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Monash University

FIT5183 Programming for distributed, parallel and mobile systems - Semester 1, 2015

This unit focuses on the design and programming techniques essential for developing distributed software systems and applications - with Java as the teaching language. The unit presents concurrent programming primitives and concepts for distributed systems. The unit also focuses on application of concurrent techniques in distributed system designs. Programming and implementation issues and techniques of distributed applications are studied. Enabling techniques for building distributed systems are analysed and evaluated. Distributed Software Patterns are presented. The unit also includes case studies of distributed programming paradigms and their applications.

Mode of Delivery

Suzhou (Day)

Workload Requirements

Minimum total expected workload equals 12 hours per week comprising:

(a.) Contact hours for on-campus students:

  • Two hours of lectures
  • One 2-hour laboratory

(b.) Additional requirements (all students):

  • A minimum of 8 hours independent study per week for completing lab and project work, private study and revision.

See also Unit timetable information

Unit Relationships

Prerequisites

Some exposure to multithreading. Knowledge of all Java language constructs such as loops, conditionals, methods, classes, inheritance and core Java packages. Use of O/O models such as UML diagrams.

Chief Examiner

Campus Lecturer

Suzhou

Jue Xie

Your feedback to Us

Monash is committed to excellence in education and regularly seeks feedback from students, employers and staff. One of the key formal ways students have to provide feedback is through the Student Evaluation of Teaching and Units (SETU) survey. The University’s student evaluation policy requires that every unit is evaluated each year. Students are strongly encouraged to complete the surveys. The feedback is anonymous and provides the Faculty with evidence of aspects that students are satisfied and areas for improvement.

For more information on Monash’s educational strategy, see:

www.monash.edu.au/about/monash-directions/ and on student evaluations, see: www.policy.monash.edu/policy-bank/academic/education/quality/student-evaluation-policy.html

Previous Student Evaluations of this Unit

Based on previous student feedback this unit is well structured and no major changes have been made for this semester.

If you wish to view how previous students rated this unit, please go to
https://emuapps.monash.edu.au/unitevaluations/index.jsp

Academic Overview

Learning Outcomes

At the completion of this unit students will:
  • understand the concepts and characteristics of distributed and concurrent software;
  • identify and evaluate common distributed and concurrent software designs;
  • design distributed software applications using typical distributed software architectures;
  • write distributed and concurrent software programs.

Unit Schedule

Week Activities Assessment
0 Unit Introduction on Web (No Lecture) No formal assessment or activities are undertaken in week 0
1 Introduction, Concurrency and Threads NOTE: Tutorial labs commence in Week 1
2 Architectural Models, Paradigms, TCP/IP and Sockets  
3 Protocol Design  
4 State Transactions, Half-Object Plus Protocol, Structured Data Formats  
5 General Security, Java Security Assignment 1 due @11:55PM, Friday 3 April 2015
6 HTTP, Java Servlets and JSPs Assignment 1 Demos and Interviews - Group one
7 RPC and RMI Assignment 1 Demos and Interviews - Group two
8 CORBA, Introduction to EJBs  
9 Web Services and Services Oriented Architecture  
10 Java Message Service, Multiple Middleware and Google Case Study Assignment 2 due @11:55PM, Friday 15 May 2015
11 Distributed Mobile Computing Systems, Mobile Development Platforms, Java for Android Development Assignment 2 Demos and Interviews - Group one
12 New trend in Mobile Programming, Lecture Revision and Exam Discussion Assignment 2 Demos and Interviews - Group two
  SWOT VAC No formal assessment is undertaken in SWOT VAC
  Examination period LINK to Assessment Policy: http://policy.monash.edu.au/policy-bank/
academic/education/assessment/
assessment-in-coursework-policy.html

*Unit Schedule details will be maintained and communicated to you via your learning system.

Teaching Approach

Lecture and tutorials or problem classes
This teaching and learning approach helps students to initially encounter information at lectures, discuss and explore the information during tutorials, and practice in a hands-on lab environment.

Assessment Summary

Examination (3 hours): 50%, In-semester assessment: 50%

Assessment Task Value Due Date
Assignment 1 25% Week 5, Friday 3 April 2015, 11:55PM. Demos and Interviews Weeks 6 and 7
Assignment 2 25% Week 10, Friday 15 May 2015, 11:55PM. Demos and Interviews Weeks 11 and 12
Examination 1 50% To be advised

Assessment Requirements

Assessment Policy

Assessment Tasks

Participation

  • Assessment task 1
    Title:
    Assignment 1
    Description:
    Practical Assignment. This assignment requires the design and implementation of a distributed system employing the principles and technologies introduced in the early to mid part of the semester.
    Weighting:
    25%
    Criteria for assessment:

    This is an individual assignment and is to be entirely your own work.

    Assessment for this assignment is by interview. You will be asked to demonstrate your system at an interview in the weeks following the submission date. At the interview you can also expect to be asked to explain your system, your code, your design, discuss design decisions and alternatives and modify your code/system as required. Marks will not be awarded for any section of code or functionality that a student cannot explain satisfactorily. (The marker may delete excessive comments in code before a student is asked to explain that code).

    Interview times will be arranged in the tutorial labs immediately preceding the submission deadline. It is your responsibility to attend the lab and obtain an interview time.

    Students who do not attend an interview will receive 0 marks for the assignment.

    Further detailed assessment criteria will be available with the assignment specification.

    Due date:
    Week 5, Friday 3 April 2015, 11:55PM. Demos and Interviews Weeks 6 and 7
    Remarks:
    The details of the task and other requirements will be outlined in the assignment specification.
  • Assessment task 2
    Title:
    Assignment 2
    Description:
    Practical Assignment. This assignment requires the design and implementation of a distributed system employing the principles and technologies introduced in the mid to later part of the semester.
    Weighting:
    25%
    Criteria for assessment:

    This is an individual assignment and is to be entirely your own work.

    Assessment for this assignment is by interview. You will be asked to demonstrate your system at an interview in the weeks following the submission date. At the interview you can also expect to be asked to explain your system, your code, your design, discuss design decisions and alternatives and modify your code/system as required. Marks will not be awarded for any section of code or functionality that a student cannot explain satisfactorily. (The marker may delete excessive comments in code before a student is asked to explain that code).

    Interview times will be arranged in the tutorial labs immediately preceding the submission deadline. It is your responsibility to attend the lab and obtain an interview time.

    Students who do not attend an interview will receive 0 marks for the assignment. Further detailed assessment criteria will be available with the assignment specification.

    Due date:
    Week 10, Friday 15 May 2015, 11:55PM. Demos and Interviews Weeks 11 and 12
    Remarks:
    The details of the task and other requirements will be outlined in the assignment specification.

Examinations

  • Examination 1
    Weighting:
    50%
    Length:
    3 hours
    Type (open/closed book):
    Closed book
    Electronic devices allowed in the exam:
    None

Learning resources

Reading list

  • Coulouris G., Dollimore J., Kindberg T., Blair G. (2012). Distributed Systems, Concepts and Design, 5th Edition, Addison-Wesley.
  • Tanenbaum A. S. & Steen M. V. (2007) Distributed Systems: Principles and Paradigms, 2nd Edition, Pearson Prentice Hall.
  • Graba J. (2013) An Introduction to Network Programming with Java: Java 7 Compatible, 3rd Edition, Springer London. [Electronic resource, online access to full text]
  • Elliotte Rusty Harold (2008) Java Network Programming, 3rd Edition,O'Reilly Media, Inc. [Electronic resource, online access to full text]
  • Horstmann C.S., Cornell G. (2005) Core Java™ 2 Volume II - Advanced Features, 7th Edition, Sun Microsystems Press. [Electronic resource, online access to full text]

Monash Library Unit Reading List (if applicable to the unit)
http://readinglists.lib.monash.edu/index.html

Feedback to you

Types of feedback you can expect to receive in this unit are:

  • Informal feedback on progress in labs/tutes
  • Graded assignments with comments
  • Interviews

Extensions and penalties

Returning assignments

Assignment submission

It is a University requirement (http://www.policy.monash.edu/policy-bank/academic/education/conduct/student-academic-integrity-managing-plagiarism-collusion-procedures.html) for students to submit an assignment coversheet for each assessment item. Faculty Assignment coversheets can be found at http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/resources/student/forms/. Please check with your Lecturer on the submission method for your assignment coversheet (e.g. attach a file to the online assignment submission, hand-in a hard copy, or use an electronic submission). Please note that it is your responsibility to retain copies of your assessments.

Online submission

If Electronic Submission has been approved for your unit, please submit your work via the learning system for this unit, which you can access via links in the my.monash portal.

Required Resources

Please check with your lecturer before purchasing any Required Resources. Limited copies of prescribed texts are available for you to borrow in the library, and prescribed software is available in student labs.

  • Java EE 7 SDK with JDK 7 or above (downloadable from www.oracle.com)
  • Eclipse IDE for Java EE Developers with Android SDK (downloadable from www.eclipse.org)
  • Apache Tomcat (downloadable from tomcat.apache.org)
  • MySQL Community Server and Workbench (downloadable from www.mysql.com)

Recommended Resources

  • The Java Tutorials Online, accessible via http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/
  • The Java EE 7 Tutorial, accessible via http://docs.oracle.com/javaee/7/tutorial/doc/home.htm

Other Information

Policies

Monash has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and to provide advice on how they might uphold them. You can find Monash’s Education Policies at: www.policy.monash.edu.au/policy-bank/academic/education/index.html

Faculty resources and policies

Important student resources including Faculty policies are located at http://intranet.monash.edu.au/infotech/resources/students/

Graduate Attributes Policy

Student Charter

Student services

Monash University Library

Disability Liaison Unit

Students who have a disability or medical condition are welcome to contact the Disability Liaison Unit to discuss academic support services. Disability Liaison Officers (DLOs) visit all Victorian campuses on a regular basis.

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