Help:COAP-3180/exam

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Introduction

This is a page to help you prepare the COAP-3180 exam, December 2007.

Conceptual exam topics

Web databases, major database types and simple Internet architectures

• Understand the difference between major database types
• HTML Forms, server-side scripts and databases: you should understand roughly how they interact
• The three-tier architecture model (client, webserver+script, database)

Reading:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/webdatabases-intro.pdf

Simple web 2.0 databases

• Understand the potential of tools like Zoho Creator and other virtual office software, e.g. other Zoho applications or Google Apps like Google Docs

Reading:

• O'Reilly Tim (2005), What is Web 2.0, http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html, better take the print version.

Webtops and widgets

• Understand the principle of a web top like Pageflakes
• Understand the principle of web widgets and how to create simple mashups (either in a webtop or on your own HTML page)

Reading:

• Web widget and mashup (chapters 1 and 2)

Relational databases

• Principles of relational databases, i.e. how objects can be represented with tables, and how tables can be linked together with keys

Reading:

• See SQL basics below

The LAMP architecture

• Understand what Apache/MySQL/Php means
• Understand advantages/disadvantages of working with a web hosting service, a local WAMP installation or a WAMP on a memory stick.
• Know about some other alternatives (e.g. ASP/.Net or Java/JSP/J2EE)

Reading:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_hosting_service
• Web application
• Web application framework (additional pointers, optional)

PHP/MySQL and Code generators

• Be able to produce scripting code with a generator
• Understand what the generator does and why generators can be useful
• Have a basic understanding how PHP interacts with MySQL

Reading:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/php-mysql.pdf
• See also the homework 3 page.

Installation and configuration of LAMP-based portalware

• Discuss the design of a CMS, i.e. its purpose, front page design, menu layout, skin and extra tools installed
• Understand different user roles: Administrator, editor, user and guest
• Understand the difference between a front end (user) and a back end (admin).

Reading:

• none required, but you must be able to define objectives and come up with a sketch of desired functionalities.
• Joomla Manual, http://help.joomla.org/images/User_manual/user_manual_v1%200%201_10%2021%2006.pdf (optional)

The W3C XML framework

• Purpose of XML
• Basic technical features of XML:
  • well-formedness,
  • validity, i.e. the Schema concept (DTD, XML Schema, etc.) and its purpose
  • namespaces
• Some understanding of the purpose of important XML applications, e.g. XHTML, XSLT, XPath, SVG.
• Understand the difference between "true XHTML" and XHTML used as "just" HTML

Reading:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/xml-databases.pdf
• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/xml-intro-edit.pdf (not all the technical details, but you should understand for example how various XML applications can combine)
• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/xml-ns.pdf (optional)
• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/xslt-basics.pdf (not all the technical details, but you should understand what a "template" is)
• XML (this wiki, optional) and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XML
• SVG (distributed book chapter)

XML Databases

• Understand the purpose of XML databases
• Advantages and disadvantages compared to other database technologies
• Have a rough understanding on how XPath, XQuery, Xupdate, XQuery Update, XSLT and CSS may work together

Reading:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/xml-databases.pdf
• Ronald Bourret (2005). XML and Databases, http://www.rpbourret.com/xml/XMLAndDatabases.htm (in particular chapters 2, 3, 4 and section 6.3)

Web services

• Have a general understanding of what we mean be "webservice"
• Be able to distinguish between a REST, A XML-RPC and SOAP interface
• Understand the role of XML formats (query languages, web service languages, data formats)

Reading:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/connectivity-web-services.pdf (first few chapters)
• Additional pointers can be found in web service

LDAP databases

Readings:

• LDAP (this wiki)
• Optional: http://www.zytrax.com/books/ldap/ch2/ and http://www.zytrax.com/books/ldap/ch3/

Technical exam topics

You are expected to master technical details (beginner's level) of these topics. Note: Other SQL and XQuery tutorials can be found on the web, e.g. at http://www.w3schools.com/

SQL basics

• Be able to create a simple table with an SQL statement (CREATE)
• Be able to query and update a table (SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE)
• Be able to query 2 tables (SELECT)

Readings:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/mysql-intro.pdf (Note: You can find links to additional SQL tutorials on the course homepage or the SQL and MySQL pages if the slides are not clear enough...

PHP/MySQL basics

• Be able to use the PHPMyAdmin interface (create users and databases; fix permissions, i.e. GRANT user rights for a database)
• Install a portal on a LAMP server

Readings:

• none, but you can consult the Joomla installation manual (http://help.joomla.org/) or read Joomla installation and configuration or look at the homework 2 page ....

XQuery basics

• Be able to write a simple XQuery application (of course, this includes simple XPath expressions)
• Produce both XML and HTML output
• Be able to upload XML data files and *.xq files to an eXist server
• Query and eXist database with simple REST expressions

Readings:

• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/xml-databases.pdf
• http://tecfa.unige.ch/guides/te/files/connectivity-web-services.pdf (last few chapters)