CIS 120 (Spring '08)

This will be a fast-paced introduction to the fundamental concepts of programming, with Java as the main experimental vehicle. In contrast to previous editions of this course, this Fall we will assume some previous programming experience at the level of a high school computer science class. Also, the companion half-unit lab course CSE 130 that used to be required with CSE 120 will no longer be offered. The lab requirement has been merged into CIS 120 (formerly known as CSE 120). If you got at least 4 in the AP Computer Science A or AB exam, you will do great. However, we do not assume you know Java. Basic experience with any programming language (for instance C, C++, VB, PHP, Perl, or Scheme) will be sufficient. A quiz will be given in the second week of class to test your programming knowledge so that you can decide whether the class is for you. If you have never programmed before, you should take CIS 110 first. We will mainly use Java and the DrJava programming environment, but we will also explore lower-level (C) and higher-level (Python) languages.