UNIX and Scripting

School of Visual Arts, MFA Computer Art
Spring 2008 (Jan. 16 - April)
Thursday, 6-7:50pm, Room 1021
Instructor: A. Deck

Note: your ssh host is shell.mfaca.sva.edu!

Schedule Overview Assignments Topics

Topics:


UNIX How to make use of the features of this operating system, solve problems, etc.

Scripting A general purpose approach to scripting that can be applied to various languages, such as bash, PHP and MEL.

PHP is an easy-to-learn, general purpose scripting language. It is free software and is often used as a component of the Apache web server. But it can be used for many other things.

MEL Maya Embedded Language. Useful for scripting scene descriptions, automating repetitive tasks, etc.

Resources:


Dictionary of Computing
Pipes and Filters
Main PHP site and PHP tutorials
PHP online course PHP Article
PHP FAQs
PHP code exchange
Maya export file formats
Decommoditization of protocols
Course involving MEL
Some MEL scripts

Linux anatomy (PDF)

Texts:


REQUIRED

  • Learning the UNIX Operating System. O'Reilly. By Jerry Peek, Grace Todino and John Strang. (ISBN: 0-596-00261-0)
RECOMMENDED:
  • Learning the bash shell. O'Reilly. By Cameron Newham and Bill Rosenblatt. (ISBN: 1-56592-347-2).
  • Unix for Mac OSX. Matisse Enzer
  • Teach Yourself Unix in 24 hours. Sams
  • Teach Yourself Unix in 10 minutes. Sams
  • Unix for Dummies. John Levine and Margaret Levine (ISBN: 0764504193) [Note: not the "quick reference" version]
  • Unix for the Impatient. Paul Abrahams and Bruce Larson (ISBN: 0201823764)
  • Just Enough UNIX. Paul K. Andersen, Paul Andersen (ISBN: 0072463775)
  • Teach Yourself Unix. Kevin Reichard and Eric Foster-Johnson
  • The MEL Companion: Maya Scripting for 3D Artists by David Stripinis, Charles River Media
  • Gould's Complete Maya Programming book