CISC 110: Fall 2011

Elementary Computer Animation

Instructor: Mary McCollam

This page provides information on the course. It tells you about the instructor, teaching assistants, lecture schedule, and marking scheme, along with the assignments and the lab and test schedule. It also contains a course description and textbook titles and information on Flash resources and lab access.

The lecture slides and additional custom notes will be available for you to view and download from Moodle: https://moodle.queensu.ca/

Instructor, Teaching Assistants, and Schedule

The instructor and teaching assistants of this course are:

Instructor	Office	E-mail	Phone	Office Hours
Mary McCollam	Goodwin 527	`mccollamATcs.queensu.ca`	533-6763	Tuesdays 1-3 pm or by appointment

Teaching Assistant	E-mail	Lab
Cara Bing Yu Yu	8byyATqueensu.ca	B
Emese Somogyvari	8es11ATqueensu.ca	A, C

The lectures for this course are scheduled at:

Day	Time	Room
		Beamish-Miunro 213
Mondays	2:30 - 3:20 pm
Tuesdays	4:30 - 5:20 pm
Thursdays	2:30 - 3:20 pm (weird time, but correct)

The labs for this course are scheduled at:

Lab	Day	Time	Room	TA
TBA			Goodwin 248
A	Wednesday	2:30-4:30 pm		Emese
B	Thursday	3:30-5:30 pm		Cara
C	Friday	2:30-5:30 pm		Emese

NOTE: Due to TA budget cuts, unfortunately, we will not be able to offer TA help during the lab hours scheduled by SOLUS; instead we will offer TA help during the hours given above, fewer hours but more convenient times. An announcement will be made in class about this. Also, this year you will only be required to attend a lab to turn in your assignment; other than that, the labs will be used as help sessions for you to learn the ActionScript portion of the course and you may attend any portions of any lab you want. It's highly recommended that you make full use of this opportunity for free tutoring from the TAs.

Here is the lab list, so you can see in which lab you are scheduled: CISC 110 Lab List

Course Description

In this course you will learn about two-dimensional computer animation and scripting, with widely-used animation software (Flash) that includes a scripting language (ActionScript) with full programming language capabilities. This is a computing science course, so the emphasis will be on the computing aspects of animation, rather than on the artistic aspects. However, it is also purposely designed to allow students creative freedom to explore their interests, whether those interests are artistic, musical, scientific, or just plain fun.

Textbooks

Adobe Flash CS5 Professional Classroom in a Book, by Adobe Creative Team, Adobe Systems Inc., 2009

and

a set of custom ActionScript 3.0 notes that I will be creating for you to download for free from Moodle: https://moodle.queensu.ca/

Flash Resources and Lab Access

We'll be using Flash CS5 Professional and ActionScript 3.0 for this course.

You may download a free 30-day trial of Flash CS5 at: http://www.softpedia.com/get/Internet/WEB-Design/Flash/Adobe-Flash.shtml

Adobe provides an extensive Flash Help and Support Page. One very useful link from that page is the ActionScript 3.0 Language and Componenets Reference.

iButton
Registration

Flash is installed on the computers in CASLab ( Goodwin Hall 248 and Walter Light Hall 310 computer labs), which you will have access to 24 hours a day via an iButton (electronic key) that you purchase at the Campus Bookstore and register at the School of Computing kiosk on the second floor of Goodwin Hall near the elevator. Walk towards Beamish-Munro Hall, away from the elevator, and the kisok is on your left. As well, you set your initial CASLab password at the kisok.

Once you have your iButton registered, you can get into Goodwin Hall anytime, and from there into Walter Light Hall, by using the Undergraduate iButton reader at the single door on the east side of the building at ground level. You can get into Goodwin 248 by using the iButton reader on the wall to the right of the second lab door (the one furthest west). The iButton reader for Walter Light 310 is beside its west-most door. To use your iButton, place its round metal disk against the matching round metal disk on the wall-mounted reader and wait for the "click" to sound (the lock unlocking). Then just pull or push the door open. The red light on the wall reader will briefly turn to green as the door unlocks.

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Schedule

ActionScript and Flash examples will be posted here. If you try to view a .fla file by selecting the link, you will see the binary file, which will look like garbage. Instead you need to download it to your computer and open it with Flash. You can do that using right-click in Windows or ctrl-click on a Mac. You could also view the binary file and then select "File|Save As" in the menu bar.

If when you download it, the file has other extensions besides .fla, change the filename to only have a .fla extension (only fla after the period).

Week	Date	Topics	ActionScript & Flash Examples
1	Sept 12-16	Intro to Animation & Programming ActionScript: Tracing & Variables Flash: 2D graphic	Exercise 1: First Animation
2	Sept 19-23	Short Animated Films ActionScript: If-else statements; Object-Oriented Programming; Using Functions; Timeline Control Flash: Creating and Editing Symbols and Text	Exercise 2: Variables Exercise 3: Rocket Ship
3	Sept 26-30	Animated Films with Narration or Dialogue ActionScript: Defining Functions with Parameters and Results Flash: Intro to Animation: Motion, Shape, & Color Tweening; Nested Animations	Exercise 4: If-Else Statements Exercise 5: Eye Symbols Exercise 6: Simple Functions Functions with Parameters
4	Oct 3-7	Interactive Websites ActionScript: Random Numbers; For Loops; While Loops; Flash: Nested Animations wih Scripts; Stop-Motion Animation	Functions with Results Exercise 7: Functions with Results While and For Loops Stop Animation: Dancing Doll Exercise 8: Wing Animation
5	Oct 10-14	Thanksgiving Monday: No Class; Action Script: Events & Event Handlers Flash: Interaction and Buttons	Exercise 9: Loops Buttons Buttons With One Handler Function Exercise 10: Buttons
6	Oct 17-21	Test 1 Review, Monday October 17 Test 1, Tuessday, October 18 in class Video Games Dynamic Text Fields ( Output ); One-Dimensional Arrays	Test 1 Review.fla Test 1 Review.txt Arrow Keys: "pacman" Array Basics Exercise 11: Arrays
7	Oct 24-28	More Video Games Display List; Drawing with Vectors; More on Arrays	Exercise 12: Graphics Arrays, Loops, Functions Exercise 13: Arrays and Loops
8	Oct 31- Nov 4	Learning Modules Frame and Timer Loops; Text Input and Processing	Exercise 14: InputAndTimers Frame Events: Unicycle Timer Events: Clock Timer Events and Strings
9	Nov 7-11	Interactive Art Dynamic Objects; More on the Display List; Managing Object Depths	Exercise 15: Key Events and HitTestObject Hangman Game Design Hangman Development Step 1 Hangman Development Step 2 Hangman Development Step 3 Hangman Game Version 1 Hangman Game Version 2 Hangman Game Version 3 Dynamic Objects: Butterfly and Bird Exercise 16: Strings Exercise 17: Dynamic Objects
10	Nov 14-18	Test 2 Review, Monday, November 14 Test 2, Tuessday, November 15 Music Buttons and Help with Projects during class time	Hangman with Music Button Music File for Music Button
11	Nov 21-25	Monday: Null Object Errors and Help with Projects Tuesday: Arrays of Dynamic Objects and Help with Projects Thursday: Help with Projects	Array of Dynamic Objects GlowFilter
Test 12	Nov 28-Dec 2	Projects due in class on Monday: bring your project on a USB memory stick Note: You can turn in your user manual on Monday or in the Tuesday or Thursday class Project Demos in Class Tuesday and Thursday ( Groups with one partner in a Wednesday or Thursday lab give demo in Tues class Otherwise: Students in Wednesday lab give demo during Tuesday class Students in Thursday or Friday lab give demo during Thursday class )

Marking Scheme, Labs, Assignments, Tests, and Project

Your mark is calculated from 5 Flash & ActionScript assignments (10%), 2 tests (30%) and a project (60%).

You will also be given a set of lab problems each week to prepare for the tests and the project. There is no direct credit for completing the labs, but indirect credit is received since some of the problems on each test will be very close to some of the lab work. Also, you need to learn and practice all of the programming skills used to solve the lab problems in order to complete your final project successfully. The TAs will be available to help you work through programming problems during the labs, as scheduled at the top of this page under "Instructors, Teaching Assistants, and Schedule". Your assignments are due at the start of your lab. To get credit for your assignments, you will show your work to your TA at the beginning of your lab.

There are four due dates for the design and implementation of the project: for the Storyboard, Phase 1 code, Phase 2 code, and Final Project. However, you will only receive a mark for the storyboard (out of 8), and for the final project (out of 52). The due dates for your phase 1 and phase 2 code are to keep you on track for finishing your project on time and to require you to show your project and answer questions about it during the implementation process to demonstrate that the work is your work. If you do not complete the required percentage of your project by the required date, marks will be deducted from your final project mark (up to 20% for each phase, so a total of up to 40%). You will hand in your storyboard and show your phase 1 and phase 2 code at the beginning of your lab in the week each is due.

Labs, Assigns, Tests, Project	Percentage	Week	Due in Week	Topics
Lab 0 Uploading with Filezilla		1		Setting up folders; Flash Lesson 1	Read and complete the following before your lab in week 1 : Activating CASLab Account
Lab 1		2		Output and Variables
Assignment 1	2		2	Flash Lesson 2: Graphics
Lab 2		3		If-else; Using Functions and Defining Simple Functions
Assignment 2	2		3	Flash Lesson 3 and Part of 4: Symbols and Animation Flash text Less. 3 & pp. 105-109
Lab 3 Lab 3 Start File		4		Defining Functions with Parameters and Results
Assignment 3	2		4	Part of Flash Lessons 4 and 7: Animation and Sound Flash text pp. 109-129 & 282-289
Lab 4		5		For & While Loops; Random Numbers
Assignment 4	2		5	Part of Flash Lessons 4, 5 & 7: Animation and Sound, con. Flash text pp. 129-143, 180-185 & 289-293
Lab 5		6		Interaction & Buttons
Test 1 2010 Test 1 2010 Test 1 Solutions Test 1 Practice Questions Solutions to Practice Questions	15	6		Weeks 1 - 4
Assignment 5	2		6	Flash Lesson 6: Interactive Navigation
Lab 6		7		Drawing with vectors; Arrays
Lab 7 Lab 7 Start File		8		Arrays
Project Storyboard Project Requirements Example Brainstorming Chart	8		7
Lab 8 Lab 8 Start File		9		Strings; Text Input; Timer Loops
Project Phase 1 Code			9
Lab 9 Lab 9 Start File		10		Dynamic Symbols and Display List Levels
Test 2 2010 Test 2 2010 Test 2 Solutions Test 2 Practice Questions Solutions to Practice Question	15			Weeks 5-9
Project Phase 2 Code			11
Final Project	52		12
Total	100

COMPSA Tutors

If you need additional help, COMPSA keeps a list of upper-year students who are interested in tutoring. Check the COMPSA web page and search for "Tutor List".

ASUS Tutors

Mindfind is a tutoring service run by ASUS (Arts and Science Undergraduate Society) that pairs student tutors with students who are in need of academic assistance. The hourly cost of tutoring is partly subsidized by ASUS.

http://www.cs.queensu.ca/home/mccollam/cisc110/2011/info11.html
Last Updated November 24, 2011