UMBC CMSC313

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CMSC313 Syllabus

Computer Organization & Assembly Language
Course Syllabus

Instructors:

Name: Hank Katz Gary Burt
Office: ITE220 ITE225
Office Hours: TBA By appointment
Telephone: (410) 455-2587 (410) 455-3298 (No voice mail)
E-mail: katz@umbc.edu burt@umbc.edu

Teaching Assistant:

TBA

Time and Place

Course Title Section Date and Time Room
CMSC313 Computer Organization and Assembly Language 0201 WF 2:00-3:15 pm SS003
CMSC313 Computer Organization and Assembly Language 0301 TTh 11:30 am - 12:45 pm PHYS201

Textbook

Course Web Page

http://www.csee.ubmc.edu/courses/undergraduate/CMSC313/fall04/burt_katz

Prerequisites

You should have mastered the material covered in the following courses:

In particular, we will assume that you have had extensive programming experience with C/C++. Also, you must be familiar with and able to work with truth tables, Boolean Algebra and modular arithmetic.

Objectives

The purpose of this course is to introduce computer science majors to computing systems below that of a high-level programming language. The material covered can be broadly separated into the categories of assembly language and computer organization. Under the heading of assembly language students will be introduced to the i386 instruction set, low-level programming, the Linux memory model, as well as the internal workings of compilers, assemblers, and linkers. Topics under computer organization includes digital logic design (combinational circuits, sequential circuits, finite state machines) and basic computer architecture (system bus, memory hierarchy and input/output devices). A secondary goal of this course is to prepare computer science majors for CMSC411 Computer Architecture.

Required Software -- B^Squared Logic Software

UMBC has made an arrangement with Beige Bag Software to purchase 100 units at a cost of $30 per unit (regular price per unit is $55). The software is available for either Windows or Mac. You are to give the instructor a check for $30, made out to Beige Bag Software, with a note specifying either Windows version or Mac version. The software will be delivered to you in the classroom.

Grading

Your final grade will be based upon:

programming homework assignments 100 points each
short programming assignments 100 points each
pop-quizzes 5-15 points each
circuit simulation exercises   50 points each
assembly mid-term exam 150 points each
assembly final exam 300 points each
digital logic mid-term exam 150 points each
digital logic final exam 300 points each

Your grade is given for work done during the semester; incomplete grades will only be given for medical illness or other such dire circumstances. NOTE: Incompletes must be resolved within one semester or it will become a failing grade (F), automatically.

Lecture Policy

Your are expected to attend all lectures. You are responsible for all materials covered in the lecture as well as those in the assigned reading. There is material in the lectures that is not covered in the book and there is material in the book not covered in the lecture! You can be tested on both! However, this subject cannot be learned simply by listening to the lectures and reading the book. In order to master the material, you need to spend time outside the classroom on programming assignments, simulation exercises and homework assignments. If you miss a lecture, you will need to get the material you missed from a classmate!

Due Dates

There will be homework or exercises due on most weeks. Homework, exercises, projects are turned in via on-line submissions are due by 11:59 of the due date.

Academic Integrity

You are allowed to discuss the homework assignments with other students. You are also encouraged to form study groups to help you learn the material. However exercises and projects must be completed by individual effort. Furthermore, you must write up your homework independently. This means you should only have the textbooks and your own notes in front of you when you write up your homework -- not your friend's notes, your friend's homework or other reference material. You should not have a copy of someone else's homework or project under any circumstance. For example, you should not let someone turn in your homework.

Cases of academic dishonesty will be dealt with severely.

Exams

The exams will be closed-book, closed-notes, and no calculators! The date of the midterm and final will be announced at a later time. The midterm will cover the material from the first part of the course and the final exam will cover the mater presented after the midterm. (Note: If the material is presented twice, it could be on both exams.)

Course Schedule

The lecture schedule will be posted on the lecture schedule web page for this course. The dates are only tentative and can be modified by the instructors.

Policy on Programming Projects and Exercises

Critical programming skills cannot be learned by attending lecture only. You should budget enough time to work on the programming assignments as well. Please consult the time table given on the lecture schedule and plan ahead. Programs are due by 11:59 of the due date. Programs will be submitted using the Blackboard system at UMBC. Late assignments will not be accepted. Programs will be graded on five criteria: correctness, design, style, documentation, and efficiency. So, turning in a project that merely "works" is not sufficient to receive full credit. For this course, programming projects must be developed using the NASM assembler for the Linux operating system. running on an Intel Pentium CPU. This arrangement is not compatible with other flavors of UNIX, with Linux running on non-Intel CPUs or with assemblers for Windows 95/98/2000/ME/XP/NT. When in doubt the UMBC machine linux.gl.umbc.edu will be the final arbiter of what constitutes a working programming. You may work on your own machines running Linux, but you will have to be your own system administrator. None of the instructors, TA or support staff at OIT will be available to help ou install or debug Linux.

NOTE: UMBC's Linux Users Group (LUG) can be a resource for you to get help with the installation of Linux and Linux questions in general. However, when you contact them for assistance, you must first tell them that you are taking CMSC313 and you can not try to have them answer any of your homework questions.

Cheating

Read this section carefully! It describes what constitutes cheating for this course. If you have questions, ask the instructor. Ignorance will not be accepted as an excuse after the fact.

All programming assignments and circuit simulation exercises must be completed by your own individual effort. You should never have a copy of someone else's program either on paper or electronically under any circumstance. Also, you should never give a copy of your program or circuit, either on paper or electronically, to another student. This also means that you cannot work on the programming assignments or circuit simulation exercises together. Cases of academic dishonesty will be dealt with severely. Egregious cases of cheating will be reported as a major infraction. In this case, you will not be allowed to drop the course. Also, a major infraction would appear as a permanent part of your student record and would be seen by potential employers when they ask for an official copy of your transcript. We will be using special software to check for cheating. The software is quite sophisticated, has been tuned for assembly language programs and has surprised some students in the past. We will, of course, not release the details of the internal workings of this cheat-checking software, but you are also forewarned that there is no difficulty in comparing every pair of submitted projects. Finally, you are also warned that if your program is turned in by someone else, then, at a minimum, bot you and the person who copied your program will receive a 0 for that assignment and you will be penalized ten percent of the total possible score for the entire course. (That will reduce your final grade by more than one letter!) This includes substantially similar programs. Furthermore, all parties concerned will have their prior programs checked for cheating. So, if you cheat on the last assignment, you can lose all the points from all of your assignments -- even if you did all the work and just let other people copy from you.

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