Download

Download The Computer Science Lab CD

The entire 3 language curriculum is offered as a free .ISO file download from this hyperlink:

An .ISO image is a single file that holds the complete contents for a CD-ROM. I would recommend that you burn this .ISO image onto an actual CD-ROM disc and then perform the installation by allowing the CD-ROM to "auto-run". Auto-run just means that the SETUP.EXE file found in the root of the CD-ROM is initiated automatically when you insert the CD-ROM disc into the CD-ROM player.

Windows XP and newer versions of Windows know how to burn discs from .ISO file images. Alternatively you can employ commercial programs such as Nero and Roxio.

After you have installed the contents of the CD-ROM, you will find new entries on your Windows Start menu. To begin your adventure with this curriculum, simply start the desired program and then request the on-line Help. You do this by selecting Help/Help from the main menu bar. You will observe a new Help window which you can leave open while you work with the program. These Help pages are your textbook. They will teach you everything you need to know. The Help pages are numbered so you can keep track of your place and each page ends with a hyperlink that takes you to the next page.

The Computer Science Lab computer programming curriculum consists of 3 courses: a programmable RPN calculator, an 8051 microprocessor that we program using assembly language, and the high-level C++ language. These 3 sections are integrated and graduated, meaning that you should study them in this order because the concepts build on their predecessors and each subject is only explained one time, in whatever course it is first introduced. I have carefully prepared the content and the example programs to introduce the subject matter in a logical progression so don't screw it up by hopping all over the place.

If you have had some prior exposure to computer programming then you will no doubt be able to rapidly move through certain sections of the curriculum. However it is still important that you don't just skip over any sections because you can't know in advance where I will be introducing topics that are new to you.

All three sections of the curriculum provide you with a completely general "integrated development environment" (IDE) which you can use to write original programs of your own design. But that is for later. To get started you will want to stick with the numerous, fully-explained example programs that I have provided. The on-line Help documentation will tell you the appropriate time to investigate each of these example programs.

If you have questions, perhaps they are answered in my FAQ:

Frequently Asked Questions

Otherwise, you can e-mail questions to:

Thank you.