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Textbook:
Prerequisites and Credits:
C or better in CSC 262. 3 Credit hours. This is a required class for all CSC majors and for the Endorsement for Teachers of Computer Science and is recommended for all students wishing to enroll in the MSCS program. This course is also required for CET majors who choose the Computer Science Emphasis. CSC 362 or CSC 364 is required for all Computer Science minors.
Course Topics:
Overview of ANSI C: pointers, pointer arithmetic, arrays, structs; C I/O; functions; dynamic memory allocation. Computer Systems: binary representations, bit manipulations, Boolean logic and digital circuits. Computer Organization topics: CPU, bus, memory organization; instruction sets, registers, addressing modes. Introduction to IBM PC assembly language.
Course Objectives:
Student Learning Outcomes:
By the end of this course, students will learn to:
Student Assessment:
Student grades will be determined by the student's performance on:
The last date to drop with a grade of W is Monday, February 26.
Course Materials:
All lectures are written in PowerPoint and available through the instructor's course web site at http://www.nku.edu/~foxr/CSC362/csc362.html. Programming examples will also be made available on the website. Please feel free to download the notes and examples at your leisure. Please print the power point notes using the 6-overhead per page or 9-overhead per page option to save paper. Also, please try to print any materials on your home computer/printer! All handouts will also be made available via this website (handouts will usually be in MS Word format). Keep an eye on this website during the semester as it will be a mechanism for the dissemination of information such as corrections to assignments, hints on assignments, and expected results on assignments.
Homework and Programming Information and Policies:
There will be a number of homework and programming assignments. Due dates will be provided when each assignment is provided to the class. All assignments are due at the beginning of the class period of the due date. Late assignments will be accepted with a penalty of 10% per day late, however, homework assignments will not be accepted once the answer key for that homework has been provided to the students (on some assignments, answer keys will be passed out the day the assignments are due, thus prohibiting late submissions). All homework assignments must be word processed (although figures and other awkward components of the answers may be hand drawn). Homework assignments and program assignments may be submitted to the instructor via Email if desired as long as that Email is received at least 1 hour prior to the class period when it is due. If the Email arrives late, or is unreadable, the assignment will be considered late. If Emailed, please use a format that you know will be accessible by the instructor (e.g., ascii text, MS Word). Programming assignments will be in C and IBM PC assembly language. The IBM PC assembly programs will be embedded from within C code, so you will not need any special software other than a Windows version of C (or C++), such as Visual C++ or Turbo C. NOTE: See Lee Weiner, AST 344 if you want to get a free copy of Visual Studio (including Visual C++).
All homework and programming assignments are individual assignments meaning that students should work alone at all times except for clarification.
Absentee Policy
For financial aid purposes, the University is now requiring that attendance be monitored during the first three weeks of class. Students may be administratively dropped during that time for non-attendance. Students who miss class and wish to remain registered in class should notify their instructor. Aside from this initial period, the instructor will not take attendance. It is up to the student to attend class regularly and to determine what materials were missed in the event of an absence. If an assignment is due on a date that the student is absent, it is the student's responsibility to make sure that the instructor receives the assignment prior to the beginning of class time (whether by Email or having someone reliable drop off the assignment to the instructor in his office, mailbox or classroom). If the student is to miss a class period when an exam is being given, the student must contact the instructor in advance to make arrangements for a make-up exam, otherwise the student will receive a 0 on that exam.
| Week | Monday | Wednesday |
| 1 | Introduction (ch 1) | C: basics, I/O (C: ch 1-3, 7) |
| 2 | Binary representations (ch 2) | Binary continued (ch 2) |
| 3 | No Class (Labor Day) | Binary arithmetic (ch 2), Logic (ch 3) |
| 4 | Logic cont, Circuits (ch 3) | Circuits cont |
| 5 | C: functions (C: ch 4) | Review |
| 6 | Midterm 1 | C: arrays (C: ch 5) |
| 7 | C: pointers (C: ch 5) | C: pointers arithmetic (C: ch 5) |
| 8 | Computer organization (ch 4) | Computer org. cont. (ch 4) |
| 9 | No Class (Fall Break) | Instruction set details (ch 5) |
| 10 | Instruction set cont. (ch 5) | Assembly Language |
| 11 | Review | Midterm 2 |
| 12 | C: structs (C: ch 6) | C: memory allocation (C: ch 6) |
| 13 | C: linked structures (C: ch 6) | Computer memory (ch 6) |
| 14 | Computer mem cont, I/O (ch 7) | No Class (Thanksgiving) |
| 15 | I/O cont | OS (ch 8) |
| 16 | Parallel Architectures (ch 9) | Review |
All material is from Null/Lobur except when denoted C: which is from the Kernighan/Ritchie textbook. Homework assignments and programming assignments will have due dates stated on them. If you have any questions about due dates or exam dates, check with the instructor. Exam material is tentatively: Midterm 1: Computer Organization chapters 1 – 3, C chapters 1 – 3 and 7 Midterm 2: Computer Organization chapters 4 – 5, C chapters 4 – 5 Final Exam: Computer Organization chapters 6 – 9, C chapter 6
Note: The above Schedule is tentative and might change during the semester. The instructor reserves the right to alter the syllabus if circumstances dictate.
Student Retention and Disabilities Services
Students experiencing roadblocks to academic success may seek assistance from Retention Coordinators in Student Retention and Assessment (SRA). Financial, personal, and social concerns sometimes interfere with the dedicated focus needed to be successful in college. SRA helps students connect to academic and support services, create individual learning plans, and advance successfully towards graduation. More information is available at www.nku.edu/~retention. Call 859 572 6497 for an appointment or stop by University Center 352.
Students with disabilities who require accommodations (academic adjustments, auxiliary aids or services) for this course must register with the Disability Services Office. Please contact the Disability Service Office immediately in the University Center, suite 320 or call 859-572-6373 for more information. Verification of your disability is required in the DSO for you to receive reasonable academic accommodation. Visit our website at www.nku.edu/~disability