Computer Organization is an exciting topic that is fun to learn about. In this class, we bring together several topics that you have studied independently to develop a more comprehensive understand of computer operation and implementation. While it can be challenging to learn this material, it is not really all that conceptually difficult. The key difficulty is finding the time to learn all the details and understand clearly how things come together. Please plan accordingly.
Most of the fundamental information that you require for this class you already know; how it all comes together is what will challenge you. We will bring these various bits of information together into a collective understanding of an operational computing system. In this class, the devil is in the details.
The text book for this quarter is the undergraduate text by Patterson and Hennessy, titled Computer Organization and Design. This is a very well regarded text that provides comprehensive coverage for the student. Unfortunately its comprehensive nature also makes it quite long. Please plan your reading schedule accordingly.
As always, if you have any questions/problems, please feel free to drop by my office (836 Rhodes Hall) to discuss your issues (tues/thurs please).
| Must Read | Should Read | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chapter 1: | 1.1-1.6 | 1.7-1.13 | |
| Chapter 2: | 2.1-2.8, 2.11, 2.16-2.19 | 2.9-2.15, 2.20-2.23 | |
| Chapter 3: | Entire chapter is reference material | ||
| Chapter 4: | 4.1-4.10 | 4.12-4.17 | |
| Chapter 5: | 5.1-5.11, 5.15 | 5.12-5.14, 5.16-5.19 | |
| Virtualization: | Class lecture notes | ||
| Chapter 6: | 6.1-6.9 | 6.10-6.16 |
There are four class projects. Projects 1 and 2 are reviews of the material from digital systems will give you experiences with some gate level CAD tools and have you develop components that you can use to complete Projects 3 and 4. Projects 3 and 4 will require control signal and circuit implementations for a processor specification that I will release to the class in the 4th week of the semester. Projects 1 and 2 must be done by all students individually. For projects 3 and 4 you can form a team of 2 students for the project. I strongly recommend that you form a team rather than attempt to do the projects on your own. These are complex design projects and having several people working to study and analyze the problem and your design solution is a good thing and it will dramatically improve the quality of your final solution. I cannot emphasize this enough. Form a team to work on projects 3 and 4. That said, I will not be responsible for your team and I will not let you change teams from project 3 to project 4. If a team member drops the class, it is not my problem. You will have to proceed with the remaining team members. Choose wisely.
All projects are to be printed out, bound (stapling projects 1 and 2 is fine), and turned in to me by the beginning of the class period that it is due. Projects 3 and 4 will be large documents that should be put into a folder of some type.
The requirements for the four projects and the processor specification are contained in the links below
Project grading: This is the grading rubric for these projects.
Final grades will be computed as a percentage contribution of your achievements on the class projects and quizzes as follows: