Syllabus

Meetings:

Prerequisites:

Objectives:

• Define open source software
• Identify and discuss various software licesning models
• Understand the motivation, theory, strengths and weaknesses of open source software.
• Become familiar with
• • Linux
  • MySQL
  • PHP
  • Perl

Hardcopy notes will not be distributed after the first class meeting. Students should download and print the notes before coming to class.

Internet and e-mail

Some information necessary to succeed in the course will only be available via the Open Source Internet web page or the list server (see below.) The SUN accounts automatically provided to each student provide access to an e-mail account and web browser, or you may use your own. Students should:

• if not familar with the Sun operating system, review the network user's guide
• subscribe to the listserv
• forward their Rensselaer email address to another address, if desired. (seehttp://www.rh.edu/tis/internal/UserGuide/messages.html#m10)
• review the web site at the beginning of the course and when suggested by the listserv.

Assignments are one or two weeks in length and utilize open source software to implement and emphasize concepts presented in lecture. Assignments may build on previous assignments. Assignments will be graded on the correct implementation of data structure(s), correct use of programming language constructs, robustness of implementation, and documentation.

The final exam is closed book and notes, and lasts 1 1/2 hours in length.

There are specific requirements for hardcopy assigments which must be followed.

The student is responsible for ensuring the material required by the assignment is turned in. Excuses such as 'Someone from work must have taken my printout' and 'I know I forgot the output but you can see the code is correct' will not be accepted. There are no redos, extra credit projects, etc.

The only deviations from this policy will be due to serious injury or illness of the student or immediate family member. Contact me as soon as practical in this event.

Final grades will be curved using a modified Z-score. Raw scores about 90% or a z-score above 1 (i.e. your score is more than one standard deviation above class average) will be awarded an "A." The instructor may, at his discretion, lower the minimum score for an A at the end of the semester based on inspection of the score distribution.

Open Source Policy

Office hours are class meeting days by appointment. Since class meets one day a week, attendance is essential and will be noted. You are highly encouraged to utilize the listserv and email to contact me with questions and problems. Assignments must be handed in on time. In order to allow prompt return of assignments, they will not be accepted late. In general, makeup exams will not be given. If you anticipate being unable to attend class, please notify me before class to make arrangements for any assignments that may be due. If an emergency arises, please contact me.

It should be understood that as an adjunct lecturer, I generally have no reason to be at Rensselaer other than on class nights; you should not expect items left for me in my CIS mailbox to be received until the following Monday.

In order to facilitate the answering of questions, Rensselaer at Hartford has set up a listserv. This will allow you to contact each other as well as myself with questions pertaining to course content, assignments, or the use of the compiler. To subscribe, send an email to "listserv@rh.edu" and include the line "subscribe open-source" in the message body. See http://www.rh.edu/tis/listserv.html. Alternatively, you can use a the use the form found on http://www.charlesconsulting.com/scripts/listserv.pl. To unsubscribe, use the instructions you received when you subscribed or use this link. Students are responsible for information posted to the listserv. Questions regarding assignments or general questions should sent to the listserv. This ensures all students have access to the same information. Only questions regarding a specific situation should be sent directly to me. General questions sent directly to me may be returned unanswered with a request to repost the question to the listserv.

Academic Integrity

Student-teacher relationships are built on trust. For example, students must trust that teachers have made appropriate decisions about the structure and content of the courses they teach, and teachers must trust that the assignments which students turn in are their own. Acts, which violate this trust, undermine the educational process.

The Rensselaer Handbookdefines various forms of Academic Dishonesty and procedures for responding to them. All forms are violations of the trust between students and teachers. Students should familiarize themselves with this portion of the Rensselaer Handbook and should note that the penalties for plagiarism and other forms of cheating can be quite harsh.

The expectation is every student will do their own work. Discussion, exchange of ideas, assistance in debugging or illustrating concepts with sample code is okay and encouraged, but the expectation is each student will submit assignments they have typed, compiled, and testing themselves. This is the default condition at Rensselaer unless otherwise specified by the instructor. Any form of collaboration on the individual portions of this course will be considered as cheating and I will take immediate action to stop such behavior. Penalties for students who violate the code of academic honesty include dismissal from Rensselaer at Hartford. (See the student catalog or review online at http://www.rh.edu/publications/handbook/current/policies.html)

Hardcopy requirements
The following requirements apply to hardcopy submissions:

• the submission must
• have a cover page with your name and the assignment designation on it.
• the assignment must be printed on standard 8 1/2 x 11 paper.
• multiple sheets must be stapled together.
• the use of color printouts is discouraged because they are typically more expensive and don't help your grade at all.