Course Procedures and Program Submissions

1. Assignments

Read the assignment several times.  Do so at least once before leaving class! This saves time and email and phone calls asking me questions.

Read the assignment several times, also exams! People may find hints on what to do or may even find themselves answering the wrong question.

Check the web pages before you finish the assignment in case there are changes, or hints or help, etc.

Due Dates

All assignments have due dates. Often one week after they are assigned.

Do not wait until the last minute to do assignments, especially if it involves programs.  I am unsympathetic if the DePaul systems are down or busy on a given day. Only if things are down for long periods of time will this excuse work. Remember, most assignments will take some time and if your code is not clean you may spend hours trying to figure out why.

Submitting Assignments Late

Late assignments will be graded if we feel like it.. If solutions are provided or discussed in class ( and they will be ), then late assignments will not be accepted.

2. Papers and Reports

Papers and reports (such as term papers and extra-credit work), should be suitable for presentation to an audience. This means that it needs to be in a customary format [Business or "white paper" format].

1. It should have a title, author, affiliation and class information
2. It should be 10 pt or 11 pt type, nothing fancy for fonts.  It should be single spaced or 1 1/2 spaced lines. I don't like double space.  If you insist on double space, then double the length.
3. Use heading and page numbers so I can identify the document.
4. Papers need to have a bibliography and references.  Nothing fancy but enough so I can locate the documents you have used and the parts you have quoted.
5. Remember the "Academic Integrity" rules when doing a paper.  If you use it give proper credit
6. If you produce a paper, provide an electronic copy. Acceptable formats are MicroSoft Word, HTML and Adobe Acrobat PDF. See below about submissions.

See my thoughts on term papers for more details about writing a term paper.

3. Programs

3.1 Documentation

Be sure your name, course number and the assignment number corresponding to the number on the assignment documentation is on all of your work. Programs should be documented.

See Development Guidelines for a few suggestions.

Creating software involves developing a design and then implementing the design in a programming language. In the design stage, you are developing a plan of action. Here is where you come up with various solutions and then select the one you think is best. During the implementation stage, you translate your design document into code.

3.2 Readme Files

When you submit an assignment that contains source code and there are several files, then you must submit a "Readme" file. This is a file with the name Readme.txt.  A sample readme is below:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the project README file. Here, you should describe your project.
Tell the reader (someone who does not know anything about this project)
all he/she needs to know. The comments should usually include at least:
------------------------------------------------------------------------

PROJECT TITLE:
PURPOSE OF PROJECT:
VERSION or DATE:
HOW TO START THIS PROJECT:
AUTHORS:
USER INSTRUCTIONS:
Files associated with the project (packing list):

3.3 Design Documents

Design documents are recommended for term projects and other extensive programs. Design documents can be a helpful tool in the entire problem solving process.

These documents often include a problem statement, sample inputs, and sample outputs. Further, they may involve a detailed pseudocode design for each function planned, including main(). They also often include a graphical representation of the major parts of your program, commonly referred to as a structure chart.

For more detail, refer to Design Document .

3.3 Implementation

To receive credit, your programs must compile and run correctly. It is best to start very early on the assignments since it is difficult to predict in advance how long it will take to finish the assignment. If you are having difficulties, please contact me for help. Do not contact me if you have not started the assignment until the night before it's due. Not much hope at that point.

4. Submitting Your Work

You work should be submitted via the course on-line submission system.

If you turn in your assignment by email or course on-line, you need to submit the source files (.java, .cpp and .h), the documentation. and any readme files as described above.

1. (For email) The Subject of the message must contain course number, section number and assignment number. For example, "416-101 Program 1 submission". Place all necessary files into one zipped file on your local machine, and attach it to the email. Organize them all into a single folder with your name and assignment; that is something unique: dmumaugh-prog1
1. For PC users, I recommend winzip . Download the software and install it on your machine. To zip files, select "New" and specify the name of the zipped file (i.e.,. new archive) which you are going to create. The program is quite easy to use.
2. For UNIX users, use the "ZIP" command. Look at the man pages for command arguments.
3. For Mac users, the recommended program is Stuffit (Drop Stuff) or use the Finder's archive feature.
4. If you have only one file to send, you still need to zip the file if sending it by email, but not for course on-line
5. If you are using email service through hotmail, I STRONGLY recommend NOT TO use it for this class (since I had difficulty decoding the attachment in the past) -- use your shrike account and Pine program instead.
2. For COL submit the ZIP file if it is a program, otherwise just submit the single file without ZIPinfg it.
   

5. Content of your program

• All files must have your name, and the assignment number in the beginning of each file. Do NOT assume your name is obvious from the email header or the label on the diskette etc. Submitted assignments will be extracted and printed and then organized. If your name is not on the printed copy of each file, the identification will be LOST. Sample heading is as follows.

// filename: prog1.cpp
// 
// Program:  csc 416 Program #1
// Name:     The who
// Email:    thewho@shrike.depaul.edu
// Compile:  g++ -o foobar prog1.cpp -lthreads

• All programs must be commented . Documentation is one important aspect of programming, and I take it seriously.
• Use a consistent style, be liberal with spacing and lines.  Make sure you convince us that you understand what you wrote and explain why you did what you did.  Assume the reader is some one who has NOT read the assignment.

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Revision History
Version	Date Revision Note	Author
1.1	Apr. 1, 1998 Revised Document Created	Gary F. Andrus, CTI
2.1	Jan. 3, 2001 Merged from two other documents	Dennis L. Mumaugh
2.2	Sep.11, 2002 Changed to reflect latest procedure	Dennis L. Mumaugh
2.3	July 20, 2004 More discussion on readme files	Dennis L. Mumaugh
2.3	Sep. 5, 2006 Remove info of floppies and hard copy.	Dennis L. Mumaugh