The course outline for Error-Control Coding is as follows:
An introduction to the theory and practice of codes for detecting and correcting errors in digital data communication and storage systems. Topics include linear block codes, cyclic codes, cyclic redundancy checksums, BCH and Reed-Solomon codes, convolutional codes, trellis-coded modulation, LDPC and turbo codes, Viterbi and sequential decoding, and encoder and decoder architecture. Applications include the design of computer memories, local-area networks, compact disc digital audio, NASA’s deepspace network, high-speed modems, communication satellites, and cellular telephony.
The course is being taught by Dr. Brian Hughes.
The course outline for Digital ASIC Design is as follows:
Modern digital design practices based on Hardware Description Languages (Verilog, VHDL) and CAD tools, particularly logic synthesis. Emphasis on design practice and the underlying algorithms. Introduction to deep submicron design issues, particularly interconnect and low power and to ASIC applications, and decision making.
The course is being taught by Dr. Paul Franzon.
I have dropped ECE 515: Digital Communications, and replaced it with ECE 767: Error-Control Coding, by using the EOL Class Schedule Revision Form. Thus, my schedule for the Spring 2008 semester is finalized as follows:
With two heavy Engineering courses, this will be one of the most difficult semesters yet.
Grades for CSC 510, Software Engineering, have finally been posted. They are as follows:
- Midterm Exam, 90%
- Homework 1, 100%
- Homework 2, 100%
- Homework 3, 100%
- Final Project, ?
- Final Exam, 89%
Final average: ? (A)
Costs: $2040 (tuition) + $140.32 (books)
The final project grade was never posted, so it’s impossible to directly calculate a numerical final average. The Spring 2008 semester begins January 9th, with three out of ten courses having been completed thus far.
The second semester has concluded and the grades are slowly trickling in. Grades for ECE 570, Computer Networks, are as follows:
- Midterm Exam, 86%
- Quiz 1, 60%
- Homework 1, 100%
- Homework 2, 106%
- Homework 3, 98%
- Homework 4, 100%
- Homework 5, 95%
- Final Project, 98%
- Final Exam, 66%
Final average: 86.44% (A)
Costs: $2040 (tuition) + $73.89 (books)
Quiz 1 was dropped entirely for most students because of the low results overall. Despite the low numerical final exam grade, I received the highest score on the final project in the class and that was enough to keep me at an ‘A’ (4.0) in this course for the semester. Numerically, these scores were considerably lower than CSC 501, but the difficulty was far higher and this is reflected in the grade distribution through scaling.
I’m still waiting on the results from CSC 510, Software Engineering, but I’ve once again decided to sign up for two courses in the Spring 2008 semester: ECE 515: Digital Communications, and ECE 520: Digital ASIC Design.
NC State Engineering Online has posted a list of courses for the upcoming Spring 2008 semester. Registration for graduate students begins on Tuesday, October 16. This semester it looks as though they will be offering a variety of 700 level courses, including Computer-Aided Circuit Analysis, Digital Electronics, and Pattern Recognition.
The course outline for Software Engineering is as follows:
An introduction to software life cycle models; size estimation; cost and schedule estimation; project management; risk management; formal technical reviews; analysis, design, coding and testing methods; configuration management and change control; and software reliability estimation. Emphasis on large development projects.
The course is being taught by Dr. Aldo Dagnino.
The course outline for Computer Networks is as follows:
Detailed description and related performance issues of OSI layers two and three for wide-area networks, well-known standards for local and wide area networks such as Ethernet and TCP/IP, and basic random access mechanisms for local area networks. 3 credit hours.
The course is being taught by Dr. Rudra Dutta. It is a live course and thus offered through a RealMedia format. The digitized lecture is made available approximately thirty minutes after the actual class.
The second semester as an official distance learning student at NC State has begun, and I’ve finally been reimbursed for my first semester by my employer. Grades for the course were as follows:
- Midterm Exam, 96%
- Homework 1, 100%
- Homework 2, 100%
- Homework 3, 100%
- Homework 4, 105%
- Homework 5, 96%
- Final Exam, 99%
Final average: 98.46% (A+)
Costs: $2040 (tuition) + $155.26 (books)
Based on these results, I’ve decided to take two courses in the Fall 2007 semester, CSC 510: Software Engineering, and ECE 570: Computer Networks.
I’m taking CSC 501, Operating Systems Principles, as the first course in a sequence of many in my graduate career. The course is taught by Dr. Douglas Pase, and his lectures are delivered via a streaming and downloadable presentation system called MediaSite, as opposed to RealPlayer. Ironically, MediaSite only works on Internet Explorer, but I found it to be a decent enough delivery system for lectures, so I can see why it’s used.
Homework assignments are turned in electronically through WolfWare Submit, and message boards are available to students so that some degree of interaction is provided. Unfortunately, I haven’t seen more than a handful of students actually post to the forums at this point, but it is only the first week.
The course offered this summer was recorded during the 15-week semester at NC State University. The summer session, however, is 10 weeks in duration. Therefore, the course material is covered at a considerably faster pace than during the regular semester. I think it’s possible as a full-time employee to do one course at a time in the Summer, and two courses at a time for the Fall and Spring semesters. This way you’ll still be able to graduate in two years, rather than four.