Erasmus and Incoming Students

Welcome to the Department of Creative Technologies! Here you can find an overview of courses offered in English by the Department of Creative Technologies. 

For course descriptions and ECTS information please click on the respective course in the curriculum.

First year courses are basic courses introducing the second year specialisations within the field of creative technologies. Second year courses are specialising in either audio, communication design, film, game development, computer animation or web development. As an incoming student you will have to choose one of the specialisations and the courses offered within as to avoid timetable overlapses. In addition to the basic and specialised courses, electives can be chosen in the first and second year as well as on Master level.

For the degree programme MultiMediaTechnology you can find the pre-selected courses for the specialisations game development and web development below.

As an international student you should also select projectbased courses (7,5 ECTS modules). The degree programmes MultiMediaTechnology, MultiMediaArt and Design and Product Management offer a variety of courses. 

MultiMediaArt offers two projectbased courses with 7,5 ECTS in English every term (fall and spring). As an accepted incoming student you can also choose among the Courses offered by the International Office.

The  language of general tuition is mainly German. English support such as course literature (digital and analogue) as well as individual support from lecturers and fellow students will be provided in English to successfully meet all requirements for the different courses.

For further information on academic issues, courses, course selection and provisional learning agreements, please contact the international academic advisor of the department,  Julia Schwarzacher (E-Mail: international.ct@fh-salzburg.ac.at). For administrative issues, please contact the International Office. As an accepted incoming student you can also choose among the Courses offered by the International Office.

Fall Semester

Course Title: Game Artificial Intelligence
Course Code: MMTM1GAIIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Knowledge of C#, Java or C/C++. Basic knowledge of game artificial intelligence is advantageous 
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with methods, concepts and algorithms of Artificial Intelligence (AI) as well as the development and the pipeline of an AI engine. They understand the modelling and implementation of decentral, heterogeneous systems of autonomous agents.
Course Contents: Communication between and coordination of Al agents, tactical and strategic AI, communication between world and AI (perception of the world), progressive dynamic / strategic path finding and optimisation, simulation of large groups (crowd simulation), genre-specific AI (e.g. rubber band AI in races, minimaxing in board games), learning mechanisms for AI (e.g. neural networks, evolutionary algorithms).

Course Title: Game Design & Playable Media
Course Code: MMTM1GDMIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: -
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with advanced design methods to plan and develop playable prototypes as well as techniques for methodical and target orientated game design (e.g. mechanics-dynamics aesthetics (MDA) framework, playtesting, balancing, etc.). Students are familiar with the necessary steps to realise various types of online games. They have an understanding of the management of online users and their data (user management, cloud saves), merging balanced player groups (Match-Making, Game Balancing) and security aspects to help protect user data and also enable fair joint playing (anti-cheat mechanisms).
Course Contents: Students develop game concepts in team work in order to plan and develop playable prototypes of a game by means of various design methods. Students are familiar with the techniques with which they can methodically and target-specifically operate game design. This includes various types of prototyping as well as the MDA framework, play testing and balancing. 

Course Title: Online Gaming & Cloud Computing
Course Code: MMTM1OGCIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Knowledge of C#, Java or C/C++
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with the necessary steps to realise various types of online games. They have an understanding of the management of online users and their data (user management, cloud saves), the merging of balanced player groups (match-making, game balancing) and security-relevant aspects to help protect user data and also enable fair joint playing (anti-cheat mechanisms). Students are familiar with the basic techniques to conduct games and calculations on servers (cloud gaming/computing)
Course Contents: Various types of multiplayer games (in real time, round based, massive multiplayer), user management, cloud saves, persistent world, match making and game balance, synchronisation between players, prediction models for latency compensation, anti-cheat mechanisms, security aspects of online gaming, backend-as-a-service (BaaS) models, cloud gaming (streaming, virtualisation), cloud computing in games (e.g. physics calculation with the aid of servers).

Course Title: GPU-based Simulation
Course Code: MMTM3GBSIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Advanced knowledge of OpenGL, 3D mathematics and shader programming. Knowledge of C#, Java or C/C++
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with state-of-the-art techniques which are used in modern render engines in order to simulate realistic lighting of 3D scenes as well as physically plausible reflection models. They understand the physical and mathematical background of these algorithms and are able to implement and expand their own by means of a modern graphic API. They are also able to use the processing potential of modern GPUs to realise physics-based simulations parallel in real time
Course Content: Development of tech demos using modern graphic / parallel computing APIs (e.g. OpenGL, OpenCL or Cuda), challenges which can occur in development on GPU (e.g. memory management), profiling and performance optimisation techniques, global Illumination, physically based rendering, image based lighting, deferred and hybrid rendering techniques, shading algorithms, particularly soft shadows, transparent objects in association with deferred rendering and shadows, camera effects such as motion blur and depth of field. General purpose GPU computing with focus on application fields often needed in games (e.g. collision recognition, particle system and fluid simulation).

Course Title: Mobile Games
Course code: MMTM3MOGIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Knowledge of C#, Java or C/C++
Learning Outcomes: Students use specialist software tools and techniques to develop games and graphic applications on mobile devices. They apply the acquired knowledge of the special challenges of mobile platforms to realise a game for a mobile platform with the aid of a SDKs. Components of the game are implemented independently of the platform to re-use codes for various platforms
Course Content: Native development by means of an example SDK for mobile games (e.g. Android SDK), challenges of mobile platforms (e.g. limited memory and processing power, small screen), problems of development for heterogeneous target platforms (e.g. development, independent of resolution, for various screen sizes), run time and memory optimisation for target platforms, debugging (remote debugging, emulation), platform independent development, graphic programming with OpenGL ES.

Course Title: Recommender Systems
Course Code: MMTM1RESIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: -
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with current algorithms and tools for Recommender Systems as well as for the assessment of the efficiency of such systems. They are able to choose a suitable Recommender System for the field of application and can implement, configure and deploy it.
Course Content: Content-based filtering, user-user collaborative filtering, item-item collaborative filtering, dimensionality reduction, interactive critique-based recommenders.

Course Title: Web-based Information Visualisation
Course Code: MMTM1IVIIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Javascript Programming. Statistics.
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with computer assisted methods for the graphic representation of large amounts of data and can develop visualisations which are suitable for evaluating this data to discover new insights.
Course Content: Data abstraction, data types, task abstraction, visualisation validation, effectiveness of various information channels, marks and channels, realisation with web technologies (e.g. d3.js, cartod).

Course Title: Applied Programming Paradigms
Course code: MMTM3APPIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: -
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with the various programming paradigms and the practical use of these in web development. They are able to recognize and apply declarative, functional, object orientated and procedural aspects of a programming language and know the language features, which support Design by Contract 
Course Content: Functional programming, object orientated programming, aspect oriented programming/mixins/traits. Pre and post-conditions. Various approaches for concurrency/ asynchronous programming (e.g. functional reactive programming, promises, generators). Current languages e.g. Scala, Erlang/Elixir, Ruby, Regular Expressions etc. Code Golf, Katas. Transpiler, Syntax Trees. Static Code Analysis for dynamic languages (e.g. Lint, Minify).

Course Title: Scalable Web Architectures
Course Code: MMTM3SWAIL
ECTS-Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites:  Programming knowledge in the web field, particularly on the server side (a back end web framework such as Symphony or Rails, HTML, CSS, JavaScript), understanding the architecture of the web including network basics (DNS, TCP, HTTP, cookies, REST, HTTP-Auth), basic principles of software engineering, testing and agile development methods. Understanding of Continuous Delivery.
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with concepts and architectures for scalable web applications and can assess which architecture a web application requires. They can monitor the performance of a web application on various levels and correctly diagnose problems and set measures to rectify these
Course-Content: Scaling Methods and Architectures: Multi-tier, message queues, service oriented architecture and microservices. Caching. Stability / Resilience. Visibility (Logging, profiling, monitoring).

Summer Semester

Course Title: Game Engine Architectures
Course code: MMTM2GEAIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: intermediate level of C++ 
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with the diverse choice of game engines, tools, architectures and techniques and are able to select and integrate the best one for the development of a particular game. They are able to adapt game engines and tools and specifically expand these to suit their requirements for the implementation of professional content pipelines. Hereby they use techniques from practice for the optimal utilisation of memory and processing power
Course Content: Types of game engine architectures, game engine components, tool developments (e.g. for localisation, assets), professional content pipelines from object orientated design to data driven design, efficient testing procedures, console development, advanced memory management (e.g. cache optimisation, memory alignment).

Course Title: Physics-based Simulation
Course code: MMTM2PBSIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Knowledge of C#, Java or C/C++. Basic knowledge of OpenGL, 3D math and shader programming.
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with expanded, physical real time simulation concepts and techniques and how to simulate complex physical systems and deformable objects (e.g. clothing, liquids). They apply what they have learnt in practical exercises
Course Content: In-depth topics of rigid body simulation (rotation, friction, simulation stability etc.), collision recognition and solving, simulation of physical connections (e.g. joints) and restricted movement (constraints), ragdoll physics, environment dependent character animation, spring-mass systems, deformable objects, clothing simulation, liquid simulation, weather simulation, vegetation simulation, physically-based rendering.

Course Title: Multimedia Masters Project: Implementation
Course Code: MMTM2MMMPT
Credits: 9.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: -
Learning Outcomes: Students have specific knowledge and skills in the substantiation of the planning and realisation of ambitious and innovative multimedia projects based on the latest technology. The aim is to develop a minimum viable product (MVP) in web engineering / vertical-slice in the field of Game & Simulation Engineering for the clarification of technical feasibility
Course Content: Coaching in the implementation of multimedia master’s projects, resource planning, work packages and milestones, possibly also project calculation and business concept, development of an MVP / vertical slice.

Course Title: Client Side Web Engineering
Course code: MMTM2CWEIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: Programming knowledge in the web field, particularly on the server side (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery), understanding the architecture of the web including network basics (DNS, TCP, HTTP, Cookies, REST, HTTP-Auth), basic principles of software engineering, testing and agile development methods.
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with various architectures for Javascript applications for complex frontends. They develop web applications which go beyond the classic request/response cycle of HTTP and AJAX (real-time web, server push, publish and subscribe). They are familiar with tools for mobile and offline first web applications. The program Javascript on an advanced level. They know the current state of CSS in web browsers and current tools for creating, analysing and maintaining CSS code. They understand the importance of web accessibility and know about common barriers. They can apply the tools offered by HTML and CSS to create accessibly web sites. They know how to use CSS to optimize rendering of a web page.
Course Content: Javascript: ES2015+ Patterns, Micro Frameworks, Functional Programing in JavaScript, Websockets, Data-binding, side effects & state, State & Rendering, Side effects, Service workers for offline first applications and performance (manifest), Progressive Web Apps, CSS, Accessability, Rendering Performance, Grid Layout, Features Queries, CSS Custom Properties (aka CSS Variables), Cascade, Specificity, CSS for Desktop - Electron, CSS Methodologies, Functional CSS, CSS-in-JS, Development Tools for CSS.

Course Title: Continuous Delivery
Course Code: MMTM2CODIL
Credits: 4.0 ECTS
Prerequisites:  Basics of Computer Networking (DNS, TCP, HTTP, Cookies, REST) and Web Operations (configuring and deploying to a web server).
Learning Outcomes: Students are familiar with techniques, processes and tools, which optimise the roll-out process of web applications and enable the automatic, fast and reliable release of new software versions. They have an understanding of the tasks involved in development, test, integration and productive environment and can implement test automation, continuous integration and continuous deployment.
Course Content: Automation, continuous integration, deployment strategies (cloud, on-premise, container/virtualisation), DevOps, infrastructure as code, test automation, dependency management, configuration management, security, *aaS.

Course Title: Multimedia Masters Project: Implementation
Course Code: MMTM2MMMPT
Credits: 9.0 ECTS
Prerequisites: -
Learning Outcomes: Students have specific knowledge and skills in the planning and implementation of ambitious and innovative multimedia projects based on the latest technology. The aim is to develop a minimum viable product (MVP) in web engineering by the end of the semester.
Course Content: Coaching in the implementation of multimedia master’s projects, resource planning, work packages and milestones, possibly also project calculation and business concept, development of an MVP.

Course Title: Web Development & Projects
Course Code: MMTBSS17WDPIL
Credits: 7.5 ECTS
Prerequisites: This course is suitable for students from either a technical or a design background. They will be working in interdisciplinary teams. Students have to be able to write basic HTML and CSS Code before starting this course. For example in the Textbook "Fundamentals of Web Development" this would correspond to chapters 1 to 4 (see funwebdev.com/about/table-of-contents/)
Learning Outcomes: After this module, students will be able to design and program a single-page web application (SPA). Practical outcome is a finished project
Contents: Use existing backends and APIs, use a frontend tool chain for converting, minifying and concatenating ES6, SASS and CSS files, create, convert and optimizing images for web pages, especially for responsive design, understand the goals of responsive design, use media queries, reponsive images and mobile first design to achieve them, create transitions,  animations, vector graphics, 3d graphics, parallax effects for web pages

International Academic Advisor

Portrait of: Mag. Schwarzacher Julia
Mag.
Lecturer
International Academic Advisor
Department Creative Technologies
Location: Campus Urstein
Room: Urstein - 327
T: +43-50-2211-1203
E: julia.schwarzacher@fh-salzburg.ac.at