CECS-174: Getting Started

This site contains information to get students started with CECS 174.

Guide to CECS Windows Lab

  1. Setting up your CECS 174 programming environment in the CECS Windows Lab Computers
  2. Setting Preferences in DrJava
  3. Using Eclipse

Download and install software on a personal computer

It is recommended that you download and install the following software to set up a computer that will reflect as much as possible the CECS Lab environment for your CECS 174 work. Follow the steps as listed.

Download and install the Java JDK (i.e. Java Compiler)

  1. Visit this page to download Java 1.6 JDK. You will need to click on the first Download button at the top of the page, with the heading JDK 6 Update 4. NOTE: MS Vista Users should download and install the Java 1.5 JDK because there have been students who had trouble using the Java 1.6 JDK.
  2. From the drop-down menu, select Windows and check the box where you agree to the license agreement (read the agreement), and click Continue.
  3. Click on the first link that's underneath the label Windows Offline Installation, the link is jdk-6u4-windows-i586-p.exe. Note that this is a large file close to 72MB, so depending on the speed of your connection this may take a while to download.
  4. When the download completes, you will be able to run the windows installer application. Find it in your file system (most likely in the Desktop) and double-click it to start the installation.
  5. To install it, just follow the steps as instructed, reading and accepting the license. The pre-selected program features to install is a complete set, so there is no need to change anything.

Download and Install DrJava (i.e. a Java IDE)

  1. Visit this web page: DrJava.
  2. Click on the Download the Windows App button to get the MS Windows application (or alternatively the Download Mac OS X App button for a Macintosh).
  3. The downloaded file is the application itself, so as soon as you download it, you've also installed it, just move it to a convenient place in your file system.

Download the book's Java classes

The authors of the book provide a CD with the purchase of a new textbook. The CD contains Java code that is used throughout the book to learn programming in Java. As is typical with many supplements that come on CD's, the code has been improved and thus you should avoid using the code in the CD and instead download the copy of the code provided here.

  1. Download and unzip the bookClasses directory (ZIP archive). Keep it in a place similar to where you will have it in the CECS Labs -- that is, inside of the directory C:\Documents and Settings\monge\My Documents\My Projects\cecs174
  2. You may also want to download and unzip the mediasources directory (ZIP archive). Again, place this in the cecs174 folder inside of your My Projects directory.
  3. Now, configure the preferences in DrJava to have the classpath include the bookClasses directory
  4. You're now ready to program in Java with Turtles, Pictures, and Sound using DrJava!!!

Programming Resources