Beginning Spring term, Computer Science 5, 14 and Engineering Sciences 20 will be taught in the Java programming language rather than in C++, which has been used since 1994.
The switch will also allow coursework to be done on PCs -- something not previously allowed -- as well as Macintosh computers.
The change is "significant and impacts a large number of students," associate professor of computer science Tom Cormen said.
These courses, which are required for all engineering majors and computer science majors and minors, are taken by about 280 students every year.
Asserting that Java is portable from platform to platform and will allow programmers to use PCs as easily as Macs, Cormen said this change will make the course more accessible for the increasing number of PC users on the campus. This number of Windows users is expected to rise in coming years, he added.
According to Cormen, the change comes because Java is easier to learn and is quickly "becoming the programming language of the Internet." The language will be helpful to students as the Internet becomes more prominent and important to computer users, Cormen said.
However, computer science majors will still have to learn C++, which is used in most upper-level courses like computer science 23. C++ is still more efficient and the standard in the programming industry, Cormen said.
The language change reflects a recent trend at other colleges reflecting an improvement in programming software and textbooks.
However, the change possess a slight problem for the section leaders and teaching assistants, who may have to learn the Java language concurrently with the students for a while, Cormen said.
The Java language was developed by Sun Microsystems and is designed to allow different computers and devices to communicate more efficiently. All major web browsers already support the Java language.
Java has an easier to learn memory management system and does not require pointers, Cormen said. Students, however, will learn to use objects, a subject that was delayed in C++ but required in Java right away, Cormen said.
This is the third time the course, which had previously used Pascal and BASIC, has switched languages.
Beginning next fall Computer Science 15 will also switch to Java as well.
