TA Staff Lecture Slides Assignments Calendar Docs


    Oct 6, 2008 [22:42]
As some of you know, problem 4.3 on the homework doesn't make much sense in its current state. Apologies for this. Here are some clarifications:

1) Bob for some reason mentions SOU, which isn't even in the table. Just cross out that instruction and imagine he never said that.
2) Your friend Bob could be an idiot.
3) In terms of propagation time, up until now, you have all learned that propagation happens in discrete steps. However, for the purposes of this problem, you can split up the propagations anyway you want because this problem works in imagination land.
4) Assume that reducing the clock cycle time is not cost-free. That is, while you could drop the clock cycle in theory to .00001 ns, that would cost you a gazillion dollars to do.

We will be posting an updated version of the homework shortly.
    Sep 23, 2008 [23:54]
Mark your calendars! Back by popular demand, the CS31 TA staff will be holding a RISC helpsession next Monday at 8:00PM, once again in CIT 219. RISC is your first project, going out on Friday. It can be quite intimidating at first glance, as you're actually building a functional computer in Diglog. However, the TA staff is here to support you, first by offering a help session, and then doing the mandatory design checks later in the week. We highly recommend you make full use of this by reading over the project handout over the weekend and thinking about the problems you'll have to solve so you can come to the helpsession with lots of questions.
    Sep 23, 2008 [21:02]
Good news from the 31 TA staff: a new TA has joined the course! Siddhartha Jain (a.k.a. Captain Falcon) will be joining us for the rest of the semester. With another TA in our ranks, we'll be able to better help you guys throughout the course. Sid's arrival will concide with a leave of absence by Dan, who has been under a heavy workload outside of CS31. Feel free to stop by Sid's hours to say hi (and feel free to drop by the other TA's hours too!)
    Sep 21, 2008 [09:13]
The diglog helpsession slides can now be found on the docs page. If you missed the helpsession, or just need some help getting started with building circuits, feel free to check it out.
    Sep 16, 2008 [23:04]
Your friendly neighborhood CS31 TA's will be holding a helpsession on Diglog this Thursday at 8:00PM in CIT 219. Diglog is a digital circuit simulator you will need to use on several problems in HW2, as well as later homeworks and projects. While powerful, Diglog has a somewhat unintuitive user interface and a few "quirks" which might surprise you, so we highly recommend you attend!
    Sep 11, 2008 [15:47]
Looking over the first homework assignment, we've noticed a small error in problem 1.3. It asks you to find 1100111111011 - 10101000111001, which doesn't make much sense given the problem requirements. We have corrected the problem set, and the updated assignment is now online.
    Sep 10, 2008 [18:51]
We have discovered an error in problem 1.4 on the first homework. Part b of this problem asked for 8-bit 2's complement arithmetic of -76 + 321. However, 321 is too large a value to be represented in 2's complement notation using 8-bits. The homework has been updated and the problem now asks for 8-bit 2's complement arithmetic of -76 + 65. Apologies for any confusion this may have caused.
    Sep 8, 2008 [00:43]
Hope shopping period is treating you well! We also hope you've all decided that CS031 is totally awesome and that you want to take it this semester. If you are planning on taking CS031, make sure to turn in your collaboration policy, as we cannot grade your assignments until you sign it and hand it in.
The first homework will be going out on Wednesday, September 10, which also signals the start of TA hours. Feel free to come during any of the hours listed on the TA staff page if you have any questions about the material presented in class thus far.
    Aug 27, 2008 [14:01]
Hi! Welcome to the website for CS031, a.k.a. CSCI0310. This page will be updated with critical information pertaining to the class, so check it frequently. The class will be meeting during G hour (MWF 2-2:50). The first lecture will be held on Friday, September 5th. Hope to see you there! :)