Posted on April 15th, 2012

151 - Introduction to Cobol Programming

History

COBOL (Common Business Oriented Language) was one of the earliest high-level programming languages. It was developed in 1959 by a group of computer professionals called the Conference on Data Systems Languages (CODASYL). Since 1959 it has undergone several modifications and improvements. In an attempt to overcome the problem of incompatibility between different versions of COBOL, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) developed a standard form of the language in 1968. This version was known as American National Standard (ANS) COBOL. In 1974, ANSI published a revised version of (ANS) COBOL, containing a number of features that were not in the 1968 version. In 1985, ANSI published still another revised version that had new features not in the 1974 standard. The language continues to evolve today. Object-oriented COBOL is a subset of COBOL 97, which is the fourth edition in the continuing evolution of ANSI/ISO standard COBOL. COBOL 97 includes conventional improvements as well as object-oriented features. Like the C++ programming language, object-oriented COBOL compilers are available even as the language moves toward standardization.

Areas of Application

COBOL is ideally suited for the solution of business problems. For example, if a company wanted to keep track of its employees’ annual wages, COBOL would be ideal language for implementation. It is interesting to note that COBOL was the first programming language whose use was mandated by the Department of Defense (DoD)

Course Syllabus for Cobol 1 Class

Text Book	COBOL For The 21st Century By Stern & Stern ( Latest Edition )
Grading Policy	2 Midterm Exam 30% Lab Exam 10 % Programming Assignments 10 % Final Exam 50 %
Grading Scale	95 - 100 A , 90 - 94.9 A - 86 - 89.9 B + , 83 - 85.9 B , 80 - 82.9 B - 75 - 79.5 C + , 70 - 74.9 C , 66 - 69.9 C - 63 - 65.9 D + , 60 - 62.9 D less than 60 --> F
General Policies :-	1 - Programming assignments will be assigned on occasions from the textbook or via handouts. This is used in order to encourage reading. No late programs will be accepted 2 - There will be *no make-up exams* unless previously arranged with the instructor. 3 - Attendance is a MUST. 4 - No grade will be given for attendance; however, it will be recorded and PAAET attendance regulations will be enforced. 5 - Time is so precious. So .. Please .. No body is late! 6 - Late students will not be allowed to attend the class session. So DO NOT BE LATE ... 7 - Project could be send via e-mail (cutoff time will be the midnight of the due date). The received email will be acknowledged, if you do not receive an acknowledgement email from me, it means that *I DID NOT RECEIVE your project.* 8 - You may also bring a softcopy of your project in class in due date.
Academic Integrity :-	Strict standards of academic honesty will be enforced according to the PAAET policy on academic integrity. Academic dishonesty such as coping or cheating is prohibited in all academic situations and will be penalized accordingly. A student shall be guilty of a violation of academic integrity if he or she :- 1 - Represents the work of others as his or her own. 2 - Obtains assistance in any academic work from another individual in a situation in which the student is expected to perform independently. 3 - Gives assistance to another individual in a situation in which that individual is expected to perform independently. 4 - Offers false data in support of laboratory or field work.