Hochiminh University of Technology

Computer Science and Engineering - [CO1011]

Fundamentals of Lecturer: Dustin Nguyen, PhD.

C++ Programming
 Introduction
❖ Audience: students who have no background in computer programming
❖ Aims: provide basic knowledge and skill on programming with two important programming
paradigms: structure programming and object-oriented programming.
❖ Demonstration language: C++
❖ Prerequisite: basic math knowledge
❖ Requirement:
❖ Class attendance
❖ Self-study
❖ Work hard

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 Introduction
❖ What you will get from the course
• Be able to describe the algorithm for your problem
• Understand and be able to use structure programming techniques
• Be able to implement a given algorithm using C++
• Understand basic concepts of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP)
• Improve your coding style
• The process of solving problem

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 Syllabus
❖ Course meeting time:
❖ Lecture: 3 hours/week for 15 weeks
❖ Laboratory: 30 hours
❖ Course mechanics:
❖ Textbook: C++ How to program
❖ Reference book: Fundamentals of C++ Programming – Richard L.Halterman
❖ Lecture notes

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 Syllabus
❖ Assessment
❖ Report on problem sets (collaboration is encouraged but the report must be made
by your own hand)
❖ Final lab exam: 60’
❖ Final exam: 90’
❖ Ratio: lab (20%), assignment (30%), final exam (50%)
❖ Coding environment:
❖ Visual studio (recommended), and other IDEs are welcome.

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 Today’s outline
❖ Hardware vs. Software
❖ Programming language
❖ Problem solving and software development
❖ Algorithm
❖ Discussion

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 Hardware vs. Software
❖ Hardware: input devices, CPU, mainboard, output devices, etc.
❖ Physical components of computer (including peripherals)
❖ Software: Windows, OSX, Linux, drivers, MS Office, Adobe Photoshop, etc.

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 Computer Architecture
❖ von Neumann architecture

[source: Wikipedia]
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 Computer Architecture
❖ von Neumann architecture
❖ Memory unit: holds both data and instructions.
❖ Arithmetic/logic gate unit (ALU): is capable of performing arithmetic and logic
operations on data.
❖ Input unit: moves data from the outside world into the computer.
❖ Output unit: moves results from inside the computer to the outside world.
❖ Control unit: acts as the stage unit to ensure that all the other components act in concert.

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 Software
❖ Definition: A set of machine-readable instructions that directs a computer's processor
to perform specific operations. [Wikipedia]
❖ Software vs. Program
❖ At the lowest level, executable code consists of machine language instructions
specific to an individual processor.
❖ At the high level, programs are built from source code using development tools (also
software)
❖ There are programmers who wrote tools to help other programmers and the other
who used to solve problems.

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 Software
❖ Software: system software and application software
❖ System software: manages a computer system at a more
fundamental level, provides the tools and an
environment in which application software can be
created and run.
❖ OS: manages computer resources, such as memory, and
input/output devices, and provides an interface
through which a human can interact with the computer.
❖ Application software is written to address specific needs
of real-world.

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[source: Wikipedia]
Programming language

[source: lifehacker]
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Programming language

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 Programming language
❖ Which language should you choose?
❖ What is your need? What is your programming style?
❖ Why C/C++?
❖ The language that places a foundation for many others
❖ Gain high-level programming skills
❖ Freedom, flexibility, advanced techniques, …

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 Programming language
❖ The high-level language code is called source code.
❖ The compiled machine language code is called target code.
❖ Compiler translates the source code into target machine language.
❖ Tools for development
❖ Editor: support text editing feature for writing source code
❖ Preprocessor, compiler, linker: tools for translating source code
❖ Debugger: traces program’s execution in order to locate bugs!
❖ Profiler: collects statistics about a program’s execution

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 Programming language
❖ The process of building a computer program

Enhanced
Object code
source code
Executable
Editor Preprocessor Compiler Linker program

Problem solution, Library declaration Libraries

design of program (source code) (object code)

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 Problem solving
❖ Think about how you solved your problems before
❖ Math, Physic, Chemistry, etc.
❖ How did you solved them?
❖ Systematic
❖ Random idea
❖ Memorising solutions
❖ Other approaches

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 Problem solving
strategies
solution
Plan Act method

criteria known apply to

new
situations
Define Gather
Explore Check Generalize
problem information

constraints unknown make

sense
look at the evaluate Disseminate
troubleshooting
problem from brainstorm against
different criteria
viewpoint
18 Don Woods & Philip Wankat
 Problem solving
❖ How will you solve a problem on computer?
❖ Computer deals best with performing easy tasks over and over again.
❖ Principle: break the big problem into smaller pieces
❖ We utilize the computer's ability by implementing repetitive techniques to
incrementally solve our complex problems.
❖ Think about a problem that you can solve using this method.

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 Problem solving
❖ Two basic approaches
❖ Iterative: solve a part of the problem, repeat the process on the remaining
problem until the original problem is solved
❖ Recursive: define how to solve simplest problems. Then we break the
problem into simpler and simpler pieces until they reach the level that
computer know how to solve (by our definition).

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 Software development
❖ The software development process follows the
principles of problem solving.
❖ Various software development models existed
❖ What do you need to develop a software at the
basic level?
❖ Compiler, Debugger, Editor
❖ Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
❖ Visual Studio, Eclipse, Xcode, etc.

[source: Wikipedia]
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 Software development
❖ Address your problem, collect requirements
❖ Analyse feasible approaches, find solution
❖ Design algorithm
❖ Implement: write code
❖ Compile, debug
❖ Evaluate the program
❖ Deploy software

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 Steps in development of algorithm
❖ Problem definition
❖ Development of a model
❖ Specification of Algorithm
❖ Designing an Algorithm
❖ Checking the correctness of Algorithm
❖ Analysis of Algorithm
❖ Implementation of Algorithm
❖ Program testing
❖ Documentation Preparation

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 Algorithm
❖ Algorithm is a self-contained list of operations to be performed.
❖ An algorithm is an effective method that can be expressed within a finite amount
of space and time and in a well-defined formal language for calculating a
function.
❖ Describe algorithm
❖ Text: details of data flow and processing steps
❖ Pseudo code
❖ Flowchart

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 Algorithm
❖ Pseudo code
function randomSound()
❖ Independent from programming language. Loop: from i = 1 to 100
print_number = True
❖ An informal high-level description of the operating principle of If i is even Then
If print_number Then
a computer program or algorithm. Print (i + random())
Else
PlaySound( rand() )
❖ No standard for pseudo code syntax End If
Else
❖ Algorithm is often designed with pseudo code description Print “Odd…”
End If
End (loop)
End (function)

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 Algorithm
❖ Pseudo code - guideline
❖ Mimic good code and natural language

❖ Ignore unnecessary details

❖ Don’t belabour the obvious

❖ Take advantage of programming shorthands

❖ Consider context

❖ Don’t lose sign of the underlying model

❖ Check for balance

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 Algorithm
❖ Pseudo code - example

INPUT A,B
Loop while B > 0
If A > B then
A = A - B
Else
B = B - A
End
End loop
Print A

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 Algorithm
❖ Flow chart
❖ A type of diagram that represents the algorithm (in
our context). The flow chart illustrates a solution
model to a given problem.

❖ A flow chart is constructed from basic shapes that

have specific meanings.

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 Algorithm
❖ Flow chart - Building blocks

Flow line Decision Process

On-page connector Input/Output Preparation

Annotation Predefined process Off-page connector

Terminal [ source: Wikipedia ]

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 Algorithm
❖ Flowchart
❖ Flow line: represents control pass from one symbol to another.

❖ On-page connector: has more than one arrow coming into it but only one going out. It is useful to
represent iterative processes.

❖ Annotation: represents comments or remarks about the flowchart.

❖ Terminal: usually has word/phrase to indicate the start/end of a process.

❖ Decision: where the decision must be made (usually Y/N).

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 Algorithm
❖ Flowchart
❖ Input/Output: involves receiving data and displaying processed data.

❖ Predefined process: represents complex processing steps which maybe detailed in a separate flowchart.

❖ Process: shows that something is performed.

❖ Preparation: prepares a value for a subsequent conditional or decision step (replace decision symbol in
case of conditional loop).

❖ Off-page connector: connect to another page.

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 Algorithm
Start

❖ Flowchart - example
Input A, B

INPUT A,B N
B>0
Loop while B > 0
If A > B then Y
A = A - B Y
Else A>B A=A-B

B = B - A
N
End
End loop B=B-A
Print A

Print A

End
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 Summarise
❖ Understand concepts of Hardware/Software
❖ Understand problem solving process
❖ Definition of algorithm
❖ Role of algorithm in problem solving process
❖ Knowing how to describe an algorithm
❖ Understand concepts of pseudocode and flowchart

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 Homework
❖ Describe two or three problems in practice that should be solved by software.
❖ Analyse your problem following the process in this lecture.
❖ Write pseudocode to represent your algorithm.
❖ Draw flowchart to represent your algorithm.

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