Path: news.daimi.aau.dk!news.uni-c.dk!sunic!uunet!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!Germany.EU.net!Informatik.Uni-Dortmund.DE!polly!wr From: wr@polly.informatik.uni-dortmund.de (Wilfried Rupflin) Newsgroups: comp.lang.beta Subject: Re: Teaching BETA Date: 5 Jan 1995 16:00:31 GMT Organization: CS Department, Dortmund University, Germany Lines: 92 Sender: wr@polly (Wilfried Rupflin) Distribution: world Message-ID: <3eh52v$li8@fbi-news.informatik.uni-dortmund.de> References: <3ecb84$l4g@harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au> <3eghuh$cd1@fbi-news.informatik.uni-dortmund.de> <3egua3$8u0@clarknet.clark.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: polly.informatik.uni-dortmund.de >Wilfried Rupflin (wr@polly.informatik.uni-dortmund.de) wrote: >[ some deleted throughout ] >: At University Dortmund, CS dept., it was decided to introduce BETA >: as the main language for teaching starting with this winter term. >: Currently the beginner's introductory lecture (called Programming I) >: is run with BETA. Surprisingly we had neither didactical nor technical >: problems so far (with over 300 students!). > >Can you provide some particulars about this course, such as what compiler, >platform and text you are using? In the latter case, is there an english >translation? I agree with you and previous posters that C++ is a >bit complex for beginners trying to grasp the fundamentals of the OO >approach. >Dick S. > >@-------------------------------------------------------------) > | seabrook@clark.net _ Anne Arundel Community College | > | (410)541-2424 <>:-) Computer Science | >@-------------------------------------------------------------) For practical exercises we are using about 100 SUN workstations (for about 300 students). Being extremely conservative we didn't want to change the compiler version a few weeks before the beginning of the term so still the Mjolner BETA system rel. 2.5 is employed for this course. Like in Aarhus our students got the Linux version for their home machines. (About 2/3rd made use of this offer until now.) The lecturer, E.-E. Doberkat, prepares his own text (in German, of course). In addition, the BETA book Ole Lehrmann Madsen, Birger Mo/ller-Pedersen, Kresten Nygaard: Object-Oriented Programming in the BETA programming Language, Addison-Wesley, 1993, ISBN 0-201-62430-3 was recommended. I enclose Doberkat's reply to Erik Ernst which he sent as mail only. This will give you some more information. But please feel free to ask for more details, Wilfried Rupflin ------- Forwarded Message From: EE Doberkat Date: Thu, 5 Jan 95 15:15:05 +0100 To: eernst@tatra.daimi.aau.dk Subject: BETA as a first language Cc: doberkat@ls10.informatik.uni-dortmund.de, wr@polly.informatik.uni-dortmund.de Dear Mr. Ernst, Wilfried Rupflin did forward your question regarding BETA as a first language to me. Well, I am the first victim, since I am teaching the course (and will teach it the next time, too), after having convinced the Dept. to adopt BETA in the long range as the first language. Judging things after two thirds of the course is over, it was a good decision: the students did not have noticeable difficulties with the syntax, and even the business with virtuals went rather smoothly. The students complained only about the fact that no introductory book on BETA is available [the Madsen et al. book is certainly no book for beginners, but being the only book available, I recommended it], but we will change that. I will, however, not teach parallel programming with BETA, and I will not introduce the fragment system [which is in my opinion a cruelty to the community]. Another point is that I will not introduce any of the Mjolner tools, since I am not convinced that they can withstand the curiosity of freshmen in terms of stability. Considered as a whole, I can and do recommend BETA as a language for beginners. Sincerely, E.-E. Doberkat - -- - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prof. Dr. Ernst-Erich Doberkat Chair for Software Technology Tel. ++49-231-755.2780/.2781 University of Dortmund Fax ++49-231-755.2061 D-44221 Dortmund doberkat@ls10.informatik.uni-dortmund.de ------- End of Forwarded Message