ECES 795: Introduction to Computer Architecture

• Syllabus
• Schedule
• A copy of Myer's article "Requisites for Improved Architectures"

Class Notes

• Introduction
• Prehistory
• History
• Myers' Material: containing my notes summarizing the first four chapters of Myers' text. Remember that the thoughts put forth in this material were formulated in the late 1970's.
• Patterson & Hennessey: Computer Architecture, A Quantative Approach
  • Chapter 1: Fundamentals of Computer Design
  • Appendix B: Instruction Set Principles and Examples
  • Appendix A: Pipelining
  • Chapters 2: Instruction Level Parallelism
  • Chapters 3: Limits on ILP
  • Appendix C: Memory-Hierarchy Design (Basic Concepts)
  • Chapter 5: Memory-Hierarchy Design (Advanced Concepts)
  • Chapter 4: Multiprocessors and Thread-Level Parallelism
  • Chapter 6: Storage Systems
• Extra Notes on I/O and Memory

Some interesting reading

• Setting Compiler Switches using an Evolutionary Algorithm
• IA-64 Overview
• IA-64 Innovations
• O/S and Compiler Considerations in the Design of the Intel IA-64
• Contrasting Pipelines in the AMD K7 and Hammer Processors
• Contrasting Pipelines in the Intel Pentium III and Pentium IV Processors
• Transmeta's Crusoe
• Power Management in Transmeta's Crusoe

Sample Exams from Previous Years

• Previous Year's Mid-Term Exam 1
• Previous Year's Mid-Term Exam 2
• Previous Year's Final

Contact Information