EDPX 2100 Coding Syllabus

Course Description

This course is an introduction to the basic programmatic literacies involved in creating and manipulating digital media as well as an introduction to interactive media and the principles and processes involved in creating interactive projects. We will discuss the preproduction processes as well as production practices using the open source language Processing. The class will focus on learning basic programming approaches as well as rudimentary programming problem solving. Variables, Functions/Methods, Arrays, Conditional statements, loops, and object-oriented approaches to programming will all be discussed.

Course Objectives

Students will work on a series of exercises and projects to gain an understanding of the principles associated with interactive media and programming. Upon completing the class students should feel comfortable with the following:

  1. Analyzing potential projects and creating user conscious solutions with clear goals and outcomes.
  2. Identifying and utilizing effective structures, information design and navigation for interactive projects.
  3. Creating compelling interaction and interfaces that respond to the needs of the established users.
  4. Using programming to manipulate and transform media for a variety of purposes.
  5. Problem solving and developing solutions to rudimentary programming tasks.
  6. Explaining the basic areas of creative coding including generative projects, visualizations and games.

Material List

Getting Started with Processing 2nd Ed.

Required Text:

Other excellent books:

Other materials:

You must have adequate storage to have a backup of your work. Please do not rely upon the lab computers for your only source of backup. USB drives or online/cloud storage should be used to make frequent and versioned backups of your projects. All media is subject to failure, therefore it is advisable to maintain a practice of frequently making backup copies of your work.

Important note:

You are required to make backups of your project. If a project is lost from your disk and you are not prepared with a backup you will still be held responsible for submitting the project on time. There will be no exceptions to this.

Grading

Projects: 60%

There will two projects in this class. These projects will be due as listed in the course syllabus. The projects will be weighted as follows:

Project 1: 25% of total grade
Project 2: 35% of total grade

All projects must be presented in class on the due date. Failure to do so will result in failure for the project.

Exercises (in-class and homework): 30%

Attendance, class preparation, work ethic and participation: 10%

This class relies upon feedback from your peers. If you are not present to provide this feedback your exercise and attendance grades will both suffer.

Grading guidelines

A: The student has met all of the criteria for the assignment in a complete and exemplary fashion. There is evidence of a thorough understanding of the ideas and concepts being explored in the assignment. In addition the student shows innovative creative thinking skills and / or novel synthesis thinking in accomplishing excellence in their solution to the problems set forth. Additional consideration is given to students who are stretching beyond their previous level of knowledge and skill.

B: The student has completed the requirements of the assignment. There is evidence of an understanding of the ideas and concepts being explored in the assignment. The student shows a satisfactory solution to the problems set forth. Students demonstrate a reasonable comfort level with the related material covered in class as evidenced in the work.

C: The student has completed a majority but not all of the requirements of the assignment. Some confusion surrounding the ideas and concepts being explored in the assignment may be evident from the solution chosen for the project. Students demonstrate a level of discomfort with the related material covered in class as evidenced in the work.

D: The student has completed a minor portion of the requirements of the assignment. Confusion and lack of understanding of the ideas and concepts being explored in the assignment is evident in the solution chosen for the project. Students demonstrate high levels of discomfort with the related material covered in class as evidenced in the work.

F: The student has failed to complete even a minor portion of the requirements of the assignment or work is plagiarized in part or in whole. Confusion and lack of understanding of the ideas and concepts being explored in the assignment is evident in most aspects of the project. Students show they are unfamiliar with the assignment and the related material covered in class as evidenced in the work.

Student Illness

If you are sick please avoid contact with others and refrain from coming to class. Please contact me or have someone contact me on your behalf if you are going to be absent.

You may complete your in class exercises and assignments by submitting them via email to make up for class absences. You will be responsible for completing all missed assignments, but additional time can be arranged if deemed necessary.

If you are too ill to return to class and miss more than three classes, this may be sufficient grounds to assign a grade of "I"/incomplete. Please contact me and keep me updated to your status and expectations for attending class.

If you are absent for a prolonged period, refer to information regarding the following: course withdrawals/incompletes, medical stop-outs, tuition refund policy/appeal, and academic exceptions at http://www.du.edu/registrar

Students with Disabilities/Medical Issues

If you qualify for academic accommodations because of a disability or medical issue please submit a Faculty Letter to me from Disability Services Program (DSP) in a timely manner so that your needs may be addressed. DSP is located on the 4th floor of Ruffatto Hall; 1999 E. Evans Ave. 303.871. / 2372 / 2278/ 7432. Information is also available on line at http://www.du.edu/disability/dsp; see the Handbook for Students with Disabilities.

Honor Code/Academic Integrity

All work submitted in this course must be your own and produced exclusively for this course. The use of sources (ideas, quotations, paraphrases) must be properly acknowledged and documented. For the consequences of violating the Academic Misconduct policy, refer to the University of Denver website on the Honor Code (http://www.du.edu/honorcode). See also http://www.du.edu/studentconduct for general information about conduct expectations from the Office of Student Conduct.

Religious Accommodations

DU students are granted excused absences from class if needed for observance of religious holy days but should contact instructors to make alternate arrangements during the first week of class. Visit DU's religious accommodations policy (http://www.du.edu/studentlife/religiouslife/about-us/policy.html) for information and a list of religious holidays.

Student Athletes

DU sponsors National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) student-athletes at the undergraduate level in seventeen different sports. Student-Athlete Support Services are in place (http://www.denverpioneers.com/sports/saas/spec-rel/091010aaj.html) to assist these students in their academic work. According to their policies:

Student-athletes are responsible for informing their instructors of any class days to be missed due to DU sponsored varsity athletic events in which s/he are participating. Student-athletes are provided with a schedule of travel dates that coincide with class dates and an absence policy to present to instructors. This must be signed by the instructor and is the student-athletes responsibility to return the signed forms to an assigned athletics adviser. In the event that a team reaches post-season play (i.e. Conference or NCAA Tournament), letters will be sent to instructors informing them of additional missed class dates. It is the responsibility of the student-athlete to make arrangements with instructors regarding any missed lectures, assignments, and/or exams.