Gary D. Brown
CIS 50.71: Introduction to Unix
Spring 2008
Section 5395
Offered Online
Syllabus
Course Description:
Designed for the serious computer user, this course will introduce the student to the basic concepts of the UNIX operating system as implemented by the Red Hat Linux distrubution. Completion of the course will provide a good basic working knowledge of essential UNIX commands, login and logout sequences, setting passwords, UNIX E-mail, fundamentals of the vi editor, piping and redirection, security and process control, the Kernel, File System, UNIX shell programming, X Windows, and basic system administration. (CR/NC option)
Prerequisites:
Although this course has no administrative prerequisites, it is not designed for beginners, and CIS 51.13 Microsoft DOS/Windows Command Line Basics, or an equivalent familiarity with a command-line-oriented operating system is recommended. Students will find some programming experience helpful as well.
Texts:
Required
Recommended
-
Linux in a Nutshell, 5th edition; O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.
-
In the Beginning ... Was the Command Line, Stephenson, Avon Books
This engaging, insightful, and frequently hilarious 150-page book sells for $10. Make sure you have a couple of free hours before you start reading it. Although most folks will find the paperback the most comfortable reading approach, you can also download the entire text at the author's Cryptonomicon site.
-
The UNIX-HATERS Handbook, Garfinkel, Weise & Strassman (Out of print, alas! Try to find it used; it's well worth it.)
Additional Materials:
- We recommend that you have at home a computer, modem, and an account with a local Internet Service Provider.
- Secure Telnet Required: For security reasons, we now require that you use an SSH ("Secure Shell") telnet program, that encrypts your terminal.
SRJC Laboratory
Lab hours:
The course format assumes you will spend an additional 3.5 hours per week in the CIS computer lab or elseware. You can complete all of the lab exercises from home if you have the necessary Internet setup. The actual time you spend on each lab exercise will vary.
Timekeeping:
Please keep track of any time you spend in the CIS lab by using the TimeKeeper computers. You may ask a lab assistant for instructions. SRJC receives state funding based on your use of the laboratory facilities.
Printing in the CIS Lab:
Please do not print course materials in the CIS lab. You may print them at home or elsewhere, but if you print lab assignments or other course documents in the lab, you may be asked to leave. If you need paper copies of any course material, please ask me.
Assignments
Details of the laboratory assignments
can be found at the schedule. When you complete an exercise, you will have questions to answer, commands to experiment with, scripts to write, and other tasks that will help you learn about UNIX.
How to submit assignments:
Laboratory exercises must be transmitted via the appropriate answer forms. Links to these appear in the schedule.
Assignment criteria:
- No submissions will be accepted two weeks after the indicated due dates; please do not ask for an extension.
- Only complete and correct assignments receive full credit. Late assignments will receive a 20% reduction for each week late, and assignments turned in more than two weeks late will receive no credit.
Communication
Questions about course content:
Please email all questions you have about the course content, including homework and study topics, to the unix-intro mailing list. You must first subscribe to the mailing list; please see the unix-intro Mailing List directions.
Private correspondence:
Use the instructor's email address for questions about grading, scoring, or administrative issues. Course content questions will not be answered at that address. Please format the subject line as follows:
- The Subject: field must consist of
- the section number (5395)
- a period
- the last four digits of your student ID
- another period
- the letter Q
- For example, 5395.9809.Q No other text may appear in this field.
Instructor
Please see the schedule for office hours and laboratory times. The office is located in Maggini Hall, 3rd floor, room 2935. You may also access voice mail by dialing (707) 527-4370 at any time. Email address is srjc-gary@metamagic.info. The website is available at http://www.metamagic.info.
Exams and Grading
Exams:
The course will have one miderm and one final exam, both online. The final exam will be comprehensive, covering material from the entire course. You may take exams with open book and open notes. The midterm exam and final will be available on the dates given in the schedule.
Missing a Test:
If you find you cannot take a test during the scheduled time, you must make arrangements before the test for a special appointment.
Grading:
- Up to 12 lab assignments and 2 exams, open book and open notes. The lab assignments contribute to 2/3 of your grade, and the exams together constitute 1/3.
- Letter grades will be assigned based on exams and assignments, using the following percentages : 90% = A, 80% = B, 70% = C, 60% = D. If the class average falls below a C, grades will be determined acording the alternative grading policy.
Credit/NoCredit:
You may apply for a Credit/No Credit option in this course with Admissions & Records. You get Credit (CR) for "C" level work or better, and the units don't affect your grade point average.
Withdrawal from the course:
You have the responsibility to withdraw from the course if you decide to not complete. To officially withdraw from a class, you must submit a drop form to the Admissions and Records Office. After the withdrawal deadline, a "W" grade cannot be assigned; a letter grade must be given based on the assignments and tests that have been completed (normally resulting in an F). Before withdrawing, please contact me; perhaps I can help.
Academic Integrity:
The system maintenance and administration skills covered in this course require self-reliance and independent effort. Collaboration, on the other hand, is sometimes appropriate in an educational setting.
Permitted Collaboration
- Exam and homework preparation
- Lecture and chapter review
- Lecture notes exchange
- Practice problems not contained in assignments
Prohibited Collaboration
- Joint or cooperative development of answers
- Modification and/or use of another's answers
- Revealing and/or giving answers to another student
- Viewing and/or receiving answers from another student
Consequences of Prohibited Collaboration
- The first offense will result in a penalty (rather than credit) of the assignment's maximum score.
- A second offense will cause the student to be dropped from the course.
Your UNIX Account
As a Unix student, you will apply for an account on student.santarosa.edu, the SRJC Linux server. Please immediately request an account on student.santarosa.edu, SRJC's Linux server. It can take up to a week for the administrators to create your new account.
- To apply for your account:
- Go to the web site http://student.santarosa.edu
- Click on "Application for Student Account or go directly to: https://student.santarosa.edu/apply/
- In the blank at the bottom of the page labeled "Social Security Number", enter your SRJC student identification number (usually your Social Security Number).
- Click the "Submit Form" button.
- You may check back at the above page to see if your account exists yet.
- Because your instructor sends e-mail to students from time to time, you'll need to connect to student.santarosa.edu periodically to check your mail..
- student.santarosa.edu has no dial-in access. Therefore, you need to connect to student.santarosa.edu via "secure telnet" from another computer system, either through the SRJC campus network or a third party provider (see below). You can also connect to student.santarosa.edu through a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) program.
- Your account will be valid and active until approximately 1 week after the end of the semester. It will then be deleted and all data stored in this account will be irretrievably lost. You'll receive instructions on how to log in on student.santarosa.edu.
- You MUST change your password the first time you log on.
- Your account may be terminated at any time without notice. Do not keep any important or sensitive data on student.santarosa.edu; it is not backed up and your data is subject to loss unless you take care of it yourself.
Third Party Providers: You can connect to student.santarosa.edu through your own account with a Internet Service Provider (ISP), using secure telnet access. Account fees vary but are generally about $20 to $25 per month, plus a one time start-up fee. Please contact me if you need ISP information.
© 2008 Eric Skagerberg & Gary Brown
Computer & Information Sciences Department
Santa Rosa Junior College
2008/01/21