1. ECE 103 Engineering Programming Chapter 1 Introduction
Herbert G. Mayer, PSU
Status 6/20/2016
Initial content copied verbatim from
ECE 103 material developed by
Professor Phillip PSU ECE

2. Syllabus What’s This Blue Code? Should I take this course?
Specific Outcomes
Course Prerequisites
Course Material
Other Reference Material
Grading Policy
How Can I Succeed?
Introduction to Programming

3. What’s This Blue Code? int main( /* no params */ ) { // main
/* use C IO function to prrrrint
printrf( “Hello world’ );
} //end mian

4. What’s This Blue Code?
This only looks like C, but is riddled with errors
No library was included via #include<xxx.h>
String literal was not terminated with a “
The end of output not followed by a ‘\n’
The assumed printf() was mis-spelled
The comment /* was not */ terminated
No main() return value was given and so on
But at least you started thinking about C 

5. Some Better Code #include <stdio.h> int main( /* no params */ )
/* use C output function */
printf( “Hello world.\n” );
return 0; // 0: no error
} //end main

6. ECE 103 Engineering Programming, Summer ‘15
Instructor: Dr. Herbert G. Mayer
Office: FAB 40-06
Hours: Tuesdays + Thursdays FAB 150 or
TA: Anil Reddy Peddolla,
URL: click ECE103
Term: Summer 2016
Detail: Important, for you to read handout 1

7. Should I take this course?
Electrical Engineering & Computer Engineering majors
Yes – (ECE 102 or CS 161 equivalent), then ECE 103
Computer Science majors
No – Take CS 161, CS 162, CS 163
MME, CE, and other majors
Unknown – Check if your department accepts ECE 103

8. Course Outcomes Students will have the ability to:
Develop algorithms in C to solve intermediate engineering problems
Employ basic software engineering principles to create robust and maintainable programs
Create advanced data structures using arrays, pointers, and structs
Use C programming for data acquisition and control
Document program specifications, design, and code

9. Course Prerequisites Algebra and trigonometry (MTH 112 or equivalent)
ECE 102 Engineering Computation (recommended, but not required)

10. Required and Recommended
PSU D2L account recommended for later in your studies
Recommended but not required: Learning Catalytics account (online – need web browser)
$12 from learningcatalytics.com
Recommended: C interactive textbook (online – need web browser)
$40 from zybooks.zyante.com
Required: Portable computer to run C/C++ compiler
C/C++ compiler (c99 ideal, c90 minimum; free compilers are fine):
MinGW + Code::Blocks (MS Windows)
Microsoft Visual Studio Community (MS Windows)
Apple Xcode (OS X)

11. Other Recommended Reference Material
Available from Amazon, Powell’s Books, etc.:
The C Programming Language, 2nd Edition
Author: Brian Kernighan & Dennis Ritchie Publisher: Prentice-Hall © 1988
C Programming: A Modern Approach, 2nd Edition
Author: K. N. King Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company © 2008
21st Century C : C Tips from the New School, 2nd Edition
Author: Ben Klemens Publisher: O’Reilly Media © 2014
Code Complete, 2nd Edition
Author: Steve McConnell Publisher: Microsoft Press © 2004

12. Grading Policy
You can accumulate a total of 1000 points by writing 4 homeworks, each worth 100 points
You also write an open book Midterm during week 6, worth 400 points
The LabJack project with documents and intermediate progress reports is worth 200 points; project results are to be presented by students in week 8 in the lab, one presentation per team.
Grading scale:

13. Academic Dishonesty Policy
All coursework submitted for grading (e.g., homework assignments, exams, and program code), must be done on an individual basis. However, for homework you may discuss general design and debugging issues with other students in the class.
You may not share your program code with other students, nor copy code written by other people, whether they are members of the class or not. In other words, the code and documentation you submit for grading should be a product of your own creativity and not a copy of someone else's work. The only exceptions are: 1) if you are given permission to do so by the instructor, 2) collaborating with your own team partner to develop a program for the project.
If multiple students submit solutions that are obviously derived from the same source, then each of those students will receive a grade of zero (0) for that work. If warranted, all submitted work may be sent to an outside service for plagiarism analysis.
By taking this course, you explicitly agree to abide by the PSU Student Code of Conduct. Failure to comply with the code of conduct by cheating on homework, exams, or the project will result in having the incident recorded in your permanent PSU record. Too many incidents can result in your department expelling you from its degree program.

14. How can you succeed in this course?
Do not assume ECE 103 is easy or simple just because it is a 100-level course. You will spend a lot of time solving sample problems and learning software tools.
Take charge of your own education!
Review the posted lecture notes before each class session.
Participate actively in class.
Utilize good study habits.
Practice, practice, practice!
Ask for help from the instructor, teaching assistant, or tutors. Don’t be shy! 13 13