CS140 -- Data Structures: Fall, 2007

Lecture: TT: Claxton 206, 2:10 - 3:25

Personnel

Professor: James S. Plank

Claxton 221, plank@cs.utk.edu. Office hours by appointment only -- send email.

TA's:

Scott Simmerman. Co-leader of Friday's Lab. Office hours on Tuesdays from 10:00 - noon.
James Finchum. Co-leader of Monday's Lab. Office hours on Mondays from 1:00 to 2:30 in Claxton 110H.
Greg Shutt. Co-leader of both labs.
Khairul Kabir. Grading duties.

Labs

There are two labs for this course. You should be enrolled in one of them. They are:

Monday 2:30 in Claxton 103
Friday 11:15 in Claxton 103

Lab attendance is mandatory.

Book

Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis in C, Mark Allen Weiss, Addison Wesley.

Class Goals

The following are the goals that I have set for teaching this class -- they represent what I'd like you all to get out of the class. When the semester is over, go over this list, and see how well these goals were met. If you feel like it, send me email with comments -- it's more useful after the semester than in the middle of it, I think.

To start becoming self-sufficient C programmers.
This means that when you see a problem that needs to be coded, you have a good idea of how to go about it by writing a C program. This includes understanding the logistics of compiling, linking, including, etc., plus setting up the data structures, organizing the I/O, and using standard tools and libraries where appropriate.
In case you're wondering, this includes understanding pointers, recursion and malloc().
To understand basic data structures.
Frankly, there are only three to four basic data structures that can carry you through a lifetime of programming. All the rest are variations on a theme. By the end of this class, you should understand the basics and be prepared to tweak them when necessary.
To understand basic algorithm analysis.
Knowing how to set up your data structures is one thing. Understanding how fast your program should run is another. This class get you started with algorithm analysis.