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COMP2300/6300: Texts
References and Recommended Texts
- Reference: Specification of the PeANUt Computer
2005, Department of Computer Science, ANU.
It will be distributed to students during the lectures of week 1.
It is free this year!
- Textbook:
The choice of textbooks will be further discussed in the first
lecture. Basically:
- C Programming: If you have no experience in C,
then we would strongly recommend that you purchase a textbook
on C as your first priority. The recommended text by Afzal is
a good basic introduction, although you could also use other C
text books. If you have some C experience then you can "survive"
by using C reference materials that are available on line
- although even then it is sometimes more convenient to
have a textbook at hand. In the long term, a textbook on C
programming may be useful.
- Computer Systems:
Bryant and O'Hallaron is the recommended text for computer systems and
architectures, for the stronger and more motivated students. As its
sub-title suggests, it is particularly strong on viewing computer systems
from the programmer's perspective (it covers systems programming,
and relevant C / x86 Linux internals very well). Null and Lobur is a more
concise and readable book, but, as the title suggests, is more hardware
oriented. Instead of PeANUt, it has a simpler (too much so!) illustrative
computer called MARIE.
You do not HAVE to buy a book on Computer Systems, in the sense that we
will not directly be working from any of them. However, we will make
references to them and possibly direct you to read parts of this them in
your assignments.
To get an understanding of computer systems, it is necessary to do some
substantial reading. Certainly, to get a Distinction or better grade,
this will be the case. However, you may be able to get by from
borrowing the books from the library from time to time.
- Recommended texts
- The Essentials of Computer Organization and
Architecture
by Linda Null and Julia Lobur, 2nd edn, 2006, Jones and Bartlett,
ISBN 0-7637-3769-0.
Available from Coop Bookshop and ANU Library.
- Computer Systems: A Programmers Perspective
by Randal E Bryant and David O'Hallaron,
2003, Prentice-Hall, ISBN 0-13-178456-0.
Available from Coop Bookshop and ANU Library.
- C Programming: A Modern Approach
by K.N. King, W.W. Norton, 1996, ISBN 0-393-96945-2.
(2nd edition: 2007, ISBN 0-393-97950-4).
You can download the programs from the book from
its web site
(where, strangely enough, you can also find plenty of positive
reviews).
- Possible alternative texts
- Structured Computer Organization
by Andrew S. Tanenbaum,
2006 (5th edition), Prentice-Hall, ISBN 0-13-148521-0.
(a more architecture-oriented alternative to Bryant & O'Hallaron;
supports most course topics)
- Computer Systems
by J Stanley Word, 2003 (third edition), ISBN 0-7637-3239-7
(a slightly more readable alternative to Null & Lobor;
also matches the approach of COMP2300 better
but using C++/PEP8 instead of C/PeANUt)
- Computer Organization
by Carl Hamacher, Zvonko Vranesic and Safwat Zaky,
2002 (5th edition), McGraw-Hill, ISBN 0-07-112218-14.
(fairly advanced and architecture oriented)
- Computer Organization and Architecture:
Designing for Performance
by William Stallings,
2006 (7th edition), Prentice-Hall, ISBN 0-13-185644-8.
(even more so!)
- Computer Architecture - A Quantitative Approach
by John L. Hennessey and David A. Patterson,
2003 (3rd edition), Morgan Kaufmann, ISBN 1-55860-724-2.
(ditto. The most authoritative book in the field)
- Pure C Programming
by Amir Afzal, 1999, Prentice-Hall, ISBN 0-130840703-7.
Available from the ANU Library.
This used to be our prescribed text till it went out of print.
With lots of examples and exercises, source codes on a
floppy disk (a what?) included.
- C Programming Made Simple
by Conor Sexton, 1998, Made Simple Books, ISBN 0-7506-3244-5.
(as its title suggests. You can find +ve and -ve reviews on it)
- The C Programming Language
by Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie, 1988,
Prentice Hall, ISBN 0-13-110362-8. Available from
Coop Bookshop and ANU Library.
(from the developers of C, not an introductory programming
manual, rather a reference book)
Last modified: 13/02/2009, 11:10
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