This course provides an introduction to the basic concepts of computer programming and program design. It is intended for students in the Faculty of Science and those who intend to study Computer Science in senior years. Programming skills will be developed using the Java programming language.
Course topics include algorithms, variables, modularity, primitive types, object oriented design, classes, objects, and problem solving techniques. A multimedia approach will be taken in examining these topics, through the use of images, sound, and video.
There are no prerequisites to CS1026. However, programming experience is an asset. If you feel you have significant programming experience you may consider taking CS1025. A website, the CS1025/CS1026 Self Placement Guide, has been developed to assist you with your decision.
The address of the CS1026a website is http://www.csd.uwo.ca/courses/CS1026a. Assignments and course-related information will be posted on this website. It is the responsibility of the student to check this website often.
Section | Instructor | Phone | Office Hours | |
| 001 | E. Schost MC-415 | 661-2111 (86994) | eschost @csd.uwo.ca | Monday, 9:30-11:30 |
| 002 | L. Robbins MC-362 | TBA | lynda @csd.uwo.ca | TBA |
Section | Room | Times |
| 001 | MC 105b | TU. 11:30-01:30 TH. 11:30-12:30 |
| 002 | WSC 55 | TU. 3:30-5:30 TH. 3:30-4:30 |
For lab times, see the online timetable.
The purpose of the weekly labs is to give students guided, hands-on experience with Java programming. It is expected that students will come prepared to the labs. Lab instructions will be available on the CS1026 course website in advance, and students must bring a hard copy to the lab.
Teaching Assistants and their consulting hours for CS1026 will be posted on the course website and announced during the second week of the term.
Each student enrolled in CS1026 will be given an account on the Computer Science Department First Year Network. By using your CS1026 account, you agree to abide by the Rules of Ethical Conduct established by the Department of Computer Science.
We will regularly need to send email messages to the class or to students individually. Email will be sent to the UWO email address assigned to students by Information Technology Services (ITS). It is the responsibility of the student to read this email on a regular basis. You may wish to have mail forwarded to to an alternative email address. See the ITS website for instructions on forwarding email.
However, note that email at ITS (your UWO account) and other email providers may have quotas or limits on the amount of space they dedicate to each account. Unchecked email may accumulate beyond those limits and you may be unable to retrieve important messages from your instructors. Losing email is not an acceptable excuse for not knowing about the information that was sent.
Students are encouraged to contact their course instructor via email with brief, appropriate questions regarding lecture materials or clarification on assignments. However, before sending email to an instructor, the student should verify the course website to see if the requested information is already there. Students must send email from their UWO ITS account and include CS1026 in the subject line of the email.
Element | Weight | Due Date or Held on |
| Labs | 10% | weekly |
| Assignment 1 | 5% | Fri. Oct. 2 2009 |
| Assignment 2 | 5% | Fri. Oct. 23 2009 |
| Assignment 3 | 10% | Fri. Nov. 13 2009 |
| Assignment 4 | 10% | Wed. Dec. 09 2009 |
| Mid-Term | 20% | Sat. Oct. 31 2009, 9-11am |
| Final | 40% | TBA |
The late penalty for assignments is 10% per day late, for a maximum of 2 days, after which assignments will not be marked. Weekends count as one day of lateness.
If for any reason the assignment schedule given above cannot be adhered to, the assignment marks will be pro-rated.
Every effort will be made to have assignments marked and handed back within 3 weeks of the handin date, preferably sooner. Midterm exam marks will be available within 2 weeks of the exam at the latest.
There will be no makeup Midterm Exam, except for students requesting a Special Midterm Exam for religious reasons. These students must have notified the course instructor and filed documentation with their Dean's office at least 2 weeks prior to the Midterm Exam. If you miss the Midterm Exam for any other reason, follow the procedure for Academic Accommodation for Medical Illness given above. If accommodation is approved by your Dean's office, your Final Exam mark will be reweighted to include the weight of the Midterm Exam.
The midterm and final exams are closed book exams.
If you are unable to meet a course requirement due to illness or other serious circumstances, you must provide valid medical or other supporting documentation to your Dean's office as soon as possible and contact your instructor immediately. It is the student's responsibility to make alternative arrangements with their instructor once the accommodation has been approved and the instructor has been informed. In the event of a missed final exam, a "Recommendation of Special Examination" form must be obtained from the Dean's Office immediately. For further information please see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/appeals/medical.pdf.
A student requiring academic accommodation due to illness should use the Student Medical Certificate when visiting an off-campus medical facility or request a Record's Release Form (located in the Dean's Office) for visits to Student Health Services. The form can be found at https://studentservices.uwo.ca/secure/medical_document.pdf.
Scholastic offences are taken seriously and students are directed to read the appropriate policy, specifically, the definition of what constitutes a Scholastic Offence, at the following Web site: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/appeals/scholoff.pdf.
Plagiarism: Students must write their essays and assignments in their own words. Whenever students take an idea, or a passage from another author, they must acknowledge their debt both by using quotation marks where appropriate and by proper referencing such as footnotes or citations. Plagiarism is a major academic offence.
All assignments are individual assignments. You may discuss approaches to problems among yourselves; however, the actual details of the work (assignment coding, answers to concept questions, etc.) must be an individual effort.
The standard departmental penalty for assignments that are judged to be the result of academic dishonesty is, for the student's first offence, a mark of zero for the assignment, with an additional penalty equal to the weight of the assignment also being applied. You are responsible for reading and respecting the Computer Science Department's policy on Scholastic Offences and Rules of Ethical Conduct.
The University of Western Ontario uses software for plagiarism checking. Students may be required to submit their written work and programs in electronic form for plagiarism checking.
All required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to the commercial plagiarism detection software under license to the University for detection of plagiarism. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between The University of Western Ontario and Turnitin.com (http://www.turnitin.com/).
The role of tutoring is to help students understand course material. Tutors should not write assignments or take-home tests for the students who hire them. Having employed the same tutor as another student is not a legitimate defense against an accusation of collusion, should two students hand in assignments judged similar beyond the possibility of coincidence.