Launch Pad

schemers.org

Our Scheme Platform

We've installed DrScheme on eecg. For a simple command-line interface to it, type drscheme-jr. For a graphical IDE, type drscheme. If you use the IDE, select the "Language" menu and choose the language "Full Scheme".

For those of you new to Scheme, here's a "Hello World!":

  ugsparc26.eecg% drscheme-jr
  DrScheme Jr is loading. Please wait...
  Welcome to DrScheme Jr version 103, Copyright (c) 1995-2000 PLT
  Language: Textual Full Scheme (MzScheme)
  > (display "Hello World!")
  Hello World!> (exit)
  ugsparc26.eecg%

The ecf Linux workstations (p1.ecf -> p77.ecf and p83.ecf -> p118.ecf) have umb-scheme which should also work fine for us.

Part of the Scheme assignment will involve graphics (yeah!), which will require a DrScheme library (but you won't have to understand how to use the IDE).

Newsgroup

comp.lang.scheme

Our Curriculum

This is tentative, but should give you a good idea of what to look at if you're preparing early.

• Concepts
  • procedures as values, higher-order procedures
  • procedures vs. syntactic forms
  • recursion
  • code as data
• We might do
  • macros, specifically define-syntax with syntax-rules
• We will avoid
  • improper lists (dotted pairs)
  • assignment (forms and procedures ending with "!")
  • continuations
• Some language details
  • define
    • (define name value)
    • only at top level
  • local binding
    • syntactic forms: let, let*, letrec, named let
  • sequencing
    • (begin expression*)
  • procedures
    • literals: (lambda formals expression+)
    • procedures
      • procedure?
      • apply, map, for-each
  • numbers
    • literals: e.g. 1, -2.3, 3/4
    • procedures
      • number?
      • =, <, <=, >, >=
      • +, -, *, /, sqrt, sin, cos, tan, exp, log
      • random
  • booleans
    • literals: #f, #t
    • procedures: boolean?, not
    • syntactic forms: and, or, if, cond
  • symbols
    • literals: 'symbol
    • procedures: symbol?, eq?, equal?
  • strings
    • literals: "..."
    • procedure: equal?
  • lists (and S-expressions)
    • literals: '(...)
    • procedures
      • list?, null?
      • list, (cons value list)
      • car, cdr, caar (etc.), length
  • output
    • display, newline

Texts

The following two texts are the most appropriate library books for our course. They are being put on short term loan.

• Programming and Meta-Programming in Scheme, by Pearce.
  Especially chapters 1 to 6 and sections 8.2 to 8.3.

• Scheme and the Art of Programming, by Springer and Friedman.
  Especially chapters 1 to 8.

The following are two fun little texts. They aren't comprehensive, but might be just what you're looking for to get over certain difficulties. They too are being put on short term loan.

• The Little Schemer, by Friedman and Felleisen.
  The second half of chapter 9 is a little too wild for us.

• The Seasoned Schemer, also by Friedman and Felleisen.
  Especially chapters 11, 12, 13 to page 40, and chapter 14 to page 76.

More of a reference is the text by Dybvig, and the ultimate reference is the official standard. Both are available online, and Dybvig is also available in the library.

• The Scheme Programming Language 2nd Ed, by Dybvig
  Especially sections 1.1 to 1.3, 2.1 to 2.8, 3.2, 4.1 to 4.4, 5.1 to 5.5, 6.1 to 6.3, 6.5, 6.7 and 7.2 to 7.3. You can also look at chapter 9, though some examples use things we don't cover.

• Revised(5) Report on the Algorithmic Language Scheme, edited by Richard Kelsey, William Clinger and Jonathan Rees.

Here are four more online texts that look like they might be appropriate for our course. SICP (considered a classic) is also available in the library.

• Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs (SICP), by Harold Abelson and Gerald Jay Sussman with Julie Sussman
  Especially chapters 1 and 2, and some of section 4.1.

• Teach Yourself Scheme in Fixnum Days, by Dorai Sitara.
  Especially chapters 1 to 6.

• How to Design Programs: An Introduction to Programming and Computing, by Matthias Felleisen, Robert Bruce Findler, Matthew Flatt and Shriram Krishnamurthi
  Especially the chapters up to and including "Accumulating Knowledge".

• An Introduction to Scheme and its Implementation, by Wilson
  It mixes a lot together, so it's hard to specify chapters.

Here are two more texts available in the library.

• Programming in Scheme, by Eisenberg.
  Especially chapters 1 to 12.

• Simply Scheme: Introducing Computer Science, by Wright.
  Doesn't really fit our course.