CIS 120 Home

Welcome to CIS120 (Programming: Logic, Design and Implementation)!

Course Description: This course gives students an understanding of popular computer operating systems. The operating systems covered include Windows and Linux. The course leads students through basic and advanced file management tasks from a command line interface as well as from a graphical interface. Topics are covered from both an end-user and an administrative standpoint. Topics covered include hard disk management, desktop security awareness, and system configuration. Three class hours a week. Instructional Support Fee applies. Competency met: Critical Analysis (1.0), Technical Literacy (8.0) 3 credits.

This website will be updated often and will be your resource for learning about weekly homework assignments, quizzes, etc. Be sure to check it frequently! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via email. I am available for in person meetings if requested. I look forward to having all of you in my class and I look forward to a successful semester!

Course Meeting Schedule

Hybrid Meeting Schedule

Final Exam (due by 3PM on Tuesday, December 19)

Your Final Exam is posted here. Change the name of the file to YourName_CIS120_Final_Fall2017 prior to submiting it for review. Please be sure to read the instructions thoroughly before begining. If you have any questions, feel free to email me as soon as possible.

Week #15 (In Class Meeting on December 12)

Today is our last scheduled in class meeting. Please bring all of your class work with you. If you have it on a flash drive, please bring it. If you have it in your email, you will be able to access it in class. I will be asking you to confirm a final tally of the work that you have completed, are in progress of, and/or missing. Please fill out this status sheet as thoroughly as possible. I will be collecting it by the end of class today along with any completed assignments that you have not yet submitted. I will be accepting late assignments up to 12PM (noon) on Saturday, December 16.

Final Portfolio Review: It would be a good idea to have your portfolio ready in class for feedback prior to your final submission.

TBD: Binary/ASCII: Today we will review binary conversion and mathematics. As a reference for your assignment, go to the Numbering Systems and Computer Codes webpage that we will review in class. I am also including a link to an ASCII Table and Description for your reference.

Here is the Binary Worksheet that we will be reviewing together.

Week #14 (Distance Learning on December 5)

Most of you should have been receiving emails from me with feedback and/or grades for your submission. I will be sending more updates out via email. Please be sure to respond to the emails to confirm receipt. Please check your email frequently. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions.

Week #13 (Distance Learning on November 28)

Due to unforeseen circumstances, this week we will NOT be meeting in person. I apologize for the inconvenience.

Week #12 (Distance Learning on November 21)

Visual Studio: Please download Visual Studio directly from MSDN (https://www.visualstudio.com/downloads/) in advance of class so that you may begin working on your assignment with out delay.

Homework (due 12/6)

VB HW: Complete your first JavaScript Assignment in Visual Basic. You do not need to resubmit your algorithm for this assignment as long as you have submitted it for JavaScript as you will be using the same guideline here. If you are missing any feedback from me, please contact me ASAP before you begin your VB homework.
Submission Instructions: Please zip your files (one problem per zipped folder, labeled accordingly) to my hotmail account as my BCC account has been rejecting large file sizes. Your filename convention should be similar to your JS assignments (i.e. CIS120_YourName_VBHW1_Problem1, CIS120_YourName_VBHW1_Problem2, etc.).

Reference Instructions: The below are a few VB examples to review. In order to open them, you must unzip the file, open Visual Studio, click on File > Open Project and navigate to the unzipped folder. For the each problem, you want to open the Project and Source file. For the first sample, you want to open frmFirstSp12.vb (form) and frmFirstSp12.Designer.vb (code).

Below are additional examples that you are recommended to review:

Additional Resources:

Week #11 (In Class Meeting on November 14)

Homework (due 11/29)

JS HW #3: Complete and submit (via email) your third JavaScript Assignment. Be sure to reference your completed Algorithm Process to help you organize your assignment before you begin. Your filenames should reference the following naming convention: CIS120_YourName_JSHW3_Problem1.html , CIS120_YourName_JSHW3_Problem2.html , etc. and should include the algorithm process as part of your submission along with your individual JavaScript problems (all in one email), zipped into a single folder. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Status Checkin

Reminder: You should be updating your portfolios.

Week #10 (Distance Learning on November 7)

This week we will continue to look at the JavaScript examples we began to review during our last meeting. Please come to class with the start of (each of) your First JavaScript assignment problems so that you may ask any questions that you have prior to the due date.

Homework (due 11/22)

JS HW #2: Complete and submit (via email) your second JavaScript Assignment. Be sure to reference your completed Algorithm Process to help you organize your assignment before you begin. Your filenames should reference the following naming convention: CIS120_YourName_JSHW2_Problem1.html , CIS120_YourName_JSHW2_Problem2.html , etc. and should include the algorithm process as part of your submission along with your individual JavaScript problems (all in one email), zipped into a single folder. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Week #9 (Distance Learning on October 31)

The due dates for the assignments posted in week 8 have been updated. The mentor assignments will be going out this week. If you have any questions and/or do not receive an email with your mentor assignment by 11/5, please email me ASAP.

Week #8 (In Class Meeting on October 24)

Homework (due by 11:59PM on Tuesday, November 7)

Complete and submit (via email) the following flowchart / pseudo code assignment using this solution sheet which includes the assignment instructions. Please note that #27 is unintentionally written twice within the assignment. The second #27 should really be #28.

Homework Due 11/19 - Mentor, Soft Skills, and Career Based Report

Career and Mentor Report Contacts (check your email): You will be receiving an email from me indicating your mentor and their contact information. If you did not receive my email by the end of the week, it is important that you contact me immediately. For your reference, each of the mentors are former BCC graduates and have all transferred onto schools where they have earned, at least, a Bachelor's Degree. This assignment will give you the opportunity to build your professional network as well as gain some insight into the filed of CIS. Use it to your benefit.
Personalized Soft Skills (check your email): A Strengths Finder passcode has been provided to you via email. The passcode will give you access to a survey that will prompt you with scenarios in which you will be asked to select the response that best relates to you personally. Please be sure to read the instructions carefully prior to proceeding and be sure that you are at a reliable computer, on a trusted network (also reliable), and have ample time to complete the survey in one sitting.
This code is being provided to you for free as part of this course. If you enter your code but do not complete the survey, you will be expected to purchase the code on your own in order to complete this portion of the assignment.
Once you receive your passcode, you will be expected to complete the Strengths Finder survey and email a copy of your results to me as well as bring a copy of your results with you to class.
Career and Mentor Report Details: I want you to write a paper about careers in the computer field. The paper should include a cover page and notes citing your sources (I would estimate that you need at least a couple of pages of content - not including the cover page and sources - to cover the goals well). In addition, you will also need to provide me a list of the questions you asked your mentor (and the answers provided). Note: This should also not be considered as part of your report, but should be included in your emailed submission of the report.
If you have trouble contacting your mentor, let me know and pass in the mentor part late (the rest of your report must be on time). You will be required to submit your report electronically (via email, as an attachment) by the due date specified above. Your report must be written in MS Word. As a reminder you have access to download MS Office for free via accessBCC > Office 365 tab. There are three required parts to the report:
- The first part should summarize the email interview that you conducted with your mentor regarding the work he or she does in the computing field and what degree(s) they may have obtained along the way. Your paper should contain information about your mentor's job and/or degree program with several quotes from your mentor (but not to consist of your entire report). At least one of your questions for your mentor should pertain to the soft skills that are required on the job. To learn more about soft skills as well as your report click here. If necessary, conduct additional research to better understand the meaning of soft skills as it pertains to successfully obtaining and maintaining a job / career. Be sure to copy me on your email correspondence to your mentor (place my email address into the CC field of the email).
- The second part should focus on how your Strengths Finder results could help you as you work to complete your degree and how it will help you in your career of choice.
- The third part should be researching a computing career that interests you and writing about what the job involves including the skills that are needed. Include the necessary resources using the MLA format.

Homework Due see below - Algorithms and JavaScript

Algorithms (due 11/9): Let's first look at the breakdown of the Algorithm Process. Keep in mind that this is what you will need to reference in order to complete your next homework assignment. Prior to completing your JavaScript, I need you to submit your algorithm and sample solution for each of the assigned JavaScript problems (below). Please remember that you will need to submit two sample solution sets for the last problem. You should use the following solutions sheet for your submission. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions.
JS HW #1 (due 11/15): Based on the feedback that you receive for your algorithm sheet submission, complete and submit (via email) your first JavaScript Assignment. Your HTML pages / filenames should reference the following naming convention: CIS120_YourName_JSHW1_Problem1.html , CIS120_YourName_JSHW1_Problem2.html , etc. and should include the algorithm process as part of your submission along with your individual JavaScript problems (all in one email), within a single zipped folder. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Additional Resources

The Logic of Playing Computer: Loops and If Statements

The JavaScript examples below are best viewed using Firefox. If you do not have Firefox on your personal computer, you may download it (for free) from www.mozilla.com.

Week #7 (In Class Meeting on October 17)

In Class Activities

For our in class discussion this afternoon we will be reviewing loops. In addition to the PowerPoint reference below, you should review Chapters 3 and 4 in the course book. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Flowcharts and Pseudo code PowerPoint Reference

To enhance our discussion on loops, you will be asked to complete the following exercises during class time. Those of you that do not complete it in class are expected to submit your completed assignment via email prior to the next in class meeting.

Loop Output Exercise - PPT

Part 1: Homework (due Tuesday, October 24)

Please complete the following problems and bring your solutions (and written processes) with you to class to review on October 24.

Loops - Level 1
Loops and If Statements - Level 2

Part 2: Homework (due Tuesday, October 31)

Complete the following homework assignment on looping. Please be sure to follow the instructions carefully to avoid losing additional points.

Week #6 (Distance Learning on October 10)

To Submit (due by midnight on Thursday, October 19):

Create a database with one table that contains both the content and queries identified within the the following SQL Assignment Instructions. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Week #5 (In Class Meeting on October 3)

Additional Resources:

SQL within Access
SQL Tutorials

SQL Basics Access 2014
Microsoft Access 2007: CREATING QUERIES Working in SQL View
Basic SQL Components: Be sure to keep the comments from our in class discussions in mind when reviewing these videos.

In Class Exercise / SQL Review

The Lucky Dog Grooming Parlor maintains data about each of its clients in a table named tblClients. Attributes include each dog's name, breed, and owner's name, all of which are text attributes. The only numeric attributes are an ID number assigned to each dog and balance due on services. the table structure is tblClients (dogId, name, breed, owner, balanceDue). Write the four separate SQL statements in an MS Word or Notepad file that would include each of the following:

A) Names and owners of all Great Danes
B) Owners of all dogs with balance due over $100
C) All attributes of dogs named "Fluffy"
D) All attributes of poodles whose balance is no greater than $50

To Submit (due by midnight on Thursday, October 12):

Use the InClassBookDB.accdb database to write and/or match the SQL queries provided to you on this reference sheet. For your reference, here is an MS Word document containing the SQL code from the book09 database. Note: You are not permitted to use the Query Design tool when creating SQL queries. You must write your SQL statements from scratch. Don't forget to test your results!

Week #4 (Distance Learning September 26)

You should have received an email from me on Sunday indicating that we will not be meeting today. Our next in class meeting will take place on Tuesday, October 3. My apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused. We will continue to work within MS Access this week. In the meantime, I have posted some additional resources to help you with your current assignments.

If you look below, you should see some additionally modified due dates for your assignments. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you for your understanding.

To assist you with Queries (Week #2, MS Access), please review the following videos:

Week #3 (Distance Learning September 19)

This week we will continue to work in MS Access. You should begin reviewing the related material in advance of our next in class meeting which is where we will explore this together in more depth. Please come with questions and/or feel free to email your questions to me as they come up (using the course required email subject as outlined in the course syllabus).

Read / Review: You should have already read Chapter #1 in the textbook. However, I would also like you to watch the videos that go with the chapter (note there are 5 with a time of about 4 minutes each or less). You can download the videos from Cengage Chapter 1 videos.

Downloading MS Access - Follow these instructions

Additional Resource: Creating A Simple Select Query in Microsoft Access 2010

To Submit (due by midnight on EXTENDED to Thursday, October 5): Open the books09 database within MS Access and answer the questions that relate to this database. Follow the instructions provided to you within the MS Word document and submit the completed assignment to me, via email, by the due date referenced above.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask. As you know, the best way to reach me is via email, but I ask that you use the course required email subject as referenced in the course syllabus to ensure a timely response.

Week #2 (In Class Meeting on September 12)

Portfolio (Intro to semester-long project)
This week we are going to start looking at XHTML/HTML5 and begin to develop the basics of a portfolio. I have provided several examples which we will be reviewing in class (see link below). If you already have experience with HTML/XHTML/HTML5, you are welcome to elaborate on the basics that I will present.

To learn more about the purpose as well as additional details regarding the portfolio, please go to: http://www.pgrocer.net/Cis17/assign/CISBCCportfolio.html
Click here to take a look at an example of a portfolio.
Updated 9/11 How to upload your Portfolio to the server/internet: You should be using WinSCP to upload your files to the school server. You can download WinSCP from home by going to winscp.net. To learn more about how to post to cisweb, click here for a tutorial. For an example that is more specific to the portfolio, click here. In the linked references for posting to cisweb, please note that it identifies the host name as cisweb.bristol.mass.edu. However, you should instead use cisweb.bristolcc.edu.

PowerPoint Presentation Reference: Using Relational Databases
Access Sample References: Access 2013 example explanation (PDF) and Access 2010 example explanation (PPT)

Assignment, Part 1 - Portfolio (due Sunday, September 17)

Last week I posted a link to an example that I wanted you to reference to give you an idea about how to develop your web portfolio. This week I would like you to begin structuring your portfolio and post it to the BCC server. Keep in mind that you will be using this portfolio throughout the semester to post your weekly assignments, therefore, your structure should make sense.

If you are new to HTML, you are welcome to reference the example that I posted last week to get ideas about how to structure your pages. However, anything that too closely resembles the example(s) with very little modification, will not be eligible for full credit on this assignment. The highest grade you will be eligible for is a C. To be eligible for a higher grade, I would like to see more creativity incorporate into the design. In additional to the examples that I have posted to this website, you may want to reference the following tutorial: HTML and CSS help, especially if you are new to HTML and/or CSS.

If you are comfortable with HTML or would like to learn more about it, please work to develop an interesting and professional website. All sites should be prepared with the idea that a future employer will be looking at it and evaluating you, in part, based on its content.

For your assignment, you will need to post two pages online and email the URLs to me. The first page must link to the second page. At this point the second page can just say something about it being an index to your programming examples, other course assignments, etc. The second page does not have to have any working links except for a working link back to the first page. Although your other links do not have to be active, they should still appear as links to be updated at a later time.

Assignment, Part 2 - MS Access (Due Tuesday, September 19 see below)

Considering that we did not have the opportunity to review Queries, specifically, during our last in class meeting, I am still requesting that all MS Access Databases be submitted (minus the query portion of the assignment). For those of you that have already completed the assignment (in full) and submitted it via email, you will be eligible for extra credit. If you feel as though you have any changes to make, you may make those adjustments an resubmit your database by the new deadline without penalty. Those of you that have not yet submitted anything, I will give you until the end of the day (11:59PM) on Thursday, September 21 to submit your MS Access database (minus the queries). The new deadline for the database and queries will be Saturday, September 30. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Click here to view the Access Database that I am asking you to develop.

MS Access: As a reminder, as discussed in class, MS Office (including MS Access) can be downloaded and installed for free by logging into accessBCC and navigating to Office 365 and following the instillation instructions.

Additional Resources

Updated 9/11 Email Notifications (Do Not Delete): You should have received an email with your CISWeb account login information (not from me). Do not delete this email. You will need it to post and manage your portfolio throughout the semester.

Updated 9/11 DreamSpark Updates: I was made aware that students will no longer be receiving DreamSpark account access as part of this course since the software that was previously only accessible through DreamSpark has now been made available (for free) through alternative means. As discussed in class, MS Office (including MS Access) can be downloaded and installed for free by logging into accessBCC and navigating to Office 365. Once we get to the point where we will need to utilize Visual Studio, additional details will be provided.

Week #1 (In Class Meeting on September 5)

Reading Assignments:

Read the Course Syllabus
Review the Chapter 1 PowerPoint Presentation from the course book.
Click here to view examples of XHTML/HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript files/code. Additional examples will be posted as we move through the semester.

Additional Resources
HTML:
http://www.w3schools.com/html/html_intro.asp
http://www.tizag.com/htmlT/
http://www.html.net/tutorials/html/

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS):
http://www.w3schools.com/css/default.asp/
http://www.tizag.com/cssT/
www.csstutorial.net/

Assignment (due Tuesday, September 12 by midnight): Read at least two articles, in each category, (of which I have provided the links) below. Most importantly, I would like you to become comfortable with your learning style and the need for time management. Be sure to complete at least one quiz, included within the provided resources.

Using the information that you have obtained, I want you to create a page in XHTML (from scratch) that will introduce yourself to me as well as identify your learning style and time management plan, both of which are important considerations for personal and professional success. Upon completion, you will need to send your .html page(s) and your picture to me as an email attachment.

Information about learning styles can be found online. You are suggested to begin with the following articles:
http://www.mindtools.com/mnemlsty.html
http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-assessments/learning-styles-quiz.shtml
http://www.acceleratedlearning.com/method/test_flash.html
http://www.personal.psu.edu/bxb11/LSI/LSI.htm

Information about time management can also be found online. Here are some sample articles:
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_88.htm
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/main/newMN_HTE.htm
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/time-management-mistakes.htm
http://www.timemanagementhelp.com/college.htm
http://collegelife.about.com/od/academiclife/a/timemanagement.htm

Once you have identified your learning style as well as determined your time management plan, I would like you to begin constructing your XHTML. The following components are required:

Your name.
Your major. If you are a CIS major, please identify which concentration you have chosen (or plan to choose) such as networking, forensics, game development etc.
A little about you....
- What kind of jobs have you had?
- Is this your first semester in college?, etc.
What led you to come to BCC and choose the major you have selected?
What are your goals or plans after BCC? Do you plan to transfer to another school? If so, where and in what major?
Include an appropriate picture of yourself.
Include information you found about your learning style and how you can use that information to help you in your courses.
Include a plan about how you will manage your time to handle homework, reading, and studying.
Your source code must pass validation (more points for Strict)!
Extra credit #1: If you find other interesting articles on learning styles and time management, send me the links along with an explanation of why you found the articles interesting and helpful as part of your submission.

You should be using a lot of the HTML that has either been reviewed in class and/or has been provided as a resorce such as lists, tables, images, CSS, etc. to get the best grade. Extra credit #2: If you applied additional HTML that you researched on your own, if you effectively explain the code, you may be eligible for additional extra credit, however, you must identify what you applied along with your resources.