Welcome to the DPS945 course

Welcome to the DPS945 course. This document has information that helps you get started in the course.

Course introduction

Welcome to DPS945!

In this course, you will build upon your knowledge from previous web programming courses, and learn more topics and techniques for building web services. Then, in a two-week every-day experience with students from Denmark’s Business Academy Aarhus (BAA), you will build a modern web app that uses your web service. In addition, the web app - which is designed to be deployed on mobile devices - will implement a number of modern features that are currently described with the term progressive web app.

Coming into the course, you must have a good level of experience programming with web technologies, which mostly means the combination of HTML5 and its ideas (responsiveness etc.), JavaScript and its ecosystem at the server and in the browser, CSS, and HTML.

We are depending upon your ability to learn quickly and effectively. You will be expected to learn (through watching, listening, reading, doing, and helping others) a significant amount of material. This learning will be done incrementally, so you must keep involved during the course to be successful.

How can you get started?

Get familiar with the course web site. All areas.

Using your own personal computer

We expect the student to do their work on a computer that runs macOS (formerly known as Mac OS X), Linux, or another Unix-like operating system. If a student has a Windows 10 computer, then plan to install an environment that enables the installation of Linux (e.g. WSL, Windows Subsystem for Linux). Alternatively, configure a dual-boot scenario.

Important - We expect you to do your work on macOS, Linux, or another Unix-like operating system.

The student will use a number of applications and development tools, including:

A modern web app and service execution environment (Node.js, Express.js, MongoDB)
Visual Studio Code
React
Various code generators

During the course, the professor(s) will guide the student in the installation, configuration, and use of the software.

Please be aware of the following:

You are NOT required to use your own personal computer for this course’s work.

The College has hundreds of correctly-configured systems, ready to be used. You can save your work in the cloud, or on a (fast) USB flash drive.

If you have problems or difficulties using your own personal computer for course work, your professor will not be able to provide technical support. Maybe the student help desk (in the library) can help. In a problem scenario, you are still expected to complete your work on time. A problematic personal computer cannot be used as an excuse for delays in completing the course work.

How to use these course notes

Every class/session will have notes posted on this web site.

All notes will be linked from the notes index page.

Study that page’s URI to learn the naming convention for a specific weekly notes page.

Your professor(s) plan to post the notes at least two days before the class/session begins. Before you come into a class, you are expected to read and process the topics covered in the notes.

The format and style of the notes pages will vary. At times, they will be terse, with headings and keywords that are intended to guide the student through the topics. At other times, they will be lengthy, with narrative that explains and supports the topics. Expect a full range of formats and styles between these extremes.

Class/sessions are important. This is not a distance education (online) course. The notes do not attempt to capture everything that must be communicated in the process of learning a topic.

What do we expect from you?

Before the Friday class, we expect you to prepare. This means:

Read and study the class notes page
Read and study the linked documents
Make your own notes, including questions that you have

In other words, do not come into the classroom expecting somehow to soak up knowledge like a sponge. You need to prepare before class, so that you understand the topics and their context.

In class, we expect you to be an engaged and actively-learning participant. This means:

Listening effectively
Asking and answering questions
Writing notes
Doing the in-class exercises and activities

Regarding the workload, it will not be possible to confine this course’s learning experience to the scheduled six periods per week in July. We expect you to spend some of the Friday in-class time working on the assignment(s), but you must also spend time out-of-class to complete the work.

That being said, you will encounter problems and delays. Please follow a general rule: If you cannot solve the problem within 15 minutes or so, then stop and set it aside. Seek help from your professor, during class time, or during the designated help time or office hours. Alternatively, seek help from a classmate who knows the solution to the problem.

Do not waste time. Do not attempt to wrestle the problem to the ground. Others will not think any less of you when you ask for help. You’re here to learn, so take advantage of the course’s resources and delivery to help you learn.