Office and Addresses

Delta 171 Phone 281.283.3805
email: boetticher@uhcl.edu
Secretary: Ms. Kim Edwards, Delta 161 281.283.3860

Face-to-Face Class Hours

Wednesdays 7:00 - 9:50, Delta 241

Office Hours

Mon. 7 - 8, Tues. 5:30 - 7, Wed. 5:30 - 7, or by appointment. If the suite door is locked, then call my extension (last 4 digits) using the phone in the hallway.

Teaching Assistant

Mr. TBD, email : tbd
Office Hours: TBD

WebCT link

http://courses.cl.uh.edu:8900

Required Textbook

Thomas Connolly & Carolyn Begg, Database Systems, Addison-Wesley, 1999.

Course Description

Design and implementation of database applications, object-oriented design of database systems, relational model, SQL, relational calculus and algebra, normalization theory, database integrity, concurrency control. The traditional undergraduate student load is 5 courses. Be prepared to commit 12 to 15 hours per week to this course!

Course Goals

Upon completion of the course, students are expected to be able to:

• Design and develop small database applications proficiently and understand the fundamental structure of database systems.

Prerequisites

The prerequisite for this course is CSCI 3233 and CSCI 3333 (CSCI 3532 recommended). If you do not meet the prerequisites then you need to drop this course!

Methodology

Web-based material and lecture. All the material for this class is available on the web. The classes will be conducted in lecture format.

Appraisal

Grading Scale

93+ = A; 90 = A-; 87+ = B+; 83+ = B; 80+ = B-; 77+ = C+;
73+ = C; 70 = C-; 67+ = D+; 63+ = D; 60+ = D-; 0+ = F

My motto:

Seek the Truth.

Show altruistic love.

Appreciate beauty.

Schedule

• Aug 22 – Chapters 1 & 2: Introduction to Database Systems, DBMS, Planning, and Modeling (Assign Project 1)
• Aug 29 – Chapter 3: The Relational Concept
• Sep 5 – Chapter 3: Relational Algebra, Relational Calculus
• Sep 12 – Chapters 13.1-13.4,14.1,14.5,14.7: Elementary & Advanced SQL. (Project 1 Due, Assign Project 2)(Project 2 on NT update)
• Sep 19 – Chapters 4 & 5: Relational Modeling – Elementary Design
• Sep 26 – Chapters 5 & 7: Conceptual Design (E-R Modeling)
• Oct 3 – Chapters 7 & 8: Logical Design, Review (Project 2 Due)
• Oct 10 – Midterm: You will be allowed one sheet 8.5 x 11 inches
• Oct 17 – Chapters 9 & Appendix B: Physical Database Design (Assign Project 3)
• *** Last day to drop a class or withdraw for the semester is Oct 24
• Oct 24 – Chapters 6: Normalization
• Oct 31 – Chapter 10, 11, & 12: Database Design Example
• Nov 7 – Chapter 10, 11, & 12: Database Design Example (Project 3 Due, Assign Proj. 4)
• Nov 14 – Chapter 10, 11, & 12: Database Design Example
• Nov 21 – Chapter 16 – 23: Overview of Current Issues & Trends
• Nov 28 – Chapter 24: Future Trends (Project 4 Due)
• Dec 5 – Final Exam: You will be allowed one sheet 8.5 x 11 inches

Other Policies

Homework, Projects, Research Paper

• Homework and projects are due exactly at the prescribed time (usually the beginning of class). As soon as a homework or project is collected, then all others are considered 1 day late (even if it only 3 minutes). In the event you might be running late, you might want to email the assignment. Also, when preparing your assignment, be mindful of possible backlogs at the printer, jammed printer, printer out of toner, etc.

• Late projects are accepted with a penalty of 10% deduction per day after the due date. No late project will be accepted one week after the due date. The last project cannot be late.

• There will be no extra-credit homework or projects in this course.

• All homework and projects must be typed not hand-written.  

• VERY IMPORTANT! In certain classes students are encouraged to work in groups. For this class you are expected to work on all homework and projects individually. Students may not discuss, use, email, show, give, buy, sell, borrow, trade, steal, download from the Internet, etc. in whole or part, any of the homework or projects in any manner not prescribed by the instructor. Handing in an assignment for another student is considered cheating. Penalty for cheating will be extremely severe and may result in an F for this course. This condition applies even after you complete this course! Penalty for cheating will be extremely severe and may result in an F for this course.

• VERY IMPORTANT! Failing to report to the instructor any incident in which a student witnesses an alleged violation of the Academic Honesty Code is considered a violation of the academic honesty code. Please see me to discuss any incidents.

• VERY IMPORTANT! Purchasing, or otherwise acquiring and submitting as one's own work any research paper or any other writing assignment prepared by others constitutes cheating. Penalty for cheating will be extremely severe and may result in an F for this course.

• VERY IMPORTANT! Plagiarism on either an abstract, draft of a paper, or final paper will result in a 0 for all three parts (abstract, draft version, final paper). Please review the following links regarding plagiarism very carefully: http://www.indiana.edu/%7Ewts/wts/plagiarism.html              http://www.hamilton.edu/writing/style/plagiarism/plagiarism.html                 http://ollie.dcccd.edu/library/Module4/M4-VII/plagar.htm                                                 http://www.realisticdiplomas.com/A-Guide-To-Plagiarism.aspx

• Standard academic honesty procedure will be followed. See the following link for additional information: http://b3308-adm.cl.uh.edu/PolicyProcedures/Policy.html

Tests and Quizzes

• There are no make-up tests except in verified medical emergencies and with immediate notification. Rescheduling a final exam in order to catch a plane flight is unacceptable. Make up exams are harder, and different, than original exams.

• There are no make-up quizzes. Allow plenty of additional time in the event that webCT crashes.

• You are responsible for all the readings assigned throughout the semester.

• Students are to work on test and quizzes individually.  Students may not discuss, show, give, sell, borrow, trade, share, etc. their tests or quizzes. Penalty on cheating will be extremely severe. Standard academic honesty procedure will be followed.

• VERY IMPORTANT! Providing answers for any assigned work or examination when not specifically authorized by the instructor to do so. Or, informing any person or persons of the contents of any examination prior to the time the examination is given is considered cheating. Penalty for cheating will be extremely severe and may result in an F for this course.

• VERY IMPORTANT! Failing to report to the instructor any incident in which a student witnesses an alleged violation of the Academic Honesty Code is considered a violation of the academic honesty code. Please see me to discuss any incidents.

Miscellaneous

• Any person with a disability who requires a special accommodation should inform me and contact the Disability services office or call 281 283 2627 as soon as possible.

• Incomplete grades or administrative withdrawals occur only under extremely rare situations.

• The ringing, beeping, buzzing of cell phones, watches, and/or pagers during class time is extremely rude and disruptive to your fellow students and to the class flow. Please turn off all cell phones, watches, and pagers prior to the start of class. 

• As a web-based class, there is no formal attendance policy. However, it is my experience that those students who do attend class on a regular basis do better on tests than those that don't.

• I am willing to provide letters of recommendation/references only if you have attained an 'A' in one of my classes, or two 'A-' in two of my classes. Getting a letter of recommendation/reference does not guarantee that I will hire your for a TA/RA position.

• I highly recommend that you seek out your advisor and complete you Candidate Plan of Study (CPS) as soon as possible. I am normally not available for advising during the summer months.

• Pay very careful attention to your email correspondence. It reflects on your communication skills. Below is a compilation of email errors I have received during the past year.

dear sir.

wen r u gonna grad the homework, bcoz i have a doubt about the third problem

Some student

Common problems:

   *   wen instead of when

   *   bcoz instead of because

   *   r instead of are

   *   u instead of you

   *   lowecase i instead of I

   *   starting a sentence with a lowercase letter

   *   doubt instead of question

• I immediately discard anonymous emails.

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Home • UHCL • SCE

2700 Bay Area Boulevard
Delta Building. Office 164
Houston, Texas 77058
Voice: 281-283-3805
Fax: 281-283-3869
boetticher@uhcl.edu

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