Introduction to Computing Systems: From bits & gates to C & beyond | 
| Authors: Yale N. Patt, Sanjay J. Patel
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math
Category: Book
Buy Used: $70.00
New (14) Used (34) from $70.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 11242
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 2
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 656
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.3
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 7.3 x 0.8
ISBN: 0072467509
Dewey Decimal Number: 004
EAN: 9780072467505
Publication Date: August 5, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: FREE USPS Expedited shipping Upgrade! hardcover, no dustjacket, moderate shelf wear, corners/edges are worn/bent/bumped, light smudges/handling wear on page edges, covers are scuffed/smudged, text only - no cdroms/access codes, 2nd ed. -MLY
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Product Description
Introduction to Computing Systems: From bits & gates to C & beyond, now in its second edition, is designed to give students a better understanding of computing early in their college careers in order to give them a stronger foundation for later courses. The book is in two parts: (a) the underlying structure of a computer, and (b) programming in a high level language and programming methodology. To understand the computer, the authors introduce the LC-3 and provide the LC-3 Simulator to give students hands-on access for testing what they learn. To develop their understanding of programming and programming methodology, they use the C programming language. The book takes a "motivated" bottom-up approach, where the students first get exposed to the big picture and then start at the bottom and build their knowledge bottom-up. Within each smaller unit, the same motivated bottom-up approach is followed. Every step of the way, students learn new things, building on what they already know. The authors feel that this approach encourages deeper understanding and downplays the need for memorizing. Students develop a greater breadth of understanding, since they see how the various parts of the computer fit together.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...
 Gradual and relaxed intro, well done June 28, 2008
I had programmed in a number of languages including C before, but I was a bit intimidated by assembler. I was also curious about how microchips work, and why they seem to be all about transistors. There's a lot of material on the web on this subject, but none of it seems detailed and organized enough to really teach you anything. After reading this book, it all makes sense.
There are some great sections including simple, excellent explanations of 2s-complement numbers and finite state machines. I'd recommend this book to anyone who already programs in C, and has played a bit with pointers - I'm not sure I would have liked to encounter them for the first time in this text.
The book is not perfect. Its pace is very slow, and authors often threw in "real-world" analogies which I didn't find helpful. Some sections are a bit repetitive. There were a few concepts thrown in without careful introduction, for example call-by-value vs. call-by-reference. Again, that's not a serious problem if you have even passing familiarity with C.
Overall, a gradual, relaxed, well-structured introduction to a fascinating subject. Good preparation for further study.
 Excellent Book to Teach You the Basics of the Computer May 6, 2007
This book is really good for learning the basics of how a computer functions. It takes you from the low-level Flip-Flops to explaining how a register and other small components of a computer work. Then the book shows you the basic components a computer, and then gives a full example in the LC-3. The LC-3 is complete with a architecture diagram and Assembly instructions. The book does a good job of of taking you through the LC-3 data path and showing how an instruction is implemented on the architecture. The book also does a good job of showing how the assembly code connects to higher level languages like C/++ or Java. It also gives a high-level explanation of exactly what a compiler does. Towards the end it gives some information on data structures and particularly as to how a stack would be implemented by the LC-3 in assembly. The book also explains how memory works and how input and output are handled in some computers.
Some problems with the book are in the C section. This book does not give a real C tutorial, there are much better guides to C programming.It doesn't really give you any instruction as to how to program in LC-3 Assembly; however, the instructions are simple enough that you should be able to figure it out. Another potential problem is the combinational logic section. This part of the book is not really comprehensive, but teaches what you need to know so that you understand how all the low-level components work; however, if you want to design your own combinational logic, then there are other books for that. Also this book does not really go into the theory of how and why they developed the LC-3 architecture as it is. It is just an intro to get you used how a computer architecture looks and how it works.
All in all a great read for a CS student or Electrical Engineer to get an idea of how a computer runs the programs written on it.
Note: I am a student at University of Illinois (Patel works here) and took a class created around this book. ECE 190 is still my favorite class I've taken to date.
 Needs improvement February 5, 2007
I was lucky enough to be taught by the professor himself--Dr. Patt. The book needs definite improvement in clarity. Too many of the concepts are abstract and ambiguous. The exercises at the end of each section are pathetic, they should be presented more in a Mathematical or Physics style and they do not flex your knowledge about what you have learned in that section. I had to rely on my TAs to explain certain concepts to me since the book did such a poor job.
However, once you master everything that this book has to offer (I strongly recommend you read the appendixes at the end of the book as collateral reading) you will truly understand how computers work at the most fundamental level.
Great book. January 3, 2007
This is one of the best books I have used for a computer science course. This book is really detailed. Would really recommend getting this book and keeping it for reference.
Better Than The Teacher December 15, 2005
I had a pretty ambiguous and boring teacher for the course that required this book so I didn't listen to her much at all in class. Instead, I just substituted the book for her lectures, and I aced the course with ease learning much about how a computer works along the way. It makes me feel a lot more competent about programming to know this stuff, and the book provides it in a pretty good way through the LC-3 architecture and sprinkles the book with examples.
I didn't read any of the "C and beyond" stuff, but everything else was spot-on. I found that most of the teacher's slides (up until a couple of last topics the book didn't cover like linking and loading) were almost identical to the book's presentation of the material. It's a pricey book, but take heart in knowing that it's not a waste of your money for what you get from it.
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