Introduction to Computer Systems

Catalog description

You know how to program, but do you know how computers really work? How do millions of transistors come together to form a complete computing system? This bottom-up course begins with transistors and simple computer hardware structures, continues with low-level programming using primitive machine instructions, and finishes with an introduction to the C programming language. This course is a broad introduction to all aspects of computer systems architecture and serves as the foundation for subsequent computer systems courses, such as Computer Organization and Design ( CIS 4710 ), Computer Operating Systems (CIS 3800), and Compilers and Interpreters (CIS 3410).