Intro to Programming

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Lecture Notes, Friday September 6 2002

• Computer Basics
  (Just so we're all on the same page.)
  • Layers:
    hardware - CPU, memory, disk, monitor, network connections
    software - OS, services, system deamons, user applications
    
  • Files - basic unit of data , various types (.jpg, .mpeg, .txt, ...)
  • Discuss directories and distributed files systems (internet) briefly.
  • Programs do things to files - display them, pump them through a speaker, help the user create them, and so on.
  • Most programs require files of a specific type. (Discuss examples.)
  • Users interact with computers in two broad ways: GUI, and Command Line
  • GUI - Graphical User Interface - buttons, mouse, pictures ... fairly sophisticated (
  • Command Line - primitive, powerful
  • Similar to the difference between a comic book and a novel.

• The Command Line
  See my Command Line Tutorial

• Programming - what is it, various languages
  
  • recipes
  • levels of abstraction: assembly .. C .. Java
  • C, Java, Perl, Python, Lisp, ...

• Getting Help
  Don't underestimate "ask google". Example: type "Java tutorial".
  Walk through my files on akbar with a browser, while it's out.

• First Java Program
  "HelloWorld.java" on akbar.marlboro.edu, using pico.
  See page 26 of text.
  
  • compile vs run
  • comments
  • debugging - compile time (syntax) vs run time (logic, hard to find)
  • indentation, braces, and all that

• Same thing on laptop, TextPad, DOS command line

• next week: start Java language details
  • types
  • variables
  • arithmetic
  • methods