All Class announcements will be made on Learn.
SE2: Software Design and Architecture is the second course of the three software engineering capstone project courses, offered jointly by the David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Waterloo.
Class will be in-person at MC 2038 10:00-11:20MW or 11:30-12:50MW unless the university decides to move to virtual. If we go virtual, at the same times we will meet in a zoom room whose link I will email all of you.
This will be a flipped classroom. I will post slides with scripts and the corresponding video recordings on Learn at least one day before class. I will strive to get them on earlier.
In class we will do exercises and group discussions. Note that these are not evaluated. You are welcome and encouraged to attend as they will certainly make the material covered in the slides and recordings more concrete and meaningful. But you are not required to.
Important dates and information will be posted here on this website. The official syllabus is also the contents on this website.
While the course does not have a required textbook, the following are good readings on this subject.
This term we will be using Piazza for class discussion. Rather than emailing questions to the teaching staff, I encourage you to post your questions on Piazza.
If you need to ask a question regarding the grades or something personal then please email the instructor. Prefix the subject line with CS446/ECE452/CS646 for a prompt reply.
All TAs will be answering questions mostly only on Piazza. If there is a specific need to actually talk to a TA, please email them to get a virtual meeting link that can be used.
The class will use the Learn system for all submissions and grades. Once you are registered, you will be able to access learn and check the dropboxes for submissions and view your grades.
| Date | Topics | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 09 | Introduction to the Class, Expectations, Admin | |
| Jan 11 | Introduction to Software Architecture | |
| Jan 16 | Non-Functional Properties | |
| Jan 18 | Human Values in Software Engineering | |
| Jan 23 | UML Intro | |
| Jan 25 | Architectural views & decomposition | |
| Jan 30 | Intro to building Android apps - Part 1 | |
| Feb 01 | Intro to building Android apps - Part 2 | |
| Feb 06 | Project Proposal |
|
| Feb 08 | Arch Styles Intro | |
| Feb 13 | Arch Styles - Part 1 | |
| Feb 15 | Arch Styles - Part 2 | |
| Feb 20 | Reading Week - No Class | |
| Feb 22 | Reading Week - No Class | |
| Feb 27 | Arch Styles - Part 3 | |
| Mar 01 | Design Patterns Introduction | |
| Mar 06 | Design Patterns - Part 1 | |
| Mar 08 | Design Patterns - Part 2 | |
| Mar 13 | Project Prototype Demo | |
| Mar 15 | Project Prototype Demo | |
| Mar 20 | Design Patterns - Part 3 | |
| Mar 22 | Code Smells and Refactoring - Part 1 | |
| Mar 27 | Code Smells and Refactoring - Part 2 | |
| Mar 29 | Final Project Presentation (Preperation) - No Class | |
| Apr. 03 | Final Project Presentation | |
| Apr. 05 | Final Project Presentation |
The project forms an integral part of this course. Here are some of the hard requirements:
The three goals of the project is to
When coming up with your own app there are only three soft restrictions on the app idea itself: no database management apps will be accepted (e.g., simple CRUD apps that do not make sense in a mobile context); apps that require crowd buy-in are not acceptable (e.g., apps that would require large numbers of people to contribute content to be viably useful); apps that require a complex server infrastructure are also not acceptable. If your app has any of these components, then you are responsible to have the DB or server infrastructure or crowd set up so that you can demo the app and we can test it too.
If you are unable to come up with an idea, don't worry. We are working with an open source product team to set up an idea for you. This is an app that has social good built into it. This will be the default app that several teams can build at the same time in parallel.
If after the proposal, we feel that the app idea is too simple or too easy, then you will need to change to our default app idea above. The teams will then have to implement our suggested idea. See below for some great ideas from the past.
Human values: In the proposal, you will detail the functional requirements, non-functional properties, and human values that your app addresses. You will also state who some of your stakeholders are and which population of users that your app is useful for.
Buddy team evaluation: You will receive the proposal of another team. Your goal is to look at the proposal and find out which populations could be harmed and what harm could be created by the features of the app. You are expected to think critically and come up with an exhaustive list. The instructor and TAs will also come up with a list. You are evaluated on how similar you are to our list.
Pivot: The lists of harm that exist in the app created by the instructor team and the buddy team will be shared with the team that proposed the project by the prototype demo stage. When you receive your list, you are expected to make changes in the project so that the harm is mitigated. This change has to be documented by the final demo and written deliverable.
The projects will be completed in teams of six. If it has less than six or more than six, you will need to explicitly get permission from the instructor. You should select your own team; if you do not have a team or your team has less than six members, please post on Piazza.
All project grades taken together (D1, D2, D3, D6, D7) need not be the same for all team members. Each team member will get a score based on effort. Please only commit your personal contribution to the repository. Do not commit for another team member. Commits to the repo are an important signal to us. Additionally, projects will have a difficulty scale applied to them by the instructor and TAs. The scale formula will be:
(total score for the team member across all project deliverables D1, D2, D3, D6, D7 + bonus) * (scale/100) = final project gradeScale will range between 0 and 100. The components of the scaling mark will be determined by:
https://developer.android.com/studio/install
Use the above link to start installing Android Studio in Linux/Win/Mac Machines beforehand. The download size may vary based on the operating system/region and locale ( 800 MB ) for Android Studio alone. Always choose the latest version of Android Studio and corresponding Gradle plugin to build APK files, which helps in reviewing code and evaluation.
SDK Installation: Use the latest Stable Android Version for SDK Compilation rather than the beta version. The preferable version can be from Android M ( API 23 ) to Android R ( API 30 ). As soon as you install the Android Studio, start selecting the preferred android version ( at least 1 ) and download the corresponding emulator, SDK Library, SDK Build Tools, and other utilities. Kindly allocate around 20 GB physical space for Android Studio and SDK Installation and a stable internet connection to complete all the installation setup in advance.
Emulator vs. Android Phone: Kindly use Android Mobile phone for testing by connecting it via USB for debugging, which will have a low impact on system resources while building Android apps. Otherwise, kindly install x86 Google Play/Google API Supported Android emulator for instant access and testing. Do not install ARM or other arch types that are not optimized for cold startup/booting.
Reliable Network Connection: Kindly ensure about reliable network connection for downloading Android Studio and SDK Libraries. Additional data will be required while using third party libraries to build an application or while syncing via Gradle.
A selection of project videos from 2017 are included in this playlist to help you get an idea of the scope of projects suitable for the course.
| Deliverable | Date | Format | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Project Team Selection | Jan 20 | On Learn | No Grade |
| D1: Proposal Document | Feb 10 | Upload to Learn | 5% |
| D2: Buddy team's evaluation | Feb 17 | Upload to Learn | 5% |
| D3: Prototype Demo | Mar 13/15 | Present in Class/Upload to Learn | 5% |
| D3: Prototype Document | Mar 17 | Upload to Learn | 10% |
| D4: Architecture Style Examples | Mar 24 | Upload to Learn | 10% |
| D5: Design Pattern Examples | Mar 31 | Upload to Learn | 10% |
| D6: Final Presentation | Apr 03/05 | Present in Class/Upload to Learn | 5% |
| D6: Arch + Design Document | Apr 03 | Upload to Learn | 10% |
| D7: Final Status Report | Apr 05 (Last Day, Wednesday) | Upload to Learn | 5% |
| Final Exam | TBD | 35% |
The Faculty of Math encourages students to seek out mental health support if needed. On-campus Resources: