This module is an option on the MSc and MRes programmes offered by the Department of Computer Science and Information Systems at Birkbeck, University of London. It is presented in the first term on Wednesdays (18:00-21:00) and in the second term on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (11:00-12:30).
To provide students with an understanding of how network protocols work, particularly those used on the Internet, and the ability to present and manipulate information on the World Wide Web, with an emphasis on XML.
By 2-hour written examination and by practical coursework. The written examination will have a weighting of 80% and the coursework a weighting of 20% of the final mark.
The ability to program is essential. This need not be in an object-oriented language, although that ability would be helpful. Some basic knowledge of HTML and databases, in particular the relational model and SQL, is assumed; if this is lacking, however, it can be obtained through self-study of on-line resources.
The format of the exam paper will be as follows. There will be seven 20-mark questions from which you have to choose five to answer. In previous years, the questions were arranged in two sections, A and B, where Section A was on Networks and Section B was on Web Technologies. This is no longer the case. This year, each 20-mark question contains sub-questions from both the "networks" and "web technologies" parts of the module.
Past exam papers are available from the library for 2009, 2010 and 2011. You should be aware that the syllabus changes slightly from year to year, so occasional past exam questions may no longer be relevant.
A few XML revision problems are also available to help with exam preparation.