submitting the assignment

[Dan Murphy]

Hi,

I'm a bit unsure about the instructions for submitting the assignment. The instructions say:

[I]
All elements of your submission must be packaged in a single JAR file. The JAR file must have the following layout and contents in its root:
 
    * The executable JAR containing the programs. This must be called runme.jar.
    * The original, unchanged database file that was supplied to you. 
    * ....
[/I]

Does this mean that the entire submission should be packaged as a jar, which contains the executable runme.jar, the database file, etc.

If so, what should the "outer" jar be named, or can I give it a name of my choosing?

The instructions also say the version of the JDK on which the solution was developed:

"must not have been superseded by a new production version for more than 18 months by the time you make your submission."

I developed my solution on JDK 1.4, or to be more precise, here is the output of "java -version":


java version "1.5.0_05"
Java(TM) 2 Runtime Environment, Standard Edition (build 1.5.0_05-b05)
Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM (build 1.5.0_05-b05, mixed mode, sharing)


Can someone tell me whether it is OK to submit this, or if the JDK is too old?

Many Thanks in Advance,
Dan

[Eric Ellis]

I haven't submitted mine yet but I have written my deployment scripts. I think they want you to put runme.jar in a .jar which has the same name as the .jar file they gave you. I'm going to write Sun a letter asking this question and about where to post when I'm finished.

My JAR looks something like:

- runme.jar
- db-1x3.db
- README
- versions.txt
- <code>
- <docs>

That's off the top of my head. I'm in my Windows boot right now.

[Muthaiah Ramanathan]

The outer jar should be like scjda-XXXXXXXXX.jar, where XXXXXXXXX will be your testing id. Anyhow, before you upload the assignment at the assignment watcher, it will instruct you to have the outer jar named as specified above.

Usually, you may not have the upload permission and therefore you got to email them for permission.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Muthaiah.

[Dan Murphy]

Hi,

Thanks for your replies. If anyone could advise whether it is still permitted to submit solutions developed in JDK 1.4, I'd be very grateful.

Cheers,
Dan

[Andrew Monkhouse]

Hi Dan,

Yes, you can still use JDK 1.4 until March 29 2006. However from your output above it looks like you are using JDK 5 anyway.

Regards, Andrew

[Dan Murphy]

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for your response. You're right....when I typed "java -version", the JDK that was responding was 1.5, though I did actually develop it on JDK 1.4. I e-mailed Sun and they confirmed what you said, JDK 1.4 is fine.

Cheers,
Dan

[lydie prevost]

I don't see them mentionning a README file in my assignment ...
I saw that some body failed because he didn't gave aREADME file.
What are you supposed to write in the README file?
Thank you
- Lydie

[Andrew Monkhouse]

Hi Lydie,

Originally posted by lydie prevost:
I don't see them mentionning a README file in my assignment ...
I saw that some body failed because he didn't gave aREADME file.
What are you supposed to write in the README file?
Thank you
- Lydie

Since you don't have it in mentioned in your assignment, you do not have to create it. You must follow your instructions, not anyone elses.

The README.txt file was specified in the 'Fly By Night Services' assignment as:

A README.txt file. You must create a single text file (plain ASCII format; word processor formats are unacceptable) called README.txt that describes to the examiner the following information in exactly the order listed:

The exact version of JDK you used, including the platform you worked on.

How to execute the programs. You must provide exact command-line instructions. If any environmental setup is required, do not just say what needs to be done; provide instructions on how to perform the setup. For example, do not say something like "add server.jar to your classpath". You should document exactly how to add the jar file to the classpath. Note: your program must run correctly no matter what directory it is installed in.

The location of your db.db file.

The location of your Design Choices document.

The names of the files you have submitted, with a note of their location in the directory structure, and a high level description of the purpose of each.

As you can see, the first item (the JDK version) is included in a different document in later assignments, and most of the other information the README.txt file contained is now specified by Sun (why tell the assessor how to start the program when Sun have specified that it must be started with "java -jar runme.jar"?) And that last requirement is 90% covered by Javadoc.

Regards, Andrew