mean that the student is
  qualified for an entry level position and can
  safely work on high-reliability applications.
• An upper second is supposed to mean that the
  student is qualified for an entry level position
  andwith experiencemight safely work on
  high-reliability applications.
• A lower second is supposed to mean that the
  student is qualified for an entry level position.
• A third is supposed to mean that the studentwith
  additional programming practicecan reach entry
  level qualification.

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Course Marking

• Two elements coursework and examination, each
  counting half.
• Programming projects are 80 of the coursework
  mark. It is possible to earn more than 80 marks
  on a project.
• The TCT counts 20 of the coursework mark. It has
  three purposes
• To reward early engagement with the module
  materials
• To provide early warning of problems with the
  lecture material
• As practice for the comprehensive examination
• Coursework and exam marks must be at least 35,
  and the module mark must be at least 40 to pass.

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Project Marking

• Deliverables include
• A zipfile with the code required to run the
  project. This must compile and run with Eclipse
  3.0 and the Java 1.4.2 SDK. No proprietary
  extensions allowed!
• A sample compilation and run of the project.
• Program documentation, including a listing.
• Marking (over the semester)
• 45 marks for design
• 30 marks for documentation
• 25 marks for critical assessment
• The marking standard is based on what is expected
  of a fully competent entry-level programmer. Your
  tutors should be consulted for any questions.

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Delivery Standards

• There will be a standard way of delivering code
  and artifacts as solutions to your assessments.
• Details of these standards will be provided prior
  to delivery of your assessment work and you MUST
  adhere to these.
• Non-compliance will lose marks.
• The use of standards is strongly supported and
  adopted throughout the software industry and it
  is important that you can demonstrate the
  discipline to abide by standards imposed upon you.

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Design

• 5 marks for successful compilation of a program
  designed to meet the project requirements by the
  Java 1.4 SDK.
• 5 marks for successful execution of the program
  in that environment.
• Up to 10 marks if most of the project
  requirements are met.
• Up to 10 marks additional if all requirements are
  met.
• Note that you must evaluate any requirements
  deficiencies in the status report.
• Up to 10 marks for good object-oriented design.
• Up to 5 marks for effective and complete use of
  comments and appropriate names in the code.
• These marks will be distributed between the first
  and second deliveries of the project(s) to
  maintain the appropriate balance.

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Documentation

• Up to 5 marks for your status report, evaluating
  overall success or failure and lessons learned.
• Up to 10 marks for documentation of your
  requirements and their traceability to the
  design
• o Traceability showing how each requirement is
  met by your design.
• o A test report showing how the requirements are
  met
• Up to 15 marks for documentation of your design
• o Overview of your architecture and design,
• o Structural and behavioral diagrams,
• o Written descriptions of each class,
• o Any necessary algorithm documentation (NS
  diagrams, PDL, flow charts, or similar)
• o A sample compilation and run of the project
• o Program listing.
• These marks will be distributed between the first
  and second deliveries of the project(s) to
  maintain the appropriate balance.

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Critical Evaluation

• Up to 25 marks for a critical evaluation of a
  specific question as it applies to your project.
• These marks will be distributed between the first
  and second deliveries of the project(s) to
  maintain the appropriate balance.

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Fairness in Marking

• During marking, projects will be checked to
  determine if there is evidence for collaboration
  or cheating.
• The mean coursework mark is expected to be about
  65. Note that that students will be able to earn
  more than 80 marks on projects for
  professional-quality work.
• The comprehensive examination will be designed
  for a mean mark of about 50 and a standard
  deviation of about 18, so that passing the module
  is controlled by examination performance.

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Collaboration

• The following are permitted
• Cooperation in developing an understanding of the
  requirements. What we dont understand, we
  explain to each other.
• Cooperation in the diagnosis of bugs and problems
  as long as the helper does not provide code
  solutions.
• These are pedagogically valuable and allowed.
• The following are not allowed
• Collaboration in developing project documentation
  and figures. Write your own report!
• Collaboration in designing and coding the
  project. Come up with your own design and write
  your own code!
• As long as similarity remains at or above the
  subsystem or pattern level, not extending into
  the detailed design and code, it will not be
  penalized as collaboration.

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Allowed External Sources of Code and Design

• Code provided by the instructor,
• Code generated by tools,
• Code from the key texts
• Code from the reference texts
• Code from http//www.patterndepot.com/put/8/JavaPa
  tterns.htm, including the supporting materials
• Code from Gamma, et al., Design Patterns.
• You must cite your use of this material in the
  code module where it is used.

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Questions?