A Web-Based Electronic Laboratory for Operating Systems and Computer Networks

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The geometric increase in computer power and the ubiquitous availability of network connectivity are revolutionizing computing. A computer science curriculum based on old teaching techniques may seem dull and irrelevant to the modern student. Instruction in the undergraduate curriculum for the most part does not make active use of new technology. A multimedia presentation during a lecture by an instructor is considered to be a passive use of technology. In contrast, a student who can control a multimedia visualization is making active use of such technology. The difference between passive and active use of technology is similar to the difference between watching a laboratory demonstration and performing an experiment. Aside from making the learning experience more interesting, a well-designed experiment can challenge the student and encourage creativity. A user-controlled animation can have a similar effect and provide the student with a virtual laboratory environment. A Colleague and I have already successfully redesigned about half of the curriculum for an undergraduate operating systems course by constructing a series of programming projects that enable students to experiment with congruency and communication. This work has been recently published in a book by Prentice Hall and is gaining acceptance at prestigious universities. The remainder of the curriculum in a traditional operating systems course does not easily lend itself to exploration using programming projects that can be completed by a student in a short period of time. I will design a curriculum for this second part of operating systems and for computer networks in which students perform experiments in a virtual laboratory setting. The laboratory experiments will use animated simulations written in the Java language allowing them to be run on virtually any computer connected to the Internet. A framework for developing active animations will be set up so that these animations can be efficiently produced. *