In principle, CS681 is Software Engineering Theory (Spring semester) and this course, CS682/CS683, is the year long team project. If it sounds weird to do the theory after starting the practice, I agree. In the past, I have taught CS681 in the Fall along with CS682. Then I could mix theory and practice in the Fall (and in the Spring). Now you get the theory later, from Professor Suzuki.

Software engineering is as much about process as product. We won't learn the (or even a) way to write software, but will learn how to choose and apply strategies and tools suitable for a particular project.

This course operates at a level above that of those that precede it. The sequence 110-310-680 moves from writing small programs through the understanding of the classical program library APIs to the object architecture of self contained applications. In this course we focus on larger systems, and how to build them. It's quite possible that in your project there will be little actual coding at all - many applications today are built by arranging to have existing tools cooperate. That's particularly true of web software.

• Course goals
  • Understand software engineering methodologies
  • Use software engineering tools
  • Learn some of the history of software engineering, and the current trends (even though this is not CS681)
  • Work in a small team for a full year
  • Master presentation and documentation skills (speaking and writing!)
  • Build a modest application for a real customer
  • If you don't already have a job in the real world, prepare yourself for one. If you do, learn to do it better.
  • Have fun

• Class work will be a mix of
  • Presentations by prospective customers
  • Student presentations
  • Study of SE tools
  • Occasional team meetings (since those are times when all of us are sure to be available)
  • Progress reports from the teams
  • Guest lectures

• First class
  • This introduction
  • Assignment for next time: home page, cv, read and respond to Brooks ($CS682/hw1/)
  • Introducing ourselves as professional software engineers (one war story each)

Back to the CS682 home page.