Fall 2011 COP 3223 (C Programming) Syllabus

Note: This is the part of syllabus that is common to sections. Each professor
will provide the specifics to his section.
Section Instructor Day!ime "oom
1 Dr# $oe %a&iola '(F 10:30)11:20am *N+2)102
2 Dr# Niels %obo '(F 1:30)2:20,m -*C)12.
3 'r# /ru, +u0a '( 1:00)2:1. ,m -*C)12.
3 Dr# 'ars0all !a,,en !" 4:00)10:1.am -P/)114

Instructor O55ice O55ice -ours 6eecs#uc5#e7u
Dr# $oe %a&iola -*C)321 '( 11:30am)12:30,m
! 3:00).:30,m
( 1:00)2:00,m
88l
Dr# Niels %obo -*C)2.2 niels
'r# /ru, +u0a -*C)230 '(: 2:1.,m)3:00,m
'(: .:00,m).:3.,m
!": 11:00am)12:00,m
F: 10:30am)11:30am
7marino
Dr# 'ars0all !a,,en -*C)230 mta,,en

Course (ebsite: 0tt,:999#cs#uc5#e7ucoursesco,32235all2011
Course Descri,tion: COP 3223 provides an introduction to the C programming language
for those with no prior programming experience. The course aims to teach the syntax
and use of maor constructs of the C language and will not focus on algorithmic design
!COP 3"#2 focuses on algorithmic design$. %ome of these constructs include& conditional
statements' loops' functions' arrays' pointers' strings' structures' and file ()O.
"ecommen7e7 !e:tboo;: C *nights& +n (ntroduction to Programming in C by ,uha'
(%-./03& 123/#/""3/3"3#2/#.
This custom textboo4 was written specifically for the course that we teach at 5C6. The
goal in writing this boo4 was to bring the cost down for students and also to provide a
boo4 that mirrored how the course is taught.
%ince there are extensive notes and examples online' a student who has practice loo4ing
up information online should be able to succeed in the course without a boo4.
+lternatively' here are other boo4s that may be helpful as an aid in the course&
C *nights& +n (ntroduction to Programming in C (%-./03& 123/#/""3/"7871/3.
C Programming by *... *ing' (%-. 123/#/313/121"#/3.
C by 9issection&The Essentials of C programming' by *elley' Pohl' (%-.&#/2#0/20328/3
+ra7ing: Each instructor will specify the grading criteria for his section in a separate
handout. Each assignment must be submitted through :ebCourses. The due date for each
assignment will be posted on :ebCourses. These dates will also be announced in class at
least once. !.ote& 9ifferent sections may have slightly different due dates' so please
consult your section;s :ebCourses to find the exact due date and time.$ (f a program is 28
or fewer hours late it will earn a 0#< deduction. (f a program is in between 28 and 83
hours late it will earn a 2"< deduction. !0e only e:ce,tion to t0is is t0e last
assignment 5or 90ic0 no late submissions 9ill be acce,te7# +ny program late by more
than 83 hours will earn a #< unless there are extenuating circumstances approved by the
instructor. The official time a program is submitted will be determined by :ebCourses.
!=our wristwatch or cell phone time when you hit the submit button is not valid.$ 9ue to
possible server issues' it is strongly suggeste7 that you attempt to submit programs at
least t0ree 0ours before the actual time it;s due.
Ot0er Im,ortant Course Policies:
1) Cheating will not be tolerated. I5 a stu7ent is caug0t c0eating< t0en t0e gra7e on
t0at assignment 5or all stu7ents ;no9ingly in=ol=e7 (t0e ,erson ,ro=i7ing ans9ers
as 9ell as t0e one ta;ing t0e ans9ers) 9ill be a )2.># !Note< t0is is less t0an 0>#$
%ince discussion of concepts with other students is often helpful' cheating must be more
clearly defined. (n particular' the following items are cheating& copying a segment of code
of three lines or more from another student from a printout or by loo4ing at their
computer screen' ta4ing a copy of another student;s wor4 and then editing that copy' and
sitting side by side while writing code for assignments and wor4ing together on segments
of code. (n all of these situations' ?O!- ,eo,le are res,onsible& the person who has
done the wor4 as well as the person who has used the his)her wor4. 6urthermore' based
on the severity of the case' the entire course grade for the student may be lowered an
entire letter grade. If you get stuck on an assignment, please ask either a TA or the
instructor for help instead of getting help from another student. Part of the learning
process in programming involves debugging on your own. (n our experience' when a
student helps another student with an assignment' they rarely allow the student getting
help to >figure out> problems on their own. 5ltimately' this results in a lac4 of debugging
experience for the student receiving help. The goal of the T+s and instructors is to
provide the facilitation necessary for students to debug and fix their own programs rather
than simply solving their problems. ?ut< you are encourage7 to 9or; toget0er on any
non)gra7e7 ,rograms to en0ance an7 e:,e7ite t0e learning ,rocess#
One ot0er note: !0is semester 9e 9ill use a ,rogram to 7etect ,airs o5 similar
,rograms amongst all sections o5 t0e course# I5 you collaborate too closely 9it0
anot0er stu7ent< it (I%% be 7etecte7#
2) (n order to ta4e a ma4e/up exam' you must re?uest one from the instructor. The
instructor will grant re?uests using his own udgment by applying the following general
rule& >@a4e/up exams will only be given if the reason for missing the exam was out of
the student;s control.> 6or example' being hospitaliAed unexpectedly is out of a student;s
control' but oversleeping or going to happy hour is not out of a student;s control. If
possible, it is recommended that the instructor be contacted before the exam.
3) The penalty for assignments late by less than 83 hours will be waived only for
circumstances described in B2 above at the instructor;s discretion. %imilarly' assignments
will be accepted after 83 hours past the due date under these same types of circumstances.
The student must contact the instructor within two days of the due date of the assignment
in order to get credit for the assignment. TAs are NOT allowed to give extensions for
assignments under any circumstances, only the instructor can.
3) -oth the course web page and :ebCourses will be crucial elements of the course. It is
your responsibility to check both of these before every class meeting for any updates
that may be posted. %ome clarifications may only be given in class and wonCt be posted
online at all' so ma4e sure you 4eep up with announcements in class.
Im,ortant Note 5or ?eginning Programmers
9ue to the high volume of students in the course and the limited resources we have for
grading' the amount of graded wor4 is minimal compared to what is actually necessary to
learn how to program in C comfortably. :e !the instructors and teaching assistants$
strongly suggest that you write more programs than are actually assigned for you to turn
in. The course web page will contain several suggestions of programs to write. @ost
lectures will contain sample programs that you can cut and paste' compile and edit. =ou
may show the teaching assistants or course instructors extra programs you have written at
any time. %ince these aren;t graded' the T+s can give you more feedbac4 and help with
them than on assignments. +lso' it is encouraged that you write extra programs with
others in the courseD often times learning is facilitated by wor4ing with others. @ou must
9or; alone 5or all gra7e7 ,rogramming assignments< 0o9e=er#
+s the note above indicates' this class is far more time consuming than other introductory
classes for many students. 5nli4e other introductory classes which simply as4 students to
read and regurgitate information' this class re?uires students to learn a new language' and
then use that language to solve non/trivial problems that students have not seen before. (t
ta4es most students some time to get comfortable and confident with their programming
s4ills. 6or each student' the amount of time and practice necessary to reach this level is
different. +lthough we don;t want to scare anyone' we do want to be up front about the
fact that this class is a lot of wor4' and it;s a different type of wor4 than many other
classes. !6or example' it;s possible you may get stuc4 on one error for a couple hours
without ma4ing any progress. Once you fix that error' you might be able to finish your
whole program in another thirty minutes.$
Im,ortant Note 5or *:,erience7 Programmers
+lthough you may understand all the general concepts of programming taught in this
class' if you;ve never programmed in C' you may not 4now some of the very specific
details that differentiate C from other languages. :e do write test ?uestions that highlight
these subtle differences and other subtleties of the C language. @a4e sure you read the
textboo4 carefully so that you are aware of these details. :e have had instances of a
beginning programmer receiving the highest grade in the course' beating out many others
who had been programming for three or four years because the beginner actually read the
textboo4 and paid attention to those details that the experienced programmers missed.
!entati=e Sc0e7ule
This will be given separately for each section by each instructor.