Need for code examples in OS course
Recently TCE had some syllabus revisions done for the computer science dept. I heard that the people in charge unanimously rejected the idea of including portions of MINIX into the curriculum.
A course in OS usually contains topics such as process, IPC, deadlocks, etc.. However these theoretical topics are inadequate. The student does not usually get the full picture or atleast a gross idea of how the thing works. Often students tend to think that an OS is something that belongs to a completely different world. They dont think of applying those concepts in their day to day programming. This is a case seen widely in CSE courses across TamilNadu and probably all over India.
I think a course on OS should contain some code example. An ideal choice would be the Linux kernel. However, the Linux kernel is a production system and hence would not be that helpful to a new learner. MINIX is a good choice. The book "OS implementation and design" by Prof. A.S.Tanenbaum explains MINIX in a way that would be easily understood by the students.
Such a approach would bring the students to a higher level. They'll get trained to understand code written by other people. They'll be encouraged to read other's code and ideas before implementing their own.
A course in OS usually contains topics such as process, IPC, deadlocks, etc.. However these theoretical topics are inadequate. The student does not usually get the full picture or atleast a gross idea of how the thing works. Often students tend to think that an OS is something that belongs to a completely different world. They dont think of applying those concepts in their day to day programming. This is a case seen widely in CSE courses across TamilNadu and probably all over India.
I think a course on OS should contain some code example. An ideal choice would be the Linux kernel. However, the Linux kernel is a production system and hence would not be that helpful to a new learner. MINIX is a good choice. The book "OS implementation and design" by Prof. A.S.Tanenbaum explains MINIX in a way that would be easily understood by the students.
Such a approach would bring the students to a higher level. They'll get trained to understand code written by other people. They'll be encouraged to read other's code and ideas before implementing their own.
posted by Da Rodent at 8:14 AM
2 Comments:
Yeh.. its only now I could understand in deep the concepts that I have read during my academics. One can really get the real meaning of things when you sit and implement those by yourself.
yes joe, u are right , students like me dont tend to look much when we are not asked to do..
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