| Time: | Mon & Wed 4:00 - 5:15 PM |
| Location: | MP 010 |
| Prerequisite: | CMSC 421 (Operating Systems) or equivalent |
| Text: | Distributed Operating Systems, Tanenbaum and various papers provided by the instructor. |
| Instructor: | Prof. Ethan Miller (elm@cs.umbc.edu) |
| Office: | ECS 222 |
| Office hours: | Mon 2:45-3:45 PM, Tue 4:30-5:30 PM or by appointment |
| TA: | Naomi Avigdor (navigd1@cs.umbc.edu) |
| Office hours: | Mon 5:30-6:30 PM, Tue 10-11 AM |
NOTE: The time allotted for each topic is approximate, and may vary slightly from the syllabus.
This course will cover a good deal of material contained in both the required text (Distributed Operating Systems, by Andrew S. Tanenbaum) and a collection of journal and conference papers. The professor will have several sets of originals that students may borrow overnight; however, students are responsible for making their own copies of papers in the class. The typical reading load will be the equivalent of 3-6 papers per week, split between actual papers and chapters from the text.
There will be a final exam given during exam week which will cover all of the material from the class. In addition, there will be unannounced pop quizzes (each taking about 15 minutes) given in class. Each quiz will ask relatively simple questions about the readings for the past week or two. There will also be several homework assignments given during the course of the semester.
A group final project is a large part of this class. Students in the class will work in groups of 2-4 people on a research topic in some area of operating systems. Each group will choose its own project, with help from the instructor (if desired). To insure regular progress, each group will meet with the instructor several times during the semester. At the end of the semester, each group will hand in a paper describing their project and present their work to the class.
Students should check the class web pages (http://www.cs.umbc.edu/courses/graduate/621/spring97/) on a regular basis to keep up with announcements and reading assignments. Anything announced in class will be posted on the web page either before or immediately after the class. It is the student's responsibility to check the web page regularly (at least twice per week); failure to do so is not an excuse for missing an assignment. In particular, the current reading list should be checked regularly because there might possibly be minor changes made after a class.
Grades will be based on homeworks (10%), quizzes (20%), final exam (25%), project (40%), and class participation (5%). Incompletes will not be given except under extraordinary circumstances.