CMPS 202 Web Development

Text Books:

Creating a Web Page in Dreamweaver: Visual QuickProject Guide, Nolan Hester, Peachpit Press, 2004, ISBN: 0321278437
CSS, DHTML, and Ajax, Fourth Edition: Visual QuickStart Guide,Jason Teague, PeachPit Press, 2007,ISBN-13: 9780321443250
PHP for the World Wide Web: Visual QuickStart Guide:2/e , Larry Ullman, Peachpit press, 2004,ISBN-13: 9780321245656
XML for the World Wide Web: Visual QuickStart Guide, Elizabeth Castro, Peachpit Press, 2001,ISBN-13: 9780201710984

Credit:

CMPS 202 cannot be used to satisfy any requirements for either the major in computer science or the major in computer information systems. It also cannot be used to satisfy a requirement for the minor in computer science. It may be used as part of the minor in computer information systems. It may be used as a major elective in Media and Information Technology. It may be used as a free elective for any student (as far as I know).

Attendance Policy:

I will try to attend every class and expect you to do the same. More than two unexcused absences may result in having your grade lowered. More than four absences, excused or unexcused may result in having your grade lowered. More than four absences will require you to take the final exam.

Tests:

There will be no tests during the semester. A final exam will be available at the scheduled time. It will be optional. A grade will be offered to each student prior to the exam and if that grade is acceptable to you then you may forego the exam. More than likely no one will be offered a grade higher than A-. The final exam will count 33% for those who take it. There may be a few "pop" quizzes or maybe not.

Homework:

You will receive an account on the web server in the Computing Sciences Department. All of your projects will be stored in your account. You will create a web page which will consist of a collection of links to the web pages that contain your homework assignments.

You will also receive an account on the PC Cluster in the Computing Sciences Department Research Lab where you can use Macromedia Studio MX and the Apache Web Server. Your assignments should be ported to your Unix account when they are complete.

Homework will come in three varieties: exercises, assignments, projects. An exercise is short and should be done by the next class period; assignments are somewhat longer and you may be given two or three days to finish them; projects are major items for which an extended period will be given. There will be one project for the term. The project will be presented in class as will selected exercises and assignments. The project will count 1/3 of your homework grade.

Homework that is late will be penalized at the rate of 10% per calendar day. There will also be an opportunity for period-long presentations. For example if one or two of you are very familiar with a useful program for this course that's not part of the course, such as PhotoShop, you may get the opportunity to give a class lecture on this topic, which can be used to improve your grade.

All homework assignments will be available from my web site. Most of them will NOT be given in any other place. You are responsible for checking my web site on a frequent basis.

Grading Policy:

Your course grade will consist of two parts: homework and optional final exam. The final exam (if taken) will count 1/3 of your course grade. If you volunteer to do a classroom demonstration/presentation your grade will be increased by the quality of your presentation.

Course Objectives:

• To learn enough UNIX to be able to effectively use the resources for this course and to learn the use of networking tools such as telnet and ftp to be able to manage your web site from anywhere.
• To learn elements of HTML so as to be able to create web sites that use these elements. These elements include (but are not limited to):
  • Formatting and layout of Text (primarily for reference since CSS is the preferred method for formatting and layout).
  • Creation and use of Tables
  • Creation and use of Forms via e-mail submission
  • Creation and use of Frames
  • Creation and use of Cascading Style Sheets
• To learn elementary programming in JavaScript so that some elements can be included in your web site.
• To learn enough PHP to be able to handle Form submission from the Web server.
• To install Apache Server and PHP on your personal computer so that you can test your web sites.
• To learn the mechanics of Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 well enough to use these tools to create web sites.
• To use the web as a reference for this course so as to be able to continue to learn web development on your own as the techniques change.
• To learn the basics of the Document Object Model (DOM) to create dynamic Web sites with elementary AJAX.

Assumed background:

• Familiarity with computers and the web.
• Familiarity with a GUI o/s (such as MS Windows, Linux, or MAC OS X).
• The ability to use a simple text editor such as NOTEPAD
• The ability to use a web browser such as Firefox or Microsoft Internet Explorer

Contacting me:

In addition to the usual methods on my contact page, you can also contact me via Instant Messenger. My screen name is DrJamesSidbury. If you have IM and wish to use it to contact me then you should send me an e-mail message with your screen name, and I'll add it to my appropriate buddy list. When you send me an e-mail message the subject should have a prefix of CMPS 202. My e-mail color codes my incoming messages and that makes it easier to distinguish important e-mail from junk.