Welcome!!
CIT 593
Intro to Computer Systems
aka “Introduction to Computer Architecture”
Fall 2012
Instructor: Chris Murphy
• PhD-Computer Science, Columbia University
• Professional experience during dot.com era:
– Digital Equipment Corporation
– Art Technology Group (ATG)
– IconMedialab
– Citibank
• BS-Computer Engineering, Boston University
• cdmurphy @ cis.upenn.edu
Teaching Assistants
• Greg Smith
• Sheng Huang
• Swati Goswami
Office hours will be announced soon!
Why “Computer Systems”?
Why study Computer Systems?
• To better understand the field of computing and
“how things work”
• To be able to develop software in the context of the
underlying hardware
• To learn skills required of a flexible IT professional
(specifically, UNIX and C)
Course Logistics
What is CIT 593?
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This is the first of the two-course “systems”
sequence for MCIT students
It assumes that you have no programming
experience whatsoever
The goals are to teach you the basics of C
programming, UNIX, and computer
organization /architecture
Course website
http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~cdmurphy/cit593
• Lecture schedule and reading assignments
• Staff office hours and contact info
• Links to helpful resources
• Homework assignments
Schedule
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Part 1: what’s going on inside the computer
Part 2: C programming
Each week consists of 1.5 hours of lab and 3
hours of lecture
Labs held in Moore 207 (“Linux lab”)
Grading Guidelines
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Homeworks: 50%
Lab assignments: 10%
Midterm exam: 15%
Final exam: 25%
97+
A+
93-97 A
90-93 A-
87-90 B+
83-87 B
80-83 B-
Homeworks
• There will be 7-8 homework assignments
• Assignments must be completed
individually unless otherwise noted!
• Will be posted on the course homepage and
announced in class
Lab Assignments
• Labs will be held in Moore 207 on Mondays
from 1:30-3pm
– No lab next week!
• Assignments will be done in the lab and
should be completed during that time
• Collaboration is encouraged!
Exams
• Midterm tentatively scheduled for Oct 25
• Final exam will be held according to the
university registrar's schedule
– Currently set for Mon, Dec 17, 6-8pm
• Exams cover material from readings and
lectures (so come to class!)
Textbooks
• Required: Patt & Patel, Introduction to
Computing Systems, 2nd edition
• Recommended: Kernighan & Ritchie, The C
Programming Language
• Available at UPenn Bookstore or online
• P&P is also used for CIS 240
BlackBoard
https://courseweb.library.upenn.edu
• Check the “Gradebook” to make sure our
records match your own
• Everything else will be on course website!
Piazza
• Link available from course website
• Appropriate:
• Discuss course-related material
• Clarify intent of assignments
• Share interesting articles, links, etc.
• Inappropriate:
• “Did anyone else get ___ as the answer to question #5?”
• “My program crashes. Can someone help me?”
SEAS Account
• You will need a login account to access
Penn's computing environment (specifically,
the Linux machines in Moore 207)
• It is the same one you use to get your Penn
email, etc.
• If you don’t have an account, go to
http://seas.upenn.edu/accounts
Classroom Etiquette
• If you can’t bear the thought of going 80
minutes without accessing:
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Email
Facebook
Twitter
Your stock portfolio
icanhascheezburger
• Then please sit in the back row!
Academic Honesty
• Please familiarize yourself with the UPenn and
SEAS academic integrity policies
• Links available from course website
• It is YOUR responsibility to read and adhere to
the policies
Academic Honesty Overview
• Collaboration is not allowed on homework
(programming) assignments
• Be sure to cite any third-party material
(websites, books, tutors, etc.)
• Reusing work (for other classes, or from
previous semesters of 593) is not allowed
Ready?
Upcoming
• Today: Computer numbers (2.1 – 2.2)
• Tonight: MCIT social event (Levine 307)
• Monday: no lab!
• Tuesday and Thursday: More computer
numbers (2.3 – 2.7); digital logic (3.1 – 3.3)