CSC 533: Organization of Programming Languages
Spring 2008

Class Presentation


In the last week of the semester, you will be expected to present a 20-30 minute lecture on a scripting programming language. Working in a team of two or three people, you will research a particular language and present an overview to the class. Language options include Python, Ruby, ECMAScipt, perl, and php. Your team must have your language choice approved by the instructor before proceeding.

The format of the presentations is up to you, although the following content should be included: an overview and history of the language, its design goals, language features (including binding choices, memory management, and support for abstraction), sample code, and real-world applications. The presentation will be graded both on content and the quality of the presentation. You should utilize some form of presentation software (e.g., PowerPoint) so that your presentation can be made available for all students in the class to review. There are three intermediate checkpoints in order to provide constructive feedback in the development process:

week of 2/25 (worth 10 pts)
At this point, you should have researched the language and obtained hands-on experience developing code in that language. You will meet with the instructor and give an informal overview of the language, commenting on issues that will eventually go into the presentation.

week of 3/31 (worth 20 pts)
At this point, you must have the content of your presentation completed (e.g., your PowerPoint slides). You will hand in a copy of your presentation and meet with the instructor to discuss it. The instructor may make suggestions as to changes or additions in the content of the presentation.

week of 4/14 (worth 20 pts)
At this point, you must give a practice presentation for the instructor. The instructor may make suggestions for improving the delivery of the presentation.

week of 4/21 (worth 50 pts)
In this final week of the semester, you will be expected to present your language to the class.