COMP 310 Fall 2010	Course Information

TIME AND LOCATION:

Class will be held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday  from 10:00 AM - 10:50 AM in Duncan Hall Room 1070.

Labs will be held

• Mondays 12:35 PM - 1:50 PM in the OEDK Computer Lab
• Tuesdays 9:25 AM - 10:40 AM in the OEDK Computer Lab

Sign up for OEDK card access

INSTRUCTORS:

Dr. Stephen Wong -- See home page for contact and office hour information.

Dr. Scott Rixner -- See home page for contact and office hour information.

Teaching Assistants	e-mail	Office Hours & Location
Michael Dietz	mdietz at rice.edu	DH3002  Tues & Thurs. 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Dragoș Sbîrlea	sbarlea at gmail.com	DH3062  Thurs. 10:00 AM  - 10:50 AM  and Fre. 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Rick Manning	rick.manning at rice.edu	OEDK  Wed. Thurs.  7:00 PM - 8:00 PM

   

All Comp310 staff are also available by appointment!

E-Mail:

Entire class (including staff): comp310f10 at owlspace-ccm.rice.edu   (replace the " at " with "@")

Please do not send e-mail directly to the instructor or any specific staff member, as doing so will only delay the response.

Just the staff:  comp310 at rice.edu   (replace the " at " with "@")

 Please DO start your subject line with "Comp310: " so that your message can be easily identified as being class-related!

IRC (Internet Relay Chat)

For chatting with the TA's:    http://sys.cs.rice.edu/irc/log/comp310/2010-09-08

Instructions coming soon!

TEXT BOOKS:

Though none of the existing text books truly meet our needs and requirements, we like the following book and highly recommend it for the course.

• Head First Design Patterns, First Edition, by Eric Freeman and Elizabeth Freeman, O'Reilly, 2004.  ISBN 0-596-00712-4.

We also have a few other recommendations.

• The Java Programming Language, 4th edition, by Arnold, Gosling, and Holmes, Addison-Wesley,
  James Gosling is the creator of Java. This is the definitive Java reference. However, this book does not cover all the topics of the course and will be used only as a reference for Java syntax and semantics.
  
  
• Design Patterns, Elements Of Reusable Object-Oriented Software, by Gamma, Helm, Johnson, and Vlissides, Addison-Wesley, 1995. ISBN 0201633612
  This is the bible of the pattern community. It predates Java. The authors are affectionately referred to as the Gang of Four (GoF). All examples are written in C++ and/or Smalltalk. It can be hard to read if you are not familiar with these two languages, though the ideas are language independent. The "pattern language" used in this book also requires a lot of getting used to. We have learned so much from this book, and we are still reading it and learning from it. There is a version on CD-ROM which is cheaper (and perhaps, more versatile). We strongly recommend it, especially to any student considering further work in object-oriented programming.
  
  
• Thinking in Java, 4'th ed., by Bruce Eckel, Prentice Hall PTR.
  Good OO treatment, with a little more detail on syntax than Gosling's book. Students often find it useful for "nuts-and-bolts" information on programming. The full text of earlier editions are available as a free download from www.bruceeckel.com. Also at the web site is his on-line only book: Thinking in Patterns with Java, which is recommended reading.
  
  

COURSE PREREQUISITE:

COMP 201, COMP 211 or COMP 212

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Object-oriented programming is the major software paradigm used in large systems today.   This includes most desktop applications such a office productivity software, data management applications and even the main frameworks of many games.  But object-oriented programming and design (OOP/D) absolutely rules in the enterprise-class arena, the globe-spanning, mission-critical systems that, via the Internet, tie together international corporations from one end of the Earth to the other.  In Comp310, we will discover how to use state-of-the-art object-oriented programming and design techniques to create flexible and scalable software systems that can interact with eachother from anywhere in the world.  We will learn about software design patterns and how they are used in multiple programming paradigms.   Through a combination of theory and coding, the class will explore how highly decoupled systems with dynamically configurable behaviors are designed and implemented.   The class will learn how to use design patterns as both a means of expressing fundamental computer science concepts as well as the building blocks in an abstract decomposition of a complex problem.  In addition, the class will learn to use industry standard tools and technologies such as the Eclipse integrated development environment, Subversion source control and round-trip engineering design tools. 

The course format will be that of lectures covering the theoretical, engineering and technological aspects of object-oriented programming and design that will be implemented in the project-like homework assignments.   These homework projects will build upon each other as much as possible, culminating in a networked application.

See the Comp310 announcement flyer

Tentative Topic List
(in no particular order, not all topics may be covered due to time constraints)

Theory

• The Modeling of Complex Systems
  • Modeling only in terms of behaviors and not data
  • Modeling relationships in terms of is-a (inheritance)and has-a (composition)
  • The difference between abstract and universal representations
    • The problem with hoisting
  • Encapsulation
    • Classes, methods, and abstraction as encapsulation methods
    • State vs Strategy pattern
  • The 4 pillars of software abstraction
    • Abstract structure  (abstract classes)
    • Abstract behavior (abstract methods)
    • Abstract construction  (factory classes or methods)
    • Abstract environment (closures)
• Design Patterns  (see list below)
  • Design patterns as embodiments of fundamental CS principles.
  • Appropriate and inappropriate uses of design patterns.
  • How design patterns manifest themselves in other paradigms.
• Lambda Calculus -- functional programming concepts in OOP/D
  • Commands vs. lambdas vs strategies
    • Execution of behaviors with and without known semantics
  • Lambdas vs. inner classes -- the role of closures
• The goals of a software system: extensibility, flexibility, robustness and correctness
  • Scalability as part of extensibility and flexibility

Highly decoupled systems:

• Why we want decoupled systems.
• How abstraction decouples systems
• Delegation model programming   
• Using various design patterns to decouple system  
• Command-driven systems and their relationship to message-passing systems.
• Dynamically configurable behaviors
  • Dynamic class loading for run-time modifiable behaviors
• Generics as an abstraction tool

Design patterns:

• Union  - polymorphism
• Null Object - concrete representation of nothingness
• Strategy - abstract behavior with semantics
• Command - abstract behavior without semantics
• State - dynamic reclassification behavior
• Composite - recursive data structures
• Visitor - decoupled algorithms and data
• Extended Visitor - visitor with dynamically changeable hosts and algorithms
• Decorator - layered behaviors
• Template - abstract processes
• Factory - abstract construction
• Adapter/Proxy - abstract coupling
• Model-View-Controller (MVC) - decoupled display and computation
• Flyweight - pooled resources
• Observer-Observable - decouples the message originator from the message receivers

Technologies

• Eclipse integrated development environment
• Subversion source control
• Unified Modeling Language (UML)
  • Class diagrams for static relationships
  • Sequence diagrams for dynamic relationships
  • Round-trip engineering between UML and code representations
• Remote dynamic class loading - automatic code transmittal across the web
• Remote Method Invocation (RMI) - executing behaviors on remote computers

COURSE SCHEDULE:

Please follow the navigation link to the Home page above to see the topical schedule for lectures and labs.

Homework turn-in:

The turn-in mechanism will be the student's individual Comp310 Subversion repository on CLE@R, using the Subclipse version control plug-in in Eclipse.   Please see

• Instructions on how to use Subclipse/Subversion to turn-in your assignements.
• General instuctions on using the Subclipse plug-in for Eclipse

GRADING:  

The course grade will be based on:   TENTATIVE

• Homework Assignments (80% total)
• Final Project (20%)

Assignments’ due dates and rules will be clearly stated at the time they are given.

No make-up exams will be given unless there is a legitimate excuse such as proof of medical emergency. All permissions must be requested and approved in writing (hard copy or e-mail) BEFORE the due date!

We reserve the right to modify the above weightings at any time.

LATE POLICY::

• No assignments will accepted late without express written permission from an instructor before the due date of the assignment.   Excused lateness will not be penalized unless otherwise decided by the instructor (student will be notified at time of request).
• Any unexcused work submitted late will be penalized at least 5% of the total possible score per day on top of any normal markdowns, rounded up to the nearest day.
• Any unexcused late work submitted more than one week after the due date will either not be accepted and will be given an automatic "0" score.

 

HONOR SYSTEM:

Rice University has a student-run academic honor system. Each student has personal responsibility for honesty in their own academic conduct. Each student has the responsibility to report any suspected problems to the Honor Council in a timely fashion. During any Rice exam, the student is expected to write the honor pledge on the outside of the exam:

On my honor, I have neither given nor received aid on this examination.

The Computer Science Department takes the Rice Honor System very seriously and handles all violations accordingly. General rules of conduct concerning collaboration will be spelled out before assignments or exams are distributed (see for instance, above). When in doubt, contact an instructor before proceeding.

For more information concerning the Rice Honor System, see:

• The Honor Council home page
• The Constitution of the Honor System
• Recommendations for conducting exams

ADA:

Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments or accommodations is requested to speak with us during the first two weeks of class. All discussions will remain confidential. Students with disabilities should also contact Disability Support Services in the Ley Student Center.

Previous Offerings of Comp310:

• Spring 2010

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© 2010 by Stephen Wong and Scott Rixner