CSCI 3308

Software Methods and Tools

Course Location
   ECCR 245

Course Time
   MF 10:00 AM - 10:50 AM

Topics
    What's New
    Schedule
    Bibliography
    Lectures
    Homeworks
    Labs
    Programs
    Testing Notebook
    Reference Materials
    Contact Information
    Evaluation Criteria
    Class Averages
    Class Grades

Friday, January 16, 2004

8:31 AM

To students of the F03 session of CSCI 3308: I'm working on getting the finals into ECOT 717. Due to circumstances beyond my control (my wife is having a baby), its difficult for me to get on campus right now. I'll post an announcement on this website, when the finals are available.

8:30 AM

Note: The content of this website has been made inaccessible due to the fact that another CSCI 3308 class is in session.

Friday, December 19, 2003

10:40 AM

Update: The CS Office (ECOT 717) is closed today, so you can pick up your finals from my office (ECOT 822) today (while I'm here that is!). On Monday, the finals will be available for pickup down in ECOT 717. FYI.

Thursday, December 18, 2003

5:51 PM

Finals will be placed in room 717. Bring your ID and you can pick up your final during office hours. I will be calculating final grades tomorrow and they should be available via the PLUS system sometime next week.

5:47 PM

We have finished grading the final. 59 students took the test. The average score was 161.5 out of 200. The lowest score was 96. The highest score was 192. Their was a three-way tie for the most common score (the mode) between 144, 154, and 170 points. The median was 166. Finally, the standard deviation was 18.5 points. I have updated the grades and averages webpages to contain information on the final.

Tuesday, December 16, 2003

9:53 PM

The grades and averages webpages now contain information on all graded assignments. I will be bringing all of the graded materials to the final and will hand them back at that time. I plan on being in the classroom around 1 PM if you want to come early and ask questions or look at your graded assignments.

Saturday, December 13, 2003

5:10 PM

I am currently planning on being in my office for most of the day on Tuesday to hand back graded assignments and to answer questions about the final. FYI!

5:09 PM

Note: Not all assignments have been graded yet. The TA and the grader have promised to try finish grading all outstanding assignments by Monday morning. As such, I hope to have all grades (except the Final, of course) posted by Monday afternoon. FYI.

Monday, December 1, 2003

12:13 PM

The class schedule has been updated for (hopefully) the final time of the semester. Take a look at the last two weeks to see the updates.

12:10 PM

FCQs for our labs will be held in lab section THIS week. FCQs for the class will be held in lecture THIS friday. There will be NO lecture on Monday, December 8th.

12:09 PM

FYI: I have uploaded the sample xml file and the sample XSLT stylesheet from today's lecture to the reference materials section of the website.

Sunday, November 30, 2003

10:11 PM

Lab 10 is now available.

7:10 PM

Lecture 28 is now available. Lab 10 should be available soon. FYI.

Tuesday, November 25, 2003

5:37 PM

Homework 10 is now available.

4:25 PM

Lecture 27 is now available.

Sunday, November 23, 2003

8:05 PM

Lecture 26 is now available.

Friday, November 21, 2003

12:30 PM

IMPORTANT: You need to make a change to the Makefile supplied with Program 3. Right after the line that defines the ".C.o" suffix rule, add the following two lines:

% :: %,v

% :: RCS/%,v

These rules will prevent Make from checking out your source files from RCS directly into the build directory. If you have *.C files in your architecture-specific build directory, delete them.

Tuesday, November 18, 2003

2:49 PM

Homework 9 is now available.

12:44 PM

CATS Seminar: Utility Computing by Bill Mooz, Sun Microsystems

Time: Thursday, November 20, 5 - 6 PM, in ECCR 150

Abstract: One of the hottest topics in information technology today is utility computing. Come and hear how Sun Microsystems is using technology to implement a unique approach to allowing companies to operate their data centers like utilities and service providers to offer customers the ability to acquire IT-driven services on a pay-per-use basis. Refreshments will be served.

12:38 PM

Lecture 25 is now available.

Sunday, November 16, 2003

5:21 PM

Lecture 24 is now available.

5:07 PM

Lab 8 is now available.

4:07 PM

Program 3 is now available.

3:27 PM

Homework 8 is now available.

Thursday, November 13, 2003

10:09 PM

Lecture 23 is now available.

Wednesday, November 12, 2003

11:09 PM

CATS Seminar: IBM Printing Systems

Time: Thursday, November 13, 5 - 6 PM, in ECCR 150

FREE PIZZA and DRINKS will be served after the talk!

Abstract: Today's high speed printing devices use a combination of embedded hardware/software driven by complex back office solutions to achieve maximum performance and breakthrough print quality in commercial and production environments. Come hear what IBM Printing Systems is doing to lead the digital print industry in e-business on demand printing solutions from both a hardware and software perspective.

11:06 PM

Program 2 Update: I've decided to give points back to students who missed the following requirement on program 2:

archdir-setup script needs to check for the existence of $ARCH before cd'ing to it.

If you missed this requirement, then you should get points back. Check the class grades page to verify this.

Sunday, November 9, 2003

4:45 PM

Lecture 22 is now available.

Friday, November 7, 2003

4:21 PM

Worksheet 3 is now available.

10:57 AM

The class status and class grades pages have been updated with the most recent information. This update includes homework 7, lab 7, quiz 7, and program 2.

What's New

Thursday, November 6, 2003

11:35 PM

Lecture 21 is now available.

Monday, November 3, 2003

10:09 PM

CHANGE IN WORKSHEET 2's REQUIREMENTS: For worksheet 2, you now only have to achieve 98% line coverage but must also achieve 100% branch coverage. This is a decrease of 1% for line coverage but an increase of 1% in branch coverage. It is, unfortunately, impossible to achieve 100% line coverage for this assignment.

Sunday, November 2, 2003

8:31 PM

Lecture 20 is now available.

5:57 PM

A couple of students have been having problems getting worksheet 2 started, due to problems with how their path is set up. Here are a couple of tips:

  • In your packages list, delete the word "java". You should only use "j2sdk" in the package list, not both "java" and "j2sdk".
  • Make sure that </usr/bin> appears AFTER </tools/cs/j2sdk/bin> in your PATH. Typically this is handled automatically by the package mechanism...you just need to make sure that your packages are added to your path BEFORE your other directories.
  • Do not include quotes around the value of your ANT_HOME environment variable. It should look like this:

    setenv ANT_HOME ~csci3308/ant

    not this:

    setenv ANT_HOME "~csci3308/ant"

Friday, October 31, 2003

9:39 PM

Worksheet 2 is now available.

Tuesday, October 28, 2003

9:22 PM

Testing Notebook: Here are a couple of quick comments on the testing notebook.

  • The testing notebook is due at 10 AM on Friday (e.g. start of lecture). You must turn in your test plan and e-mail your test suite to me at that time.
  • The script that is provided in worksheet 1 to automate test cases is only meant to get you started. It does not do everything you will need to completely automate your test suite. For instance, it invokes ezpay without any options, and so it cannot be used to test the -v and --help options as written.
  • Some of your test cases are going to fail. The program you are testing contains bugs.
  • Finally, please try to ask specific questions when you send me e-mail. I do not have time this week to be sent entire test plans with the question "Is this okay?" Try to make your questions specific.

Monday, October 27, 2003

1:45 PM

Reminder: Start on the testing notebook today! You may not work with other students (e.g. your lab partner) on this assignment. Lab section will be held on Wednesday to allow you to ask questions about the testing notebook. Feel free to send questions to me as well!

1:42 PM

Lecture 19 is now available.

Friday, October 24, 2003

2:09 PM

Lecture 18 is now available.

2:51 AM

I've been up late working on the testing notebook. As such, worksheet 1 is now available! Feel free to start early! :-)

Thursday, October 23, 2003

8:50 PM

The testing notebook handout is now available.

Sunday, October 19, 2003

6:23 PM

The following people did not pick up their midterms on Friday. Please come to class tomorrow and pick them up:

Brandon Andrews, Jessac Baird, Corey Brothers, Shane Cantwell, Pat Carmichael, Micah Dowty, Igor Kuznetsov, Gi Hyun Lee, Andy McGraw, Aaron Nakata, Andy Root, Nick Terkay, Wan Man Yung

1:18 AM

For what its worth, here is the histogram of the midterm.

Saturday, October 18, 2003

5:04 PM

Lectures 16 and 17 are now available.

Thursday, October 16, 2003

12:29 AM

We have finished grading the midterm. 59 students took the test. The average score was 74 out of 100. The lowest score was 38. The highest score was 98. The most common score (the mode) was 75 points. The median was 75. Finally, the standard deviation was 11 points.

Wednesday, October 15, 2003

4:28 PM

Homework 7 and Lab 7 are now available.

7:43 AM

No Labs today. Enjoy!

Monday, October 13, 2003

11:53 PM

A new page has been added to the website that displays the grades of each student in the class, using a nickname to identify the student.

Sunday, October 12, 2003

8:23 PM

Reminder: The midterm is tomorrow!

Program 2: Here are a couple of quick notes on Program 02.

  • Program 2 is due by 5 PM tomorrow, not 10 AM as it says in the problem statement.
  • Please send your tar files to me by attaching them to an e-mail message. Your tar file should create a "program02" directory that contains all of the files required by the assignment.
  • The grading policy for this program has been changed from what is stated in the syllabus. It will be possible to get partial credit on this assignment. The problem statement outlines various requirements that must be met for a successful program02. If you meet all of the requirements, you will get a score of 30. If you miss one of the requirements, you will get a 25. if you miss two requirements, you will get a 20. If you miss three requirements, you will get a 10. And, if you miss four or more requirements, you will get a zero.

Thursday, October 9, 2003

11:10 PM

Two quick comments on program02:

  • Remember that program02 needs to be built in the program02 directory contained within the architecture-specific build directory, not the source directory or anywhere else.
  • While your makefile should define a "clean" target, your install script should NOT invoke it. The install script should only invoke the "install" target of your makefile.

Tuesday, October 7, 2003

11:28 AM

Lab 6 is now available.

Friday, October 3, 2003

8:12 PM

NOTE: The take-home midterm has been cancelled. This semester we will only have the in-class midterm. Once you take the in-class midterm, you can have the rest of week 8 off! :-)

8:01 PM

Lecture 12 and 13 are now available.

7:42 PM

Homework 6 is now available.

Thursday, October 2, 2003

10:11 PM

The class status page has been updated with new information: Labs 3 and 4, Homeworks 3 and 4, and Quizzes 3 and 4

Tuesday, September 30, 2003

11:42 AM

Lab 5 is now available.

Sunday, September 28, 2003

10:32 AM

Program 2 is now available. Be sure to finish program 1 before starting on this one.

Friday, September 26, 2003

9:49 AM

The class status page has been updated with new information.

8:45 AM

Homework 5 is now available.

Tuesday, September 23, 2003

12:18 PM

Lab 4 is now available.

Monday, September 22, 2003

9:01 AM

Program 1 is now available. Since I forgot to post it on the website last Friday, I have pushed its due date back a few days.

Wednesday, September 17, 2003

9:51 AM

Homework 4 is now available.

Monday, September 15, 2003

11:58 AM

I went on a lecture writing spree, and now lectures 8, 9, AND 10 are available! :-)

Sunday, September 14, 2003

3:06 PM

Lectures 6 and 7 are now available. These lectures appear in color, rather than black-and-white...let me know if that causes problems for you.

Saturday, September 13, 2003

9:59 AM

Lab 3 is now available. This lab requires a bit more work than previous labs, so you may want to arrange with your lab partner to meet before Wednesday and start early.

Thursday, September 11, 2003

11:50 AM

Homework 3 is now available.

11:33 AM

Lecture 5 is now available.

9:41 AM

The class status page has been updated with new information.

Wednesday, September 10, 2003

9:36 PM

Lecture 4 (last Monday's lecture) is now available. I'm sorry that I forgot to put this lecture up...what I can't believe is that it took until Wednesday night for a student to write to me and ask where it was!!! This sort of mistake should be brought to my attention immediately! I will have this Friday's lecture up on the website tomorrow.

Monday, September 8, 2003

11:06 PM

Here is more information about using the campus "pay-for-print" system for printing CSCI 3308 materials.

While in the Whitewater lab, if you want to send a printout to the "pay-for-print" printers located in the NAC (ECCR 252), use the command:

/tools/cs/a2ps/bin/a2ps -2 -Pnacps [filename].pdf

You must then go to the NAC (ECCR 252) and "release" the print job using the release station that is located next to the printers in that room.

11:04 PM

I have updated the status page with the results of Quiz 0. You should be receiving your graded quizzes in this week's lab section.

Thursday, September 4, 2003

1:41 PM

Lab 2 is now available.

1:33 PM

We forgot to clean up after ourselves in Lab 1. If you go to the architecture-specific build directory for gnuchess:

cd ~/csci3308/arch/$ARCH/build/gnuchess

you will find a bunch of files ending in .o and an extra copy of gnuchess. You can delete these files to save space with the following command:

yes | rm *.o gnuchess

See if you can figure out what the yes command is doing.

12:52 PM

Homework 2 is now available.

10:22 AM

Printing-Related Announcements:: Three quick printing-related announcements....

  • CSOps fixed the printers in the Whitewater lab yesterday, so it should be possible to print in next week's lab section. Note, however, these are old printers and printing support in the department is minimal, at best.
  • The university is switching to a "pay for print" model for all printing/copying in the univiersity and the department is likely to adopt this program. If we do, that means that all department printers will disappear and all printing will occcur via your "pay-for-print" accounts.
  • To keep costs down and to reduce the amount of paper used, please make use of the following command when printing homeworks, labs, lectures, and the like to department printers:

/tools/cs/a2ps/bin/a2ps -2 -P[printer name] [file name]

So, to print out lab 1 to the "kickme" printer, you would type:

/tools/cs/a2ps/bin/a2ps -2 -Pkickme lab01.pdf

This command ensures that labs are printed "2-up", e.g. 2 virtual pages to one physical page, thus reducing the amount of paper used.

Wednesday, September 3, 2003

10:54 AM

Couple of quick announcements:

  • Lab 1 is due TODAY.
  • Lab 0 is due no later than FRIDAY in lecture. (Due to problems in the lab sections last week, not everyone turned that lab in.)
  • For those of you enrolled in the class, you will be assigned lab partners today. You must work with your lab partner today and turn in a joint assignment for Lab 1. Think "Two people. One Keyboard." Even though you only turn in one assignment, make sure that you complete the lab in both accounts. That is, due the lab once in one person's account. And, then switch, and do the lab again, in the other person's account.
  • For those of you still on the waitlist, work through Lab 1 individually, and we will try to get you a lab partner by next week.

Tuesday, September 2, 2003

4:40 PM

Lab 1 is now available.

IMPORTANT: You need to make a modification to your .cshrc file, in light of problems that surfaced last week during the first set of labs. In particular, Lab 0 (and many of the other labs) assume that the ARCH environment variable has been properly configured. This variable used to be set by the default .cshrc file, but no longer. Near the top of your .cshrc file, add the following line:

setenv ARCH `/usr/local/bin/arch`

Note that the quote character in the above line is the backquote character and not the single quote or double quote characters.

When I say "near the top", look for a section of the existing .cshrc that has lines that are setting the shell variables arch, sarch, and larch and put it just AFTER those lines.

Friday, August 22, 2003

5:43 PM

Take a survey. Win a Lab Partner!: Starting in the second week of class, you will be working on labs with a lab partner. We will be assigning you a lab partner based on your technical background as determined by the answers you provide on this survey. You need to fill out the survey before the Friday lecture on August 29th. Don't forget!!

Lecture 3 is now available.

Thursday, August 21, 2003

5:30 PM

Course Forgiveness Deadline: Just a reminder, if you are taking a class over as part of CU's Course forgiveness program, you have to submit an application by October 8th. More information on this program is available at the Registrar's website.

5:00 PM

The class website has now come on-line. (Finally!) Follow the links to find the syllabus (located in the Reference Materials section), first two lectures, first lab, and first homework.


© Ken Anderson, 1998-2004.
Last Updated: 1/16/04; 8:35 AM