CCSU Summer, Second 5, 1999 CS 407 Advanced Topics in Computer Sciende -- MultiTasking and Video Game Design -- 3 Credits Section 70 MTWR 7:45 -- 9:45 PM Room 208 Maria Sanford Hall Instructor: Dr. Charles W. Neville Course Description: There is no detailed course description. This is an experimental course. See the Course Thesis section listed next and the Web Demo page listed below for more information. Course Thesis: This is a course in MULTIPLE PLAYER video game design using SEPARATE THREADS OF EXECUTION for each player. The course will concentrate on the MULTI-TASKING ASPECTS of video game design rather than the computer graphics aspects, though we shall develop such topics as Animation. Each student will write two complete video games, including a video game to be played between multiple players over a network. The programming language will be Java. Video game design has driven developments in computing since the late 1960's. Indeed, when Thompson and Ritchie invented UNIX, important parts of the multi-tasking kernel were based on a video game one of them had written. Networking, multi-tasking, and threads in Java will be developed from the beginning -- no prior knowledge of these topics will be required. Students will need a good working knowledge of Java and Data Structures, such as is provided by the listed prerequisites of CS 151 and CS 152. Required Text: None, as there was no appropriate text. Web Resources: CS407_MultiTasking Home page, available immediately off of my Web page, http://www.cs.ccsu.ctstateu.edu/~neville Prerequisites: CS 151, CS 152, CS 253 and CS 254. Office Hours: Before and after class, and before 5:30 PM and after 9:45 PM. Feel free to stay for help, and feel free to stay to chat. My office is in room 205 Maria Sanford Hall. In an emergency, email me at neville@ccsu.edu, (no comma at the end of the email address) or call me at 832-2719 (work). My Web page URL (Web address) is http://www.cs.ccsu.ctstateu.edu/~neville. (Again, no period at the end of the URL.)