A complete copy of this site can be obtained by downloading and unzipping the following file:

• pongLab.zip

When the pongLab.zip file is unzipped, a directory named pongLab will be created. The contents of the pongLab directory and each of its sub-directories are discussed below.

The pongLab directory contains the following materials:

index.html

The Pong Lab nifty assignments home page.

pong.png

The screen shot of the Pong application that appears on the Pong Lab nifty assignments home page.

faculty

A directory containing all of the files necessary to adapt the Pong Lab for use at other institutions. The contents of the faculty directory are discussed in detail below.

student

A directory containing a copy of the Pong Lab assignment as it was distributed to students at Dickinson College in the Spring 2003 semester. The contents of the student directory are discussed in detail below.

The student directory contains a copy of the Pong Lab assignment exactly as it was distributed to students at Dickinson College in the Spring 2003 semester. This directory includes the web page describing the assignment, the class files for the Pong application and the java documentation for the classes to be implemented by the students. More specifically the student directory contains the following materials:

pongLab.html

The web page describing the Pong Lab as it was assigned at Dickinson College in the Spring 2003 semester. To distribute the Pong Lab the complete student directory was placed on the web server and a link to the pongLab.html file was provided to the students.

pong.png

PongBallClassDiag.png

PongScoreClassDiag.png

PongPaddleClassDiag.png

The screen shot of the Pong application and the class diagrams which appear in the Pong Lab assignment.

PongBall.html

PongScore.html

PongPaddle.html

The Java Documentation pages for each of the classes which the students must implement when completing the Pong Lab. The Pong Lab assignment contains a link to each of these Java Documentation pages.

stylesheet.css

An html style sheet that is necessary for viewing the Java Documentation pages.

Pong.class

Pong$1.class

PongBallTimer.class

PongCanvas.class

The class files which contain the bulk of the code for the Pong Application.

PongBall.class

PongScore.class

PongPaddle.class

Non-functional (stub) versions of the classes that are to be implemented by the students. These stub versions of the classes allow the Pong application to be executed before the students actually complete the lab assignment. As the students complete the lab assignment, they replace each of these stub versions, one by one, with working versions that they have written.

These files should not be edited directly when adapting the Pong Lab for use at other institutions. The preferred process for adapting the Pong Lab is described below.

The faculty directory contains a complete working version of the Pong application, with source code, and a number of additional resources to facilitate the adaptation of the Pong lab for use at other institutions. More specifically, the faculty directory contains the following materials:

faculty.html

This web page.

Pong.java

PongBallTimer.java

PongCanvas.java

These files contain the bulk of the Java source code for the Pong Application. Disclaimer: This source code employs a wide range of poor programming practices that might be used by a time strapped faculty member attempting to create an interesting lab assignment! Fortunately, the structure of this lab assignment ensures that the students will not be exposed to such flagrant disregard for high quality programming practices.

Pong.class

Pong$1.class

PongBallTimer.class

PongCanvas.class

These are the class files which result from compiling the Java source code described above. Executing the Pong class will run a complete working version of the Pong application.

PongBall.java & PongBall.class

PongScore.java & PongBall.class

PongPaddle.java & PongPaddle.class

These files contain source code and compiled Java byte-code for complete working versions of the classes that are to be written by the students.

PongBallTest.java & PongBallTest.class

PongScoreTest.java & PongScoreTest.class

PongPaddleTest.java & PongPaddleTest.class

These files contain source code and compiled Java byte-code for a complete set of test cases for the classes that are to be written by the students. For example, the PongBallTest will create a number of PongBall objects and use them test each of the methods in the PongBall class. These test programs can be used to evaluate the correctness of the student implementations.

The remaining materials in the faculty directory have been included to facilitate the adaptation of the Pong lab for use at other institutions. The typical process for making changes to the Pong Lab is to edit the files contained in the faculty directory or its sub-directories and then execute a script which deletes and recreates the student directory. The new student directory, which incorporates the changes, can then be made available to students. Details on how to adapt the Pong Lab are provided below.

To Change the Pong Lab Assignment Web Page (pongLab.html):

The labFiles sub-directory of the faculty directory contains all of the materials necessary to change the lab assignment web page. The labFiles directory contains a copy of the pongLab.html file. This directory also contains the source files for the class diagrams which appear in the assignment web page. To change the text of the assignment, edit or replace the contents of the pongLab.html file. The class diagrams may be edited using the xfig graphics program. The edited class diagrams should be exported to png format. When all edits have been completed, executing the makeStudent script (see below) will create a new student directory containing the edited assignment.

To Change the Java Documentation:

The Java documentation that the students see is generated from the JavaDoc comments in the PongBall.java, PongScore.java and PongPaddle.java files contained in the faculty directory. To modify the Java documenation seen by the students, edit the JavaDoc comments in these files and follow the directions in the section on distributing your changes to the Pong lab (see below).

To Change the Pong Application:

The majority of the code for the Pong application is contained in the Pong.java, PongCanvas.java and the PongBallTimer.java files in the faculty directory. The behavior of the Pong application can be changed by editing the code contained in these files. To update the application that is distributed to the students, edit these files and follow the directions in the section on distributing your changes to the Pong lab (see below).

To Change the Stub Files:

The non-functional stub files for the PongBall, PongScore and PongPaddle classes are contained in the stubSoln sub-directory of the faculty directory. To change the stub files that are distributed to the students, edit the files in this directory and follow the directions in the section on distributing your changes to the Pong lab (see below).

To Distribute Your Changes to the Pong Lab:

After making any changes to the Pong Lab, as described above, it is necessary to update the student directory to reflect the changes. To update the student execute the makeStudent script contained in the faculty directory. (Note: The makeStudent script is a unix shell script. A windows version is not provided, though creation of one should be a straight forward process.) The execution of this script deletes the existing student directory and creates a new one which reflects any changes that have been made to the materials in the faculty directory. To distribute the Pong Lab to the students, make the new student directory avaialble on-line and provide the students with a link to the pongLab.html file.