CS 363 Comparative Programming Languages

Prerequisite: Grade of C or better in CS 265 or CS 367

Catalog description: Key programming mechanisms described independently of particular machines or languages including control, binding, procedural abstraction and types.  Systematically surveys diverse high-level language capabilities.

Instructor:  Prof. Elizabeth White

Textbook: Concepts of Programming Languages, R. Sebesta, 6^th edition, Addison-Wesley, 2003.

Other Recommended References:
Bruce Eckel, Thinking in Java, 3rd Edition Prentice Hall 2003. A complete copy of the book can be downloaded for free.

Website: http://www.cs.gmu.edu/~white/CS363

This class will cover theoretical foundations of features found in modern programming languages. 

• Evolution of programming languages
• Syntax and semantics representation,
• Data and Control,
• Types and Type Systems,
• Procedural Abstraction,
• Exception handling,
• Concurrency,
• Garbage collection,
• Language approaches such as imperative, object-oriented, functional and logic based programming languages.

Grading

• Programming Assignments (3 @ 10% each)
• This class will require you to write programs in several different programming languages.
• Homeworks (10%)
(Some of these HW may be small programming assignments).
• Exams (2 @ 20% each)
• Final Exam (20%)

Policies:

• All of the exams are closed book.
• Programming assignments are to be individual efforts, meaning no sharing of code or discussion of problem solution allowed with anyone but me.
• Late policy:
  • One day: 10% deduction
  • Two days: 30% deduction
  • Three days: 50% deduction
  • More than 3 days - no credit
• You must turn in a working version of all three primary programming assignments to pass the class (even if it receives no credit).

Honor Code

This semester I will probably be using similarity detection software to assist me in finding honor code violations, should they occur.