CSC346 - Operating Systems

Spring 2003, Section 70, 6:30-9:00 Tu, Curtis 112

Index: <Instructor> <Course Description> <Prerequisites> <Course Objectives> <Textbook> <Assessment Overview> <Assessment Detail> <General Policies> <Course Schedule>

Instructor

Norman Lippincott, Asst. Professor, Computer Science
Office: Curtis 105; Phone: 610-606-4666 ext. 3697
Office Hours: M 3:00-6:00; Tu 3:00-6:00; Th 11:00-12:00; F 11:00-12:00
e-mail: nlippinc@cedarcrest.edu
Web site: http://www2.cedarcrest.edu/academic/csc/nlippincott

Course Description

Development of systems programming; operating system concepts including multiprogramming, time-sharing, concurrency, synchronization and deadlock problems, virtual memory management, file systems and resource-sharing.

Prerequisites

CSC134, officially. However, students who have received a grade of B or better in CSC133 would be well-equipped to take this course without having CSC134.

Course Objectives

Textbook

Nutt, G., Operating Systems, A Modern Perspective, 2ed. Lab update, Addison Wesley, 2002. ISBN: 0-201-74196-2.

Assessment Overview

Grades for this course will be based on the following assessment items with weights as follows:

A final score is calculated as a weighted average and rounded to the nearest full percent. Final grade is then awarded according to the following scale:

  • 93-100: A
  • 90-92: A-
  • 87-89: B+
  • 83-86: B
  • 80-82: B-
  • 77-79: C+
  • 73-76: C
  • 70-72: C-
  • 67-69: D+
  • 60-66: D
  • 0-59: F

Assessment Details

Assignments

Assignments for the course will consist of written and/or lab-based components. Written assignment components will consist of exercises from the textbook or similar problems. Lab-based assignment components will involve programming in C++ on both the Windows and Linux operating system platforms. All facilities needed to complete the lab-based components are available in on-campus computer labs, and some facilities may be available over the Internet.

The assignments require the student to explore operating systems concepts in further theoretical depth, and beyond the theoretical aspects in a hands-on environment when lab-based.

Tests

Tests will be written and will consist of short-answer questions, problems, and essays. On test dates, the second half of class will be allocated for the testing period.

Through tests, the students shows competence in operating systems terminology, underlying operating systems principles, and how those principles apply in specific situations.

Final Exam

The format for the final exam will be the same as that of the tests, but longer. The final exam is comprehensive.

Class Participation

Students who are active and attentive members of the class may receive up to 5 points for class participation. Students who engage in side conversations during class, or otherwise routinely violate the Classroom Protocol policy should expect no more than 3 points for class participation.

For classes conducted in a computer classroom, any web browsing, e-mail, instant messaging, or other non-class related computer activity is considered a violation of the policies on Classroom Protocol and Computer Classrooms (see policies below). Any violation of the policy on Computer Classrooms will result in a grade of zero for class participation.

General Policies

Due Dates and Late Work

Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the day they are due. By turning in assignments on time your work will be graded and returned in a timely manner (typically within one week), and with comments as appropriate.

Unless otherwise noted, work turned in late will be subject to any or all of the following:

Honor Philosophy

The Cedar Crest College Student Guide includes the following under Honor Philosophy, Community Standards for Academic Conduct, Academic Integrity:

Academic integrity and ethics remain steadfast, withstanding technological change. Cedar Crest College academic standards therefore apply to all academic work, including, but not limited to, handwritten or computer-generated documents, video or audio recordings, and telecommunications.

All Cedar Crest students shall:

Unless specifically designated by the instructor, assignments for this course are individual assignments, not group projects. It is reasonable and appropriate for students to discuss an assignment outside of class, particularly for programming projects. However, the actual assignment work, whether programming or written, is to be one's own. It is not appropriate to collaborate on programming assignments, nor is it appropriate to copy another student's program (or other assignment), alter the program's (or assignment's) appearance (e.g. changing formatting, variable names, output text), and present it as your own individual work. Evidence of such behavior will be considered a violation of the Honor Philosophy and will result in a grade of zero for the assignment. A second offense will result in a grade of F for the course.

Attendance

Regular attendance is an important factor contributing to the student's success in the class. Although much of the material covered in class comes from the textbook, some course content comes from the instructor's notes or other resources, and may be delivered only in lecture form. The student is responsible for all material covered in class, and should arrange to get notes from another student in the event of absence from class. The instructor's notes are not available for perusal by the students.

Your instructor keeps an attendance record for the class, however this record does not directly affect the student's grade. If a student has excessive absence and is not showing responsibility for the course material, an academic performance notice will be issued to the Advising Center.

If the student is absent on the day of a test, arrangements for a makeup must be made in advance of the test. Failure to do so will result in a grade of zero for the test.

Classroom Protocol

The Cedar Crest College Student Guide includes the following under Honor Philosophy, Community Standards for Academic Conduct, Classroom Protocol:

Appropriate classroom behavior is implicit in the Cedar Crest Honor Code. Such behavior is defined and guided by complete protection for the rights of all students and faculty to a courteous, respectful classroom environment. That environment is free from distractions such as late arrivals, early departures, inappropriate conversations, and any other behavior that might disrupt instruction and/or compromise students' access to their Cedar Crest College education.

Students who fail to adhere to proper classroom protocol will receive a reduced class participation grade.

Computer Classrooms

When classes are conducted in computer classrooms, the computers are to be used only for activities directly related to the class. Use of class computers for other activities, such as web browsing, e-mail, games, instant messaging, and so on, is not permitted. Be aware that such activity not only distracts you from the class, but distracts other students as well. Students who engage in such activity during class will receive a reduced class participation grade.

Extra Credit

Requests for extra credit will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Typically, requests for extra credit will be granted for the purpose of improving a poor test score or assignment grade. Extra credit will not be granted to compensate for any violation of the Honor Philosophy (see policy on Honor Philosophy). Extra credit assignments will be directly related to the material that was the source of difficulty for the student, and give the student a chance to show that she has, in fact, overcome that difficulty.

Students with Disabilities

Students with documented disabilities who may need academic accommodations should discuss these needs with their professors during the first two weeks of class. Students with disabilities who wish to request accommodations should contact the Advising Center.

Course Schedule

The following is a tentative schedule for the course and may be adjusted as necessary throughout the semester.

Date Topic
1/14
1/21
Course Intro
Ch. 1; Introduction
Ch. 2; Using the Operating System
Ch. 3; Operating System Organization
1/28 Ch. 4; Computer Organization
2/4 Ch. 5; Device Management
2/11 Ch. 6; Process Management
2/18 Test 1
2/18
2/25
Ch. 7; Scheduling
3/11 Ch. 8; Basic Synchronization Principles
3/18 Ch. 9; High-level Synchronization
Ch. 10; Deadlock
3/25 Ch. 11; Memory Management
4/1 Test 2
4/1
4/8
Ch. 12; Virtual Memory
4/15 Ch. 13; File Management
4/29 Ch. 14; Protection and Security
Ch. 16; Remote Files
TBA Final Exam

Assignments

No. Assigned Due
1 1/21 2/4
2 2/11 2/25
3 2/25 3/18
4 3/18 3/25
5 4/1 4/8
6 4/15 4/29

Index: <Instructor> <Course Description> <Prerequisites> <Course Objectives> <Textbook> <Assessment Overview> <Assessment Detail> <General Policies> <Course Schedule>