IT 320: Machine Structures and Operating Systems
(Note: This course is similar to COMS 320: Machine Structures and Programming/i> before the 2007-8 catalog.)
Contents
Introduction to computer hardware, Boolean logic, digital circuits, data representations,
digital arithmetic, digital storage, performance metrics, pipelining,
memory hierarchy, and I/O; Operating System concepts, interface, multi-tasking,
threads, memory and file management, tools.
This course (IT 320) is a prerequisite for the following IT course(s):
This course is offered every fall semester.
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under construction...)
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under construction...)
By the end of the course the student will have an understanding of the following
Computer Organization/Architecture topics and their interrelationships:
- Computer Components.
- The Von Neumann model of computation.
- Data representation and conversion: sign and magnitude, 1's complement, 2's
complement, IEEE floating point, BCD, ASCII, Unicode.
- Error detection and correction: parity, CRC, Hamming, Reed-Soloman.
- Boolean algebra/digital logic: identities and simplification, logic gates, universal
gates, combinational circuits (decoder, multiplexer, adder, ALU, etc.), sequential
circuits (S-R, J-K, D flip-flops, counters, registers, memory).
- Datapath design: registers, ALU, busses.
- Fetch-decode-execute cycle: RTL, hard-coded vs. micro-programmed control.
- Memory: types, locality of reference, hierarchy.
- Cache: mapping, replacement policies, hit/miss ratios, write policies.
- I/O: interrupt-driven, DMA, magnetic disks, optical disks, RAID
The student will also have familiarity the following operating system fundamentals:
- Operating System services
- User Interfaces and command languages
- Multitasking, threading, virtual storage
- File management
- Programming tools: assemblers, compilers, linkers and loaders, debuggers
- Installing and configuring Windows and Linux; scripting
Final textbook choice is determined by the instructor.
