Xref: utzoo misc.jobs.contract:361 comp.edu:3402 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!wuarchive!cec2!news From: conrad@wucs1.wustl.edu (H. Conrad Cunningham) Newsgroups: misc.jobs.contract,comp.edu Subject: Re: Qualified? or Dreaming? Message-ID: <1990Jul24.140502.17990@cec1.wustl.edu> Date: 24 Jul 90 14:05:02 GMT References: <1990Jul8.063302.4076@xavax.com> <2616@igloo.scum.com> <1990Jul11.233006.17884@nmt.edu> <1990Jul23.060010.20406@grian.cps.altadena.ca.us> <37714@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Sender: news@cec2 (USENET News System) Reply-To: conrad@wucs1.wustl.edu (H. Conrad Cunningham) Organization: Washington University, St. Louis MO Lines: 46 In article <37714@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> matloff@heather.ucdavis.edu (Norm Matloff) writes: >In article <1990Jul23.060010.20406@grian.cps.altadena.ca.us> steve@grian.cps.altadena.ca.us (Steve Mitchell) writes: > >%derive the algorithm. _VERY_FEW_ programming jobs in industry involve >%writing compilers or operating systems: most (at least in my >%experience) involve using computers to solve various real-world >%problems. It would be much more useful if CS departments turned out >%grads with general problem solving and programming skills, rather than >%aiming them at jobs developing system software at computer companies. > >This is really shortsighted. Very few people *write* an OS, but almost >everyone *uses* OSs. A good knowledge of how an OS works is essential >to making good use of one. Almost everyone uses compilers, networks, text editors, word processors, database systems, windowing systems, electronic mail, etc., etc. The list grows longer every year. Using the argument above we should have a required course on every piece of technology that we use. That's ridiculous and "really shortsighted"! I will, of course, agree that computer science graduates need a sophisticated working knowledge of the major pieces of technology that they use. But that should not require our CS curricula to read like an inventory of the currently important technological artifacts. CS curricula should be focussed on principles rather than specific technologies. Emphasis should be given to concepts which cut across several areas of technology, instead of arbitrarily breaking CS into many technology-oriented subfields. Instead of core a course on "operating systems" why not a course on "concurrent programming". Such a course could unify important concurrency-related concepts drawn from operating systems, programming languages, database systems, networks, algorithmics, computer architecture, computation theory, etc. Couldn't such a course be more useful as well as conceptually cleaner. -Conrad ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- H. Conrad Cunningham | Title: Assistant Professor Dept. of Computer & Info. Science | Telephone: (601) 232-5358 Fax: 232-7010 The University of Mississippi | Internet: cunningham@cs.olemiss.edu 302 Weir Hall |-------------------------------------------- University, MS 38677 | Home: Rt. 1, Box 81, Oxford, MS 38655 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. H. Conrad Cunningham | Title: Assistant Professor Dept. of Computer & Info. Science | Telephone: (601) 232-5358 Fax: 232-7010 The University of Mississippi | Internet: cunningham@cs.olemiss.edu