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 CSE 142 Su 02 - Software
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    Programming Labs

All of the software needed for this class is already loaded on the computers in several programming labs on campus. The primary programming lab for this class is the Computing Resource Center in Mary Gates Hall. The software is also loaded on the computers in the Computing Commons in Odegaard Undergraduate Library. The hours of operation for these labs are listed on the web pages of the Student Access and Computing Group.

Software Tools

The download files provided here are only needed if you are doing the course work on a system other than those listed above.

You'll need to install the following software:

  1. The Java SDK from Sun
  2. BlueJ: a Java development environment
  3. Local CSE142/143 libraries

The code you turn in should only rely on the standard Sun Java libraries, and libraries that are distributed by us. Your code should not rely on "wizards", special libraries that might be provided with your environment, or other special libraries from textbooks or the Internet. The programs that you turn in will be compiled and run using the setup described here.

Java SDK

You must first install the Java 2 Standard Edition Software Development Kit (SDK) from Sun Microsystems. Note that you need the development kit (SDK), not the Java Runtime Environment (JRE). You can use J2SE version 1.3.1 or 1.4. Warning: There is a problem with using Java 1.4 and BlueJ 1.2 on a system with a CDRW (CD-Read/Write) drive. BlueJ gets confused about needing a disk in an empty drive, and puts up a dialog from which it is difficult to escape. It appears that this problem does not exist if you use Java 1.3.1.

Download the installer from the Sun web pages (java.sun.com/j2se/). The Java 2 SDK can be installed and run on Windows 95/98/NT/W2000/XP and most Unix variants, including Linux and Sun/Solaris. Java 2 version 1.3 is included with Mac OS X, so you should be able to run the course software on OS X without having to install Java 2 first. Java 2 is not available for the classic Mac OS (OS 9 and earlier).

The distribution is big, roughly 36MB, so if you're connecting by slow modem, allow plenty of time.

To install, double-click on the installer program, and then follow the instructions.

Some notes:
  • Install Java in a directory where the pathname has NO spaces. For example, I install all my application programs in directories called C:\apps\appname. On my home systems, Java 1.3.1 is installed in C:\apps\jdk131. Don't use C:\Program Files\appname. The space in the pathname can cause weird errors that are difficult to track down.
  • It's also worth writing down the name of the directory where you install the JDK when you do it (e.g. C:\apps\jdk131). You may need to enter this when you install BlueJ, below.
  • Be sure you install the Java Development Kit (JDK). There is a smaller package called the Java Runtime Environment (JRE), which is a subset of the JDK that includes files needed to run, but not create, Java programs. The JRE is not adequate for our purposes -- be sure to get the JDK.
  • A large part of the JDK distribution is source code. You don't need to install the source code, although it is sometimes interesting to read to see how the Sun programmers have implemented the libraries that we are using. You don't need the native library header files. You can install the demos if you like. (You'll eventually get the option of what you want to install when you run the installer program that you downloaded from Sun.)
Java SDK documentation

Sun provides excellent documentation for all the class libraries that are part of the Java platform. I strongly recommend that you download and install the documentation. Unfortunately, the download file is also very large (31MB), but it is very useful to have the documentation at your finger tips while you are programming. The documentation is available from the same place you downloaded the JDK ( java.sun.com/j2se/1.3/download.html#docs) or ( java.sun.com/j2se/1.4/download.html#docs), in the form of a large zip file. Download it, and unzip it into the same directory where you installed Java itself. For example, I will unzip the documentation for J2SE 1.4.0 into C:\apps\jdk140. This will give you all the html files that describe the Java libraries. If you add a link in your browser bookmarks, then you can get the documentation for any library method with just a few clicks of the mouse.

UWCSE library
  1. Be sure you have already installed the Sun Java 2 JDK first (see above).
  2. Create a folder for the CSE142 files. In these instructions, we'll assume it's named C:\CSE. You can use any other folder as long as the name of that folder, and any containing folders, do not have spaces (i.e., don't put your files in C:\Program Files, for example).
  3. Open C:\CSE and create two folders inside named tools and lib.
  4. Download the following file and place it in C:\CSE\lib: uwcse.jar
UWCSE library documentation

The UWCSE library documentation is available on-line from the documentation page. As with the JavaAPI documentation, it is a good idea to download the entire documentation package and install it on your own system with a browser link to it. Then you can always get to the documentation with a single mouse click. The documentation is available in uwcse-docs.zip.

BlueJ
  1. Be sure you have installed the Sun SDK first.
  2. BlueJ is available from www.bluej.org. Download the latest BlueJ version (currently 1.2) from their distribution page. The download is around 1MB, so it's reasonable to download even over a modem. The installer file that you download can be placed anywhere.
  3. Double-click the file that you downloaded to install BlueJ. You can install BlueJ anywhere; for the rest of these instructions, we'll assume that you're installing it in C:\CSE\tools\bluej. You may have to say where you installed the Java JDK, e.g., C:\apps\jdk131.
  4. You need to tell BlueJ where it can find the CSE142/143 library file. Open C:\CSE\tools\bluej and click on bluej to start BlueJ.
  5. Choose Tools>preferences and click on the Libraries tab in the dialog box that opens.
  6. Click add and then navigate to and select the file C:\CSE\lib\uwcse.jar. Click open (or double-click on uwcse.jar), then click ok.
  7. Click ok once more and then quit BlueJ. Restart to use the new libraries.
BlueJ documentation

There is a tutorial document available for BlueJ. It can be downloaded from the BlueJ web site or from our class web site: bluej-tutorial.pdf.

You're done!

The course software should be installed at this point. If you'd like, you can create a shortcut to the bluej program file and put it in a more convenient place like the desktop or the QuickLaunch bar. Be sure to create shortcuts; don't move the files themselves. If you move them, things are likely to break.

Textbook Libraries

As you read the textbook, you may come across references to special Java libraries and sample code that the textbook authors have created. You do not need these for CSE142/143. Please do not use them for assignments that you turn in. Of course, you are welcome to study the code samples in the textbook.  As you do, please keep in mind that they may use features or libraries which will not be discussed in our course.

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