> Hi, as a McGill graduate who has taken this course before and had so > much difficulties in understanding UNIX system function concepts, I > strongly recommend adding the book "UNIX Systems Programming" (by > David A. Curry, published by O'Reilly) to the reference list. I am not > working as a book salesman now, but I strongly believe that a good > book can totally change a student's experience during a course. > > After I looked at the syllabus, it seems to me that not enough > emphasis is put on UNIX system programming. In fact, this is the most > precious thing students can learn out of this course - solid knowledge > of programming using UNIX system functions. In comparison, I find that > a similar course [...] is much more practical. > > Sorry for my harsh comments above, but as an old student who > did not get much out of a course which could be vital to any student's > career, I have the obligation to speak out. Thank you so much for > putting up with me. > > Yours, > > A McGill graduate, Class of 97I couldn't agree with you more about the value of learning UNIX system programming in an OS course, provided it is built on a solid understanding of the fundamental concepts. Since I did not instruct the course when you took OS here, I cannot comment on what you did or did not learn. However, before making comparisons with other courses, based solely on the syllabus, might I suggest that you look through the lecture notes and assignments to get a better appreciation of what the students have been doing this term. I hazard a guess that you'd be pleasantly surprised.
I'd also be interested to hear your opinion on how Curry's book compares to the other UNIX references I have listed, especially Stevens, which is considered by many to be the bible. Are there specific sections that you would recommend as required reading to supplement the rest of the course?
Regards,
Jeremy