ENCE 756 : Computer Methods in Civil Engineering

ENCE 756 : Computer-Aided Methods in Engineering

Professor Mark Austin,
Department of Civil Engineering ,
University of Maryland, College Park.

[ Course Contents ] [ Prerequisites ] [ Course Notes ] [ Notes from Class ]
[ Computer Resources ] [ Java Short Course ] [ Programming Languages ] [ Class Participants ]

COURSE CONTENTS

During the past two decades, computers have been providing approximately 25% more power per dollar per year. This well established trend, coupled with the advent of global networking, has allowed for the reformulation of traditional engineering problems to take advantage of these new technologies.

This semester's course will be partitioned into four blocks:

Trends in Computers and Computer Technology (1 week) : Emerging trends in computers and computer technology. High and low level computer languages. Small computer programs and large computer programs. Principles of Software Development. Key components in a simple computer.

C Language (5 weeks) : An overview of the C programming language. How to write and compile a simple C program. Basic data types and variables, operators and expressions, and control of flow. Functions. Arrays and pointers. Dynamic allocation of memory. User defined, structured, and abstract data types.

Using C to solve Engineering Problems (4 weeks) : Design of linked list and polygon data structures and algorithms. Design and implementation of a matrix package suitable for the numerical solution of engineering problems.

Java (2 weeks) : What is Java ? What principles of object-oriented development apply to Java ? How is Java different from conventional programming languages ? How do you write and compile a Java program (i.e. syntax, control structures, compilers etc ..) ? How do you write a Java applet ? What libraries are available for Java development ? What opportunities exist for using Java in the solution of engineering problems ?

Students will write C (and maybe Java) programs to solve a family of progressively difficult engineering problems.

PREREQUISITES

The only prerequisite for this class is some exposure to computer programming. A knowledge of the C programming language is not required.

COURSE NOTES

Course notes may be purchased at the Engineering Copy Center for $24.00. The course notes contain a detailed description of the C language and its application to the solution of engineering problems.

All of the source code for the computer programs is available on-line.

An introduction to html and Java will be available at the Engineering Copy Center 1-2 weeks after the semester begins. Supplemental material will be handed out in class throughout the semester.

There is no textbook for this class.

JAVA SHORT COURSE

The Java short course notes are an introduction to Java for people already familiar with programming languages such as C or C++. During the next couple of months (i.e. until about Feb. 1997) these notes will be evolving almost daily, so check back here often. We welcome feedback.

In this document you will find :

A taste of Java
- Writing the code
- Compiling the code
- Running the application
Java, a little history
- How everything got started
What is Java ?
- The "famous" java buzzwords
Object Oriented fundamentals
- Managing complexity
- Is Java Object Oriented ?
- Encapsulation
- Inheritance
- Polymorphism
The Java language
- Introduction
- Comments in code
- Primitive data types
- Flow Control
- Classes and Objects
- Arrays
Java Versus C
- No preprocessor
- No global variables
- No pointers
- Garbage collection
The Java environment (JDK)
- JDK
- Java Workshop
Application examples
- Fibonacci Sequence
- Sorted Lists
What is an applet ?
- Introduction
- How they work
Applet examples
- 'Paix' applet
- 'SimpleDraw' applet
Class Libraries
- Libraries currently available
- Libraries in development
Bibliographies
- A list of reference books