CS 102

1
CS 102

• Introduction to programming with Visual Basic
  .NET
• Dr. Marty Sirkin

2
Overview

• This class is designed for
• Non-programmers
• People interested in learning to program
• Potential CS majors who want to get their feet
  wet
• This class requires
• No background in Computer Science
• No previous programming experience

3
This Class Is

• A programming class
• You will program a LOT
• You will learn by doing, not reading
• A lot of fun
• You will be amazed by how much you will be able
  to do (both quickly and easily)
• Do-able
• If something is difficult, please just ASK. I am
  more than happy to help as much as you need

4
This Class Is

• Interactive. I expect people to
• Ask questions
• Ask more questions
• Ask even more questions
• Challenge my statements and assumptions
• Potted plants are best suited for the lobby!!

5
About My Background

• Been a programmer since 1969 (age 8)
• Attended
• Caltech (BS Physics)
• University of Washington (MS, PhD Computer Sci)
• Worked for
• NASA (JPL)
• IBM Research
• Various startups
• Started my own firm First Choice Software
• Consulting and then product firm
• CRM Software
• CEO/CTO
• Ran it for 12 years
• Sold it in 2005

6
My Contact Info

• The best way to reach me is email. I am always on
  email, and that is the quickest, best way to
  contact me. My email address is
• marty_at_sirkin.net
• I will make every attempt to get back to you very
  quickly, and almost always this will be within a
  couple of hours.

7
Overview of Topics

• This class will cover
• Computer Arithmetic
• Basic computer architecture
• What is a program/How to design and write
  programs
• Basic flowcharts
• History/Why Visual Basic .Net
• Visual programming, and how it is different than
  imperative programming
• Visual programming

8
Class Structure

• Class Meetings
• Wed/Fri 100 215
• Office hours
• Mon 1200 100
• Duffy 012
• Or email me to set up a time!

9
Expectations

• What I expect from you in class is pretty simple
• Respectful of each other and yourselves
• Be prepared (reading assignments)
• Try hard
• What you can expect from me
• My attention
• My respect
• My best effort, no matter how much effort it takes

10
Assignments

• Homework
• Reading each week
• Written assignments
• Help understand the concepts
• Programming
• Trying out what weve discussed in lecture
• Project
• Will be programming
• Will build on weekly assignments
• Goal is for you to feel pumped by what youve
  completed, in very little time
• Details to be handed out early in semester

11
Exams

• Midterm and Final
• Insuring that youve learned the core concepts
• If you are up on assignments/project, they should
  be EASY

12
Grading
Item Percent of Grade
Weekly Homework 40
Midterm Exam 10
Final Project 30
Final Exam 20
13
Extra Credit

• My goal is to teach you
• I want you to learn, get excited about
  programming, and continue with it past this class
• Grades are far more important to students than
  they are to me
• I will award liberal extra credit for students
  who go way above and beyond
• It is trivial (in programming) to do more and
  better with your programs.

14
Turning In Homework

• Written assignments handed in at class
• If you wont be at class, email me in advance to
  make arrangements
• Programming assignments can be emailed to me
• Details to be explained when assignments are
  handed out

15
Getting Extra Help (2)

• To repeat
• I want to make sure that you succeed. I am more
  than happy to help you as much as you need until
  you do succeed. But the onus is on you you must
  ASK for help.

16
Overview of Topics

• Object Oriented programming
• Visual Studio
• What it does for you
• Tour/features
• Data types
• Debugging your programs
• Event-driven programming
• Controls overview
• Input/output methods

17
Overview of Topics (contd)

• Control structures (if/then, others)
• Loops
• User-defined procedures/functions
• File input/output
• Multiple forms, manipulating forms
• More with arrays
• Interacting with databases (time permitting)
• Web programming (time permitting)
• Graphics (time permitting)

18
Web Site

• There is a class web site. It is located at
• http//web.stonehill.edu/compsci/cs102
• The site contains the .ppt files of class
  lectures, assignments, and useful links.
• If you have any issues with the website, please
  let me know!

19
By The End

• of this course you will be able to
• Write sophisticated Visual Basic programs
• Write fairly sophisticated graphical interfaces
• Be able to debug programs you write in a
  scientific, efficient fashion
• Move on to the next logical step of Visual Basic
  .NET programming
• Services
• Custom assemblies
• Move on to other programming languages, including
  Java or C

20
Dont Believe Me?

• Time for a demo of the class final project

21
Trivia

• I live for trivia. I will typically ask trivia
  questions at the end of each homework assignment
• Trivia is optional, and is intended for fun
• From time to time, some of the trivia questions
  will be worth (small amounts) of extra credit
• If youve got a great trivia question for me,
  please do send it in!