Professor: Herlihy Course format: Lecture Number of respondents: 8 Total Enrollment: 12 Class Composition: Froshs: 0 Sophs: 0 Jrs: 0 Srs: 1 Concs: 6 Non-Concs: 1 Don't Know: 0

Instructor Average: 1.88 Course Average: 1.75

“Introduction to Distributed Computing” is a lecture course aimed at helping students learn about current distributive computing and multiprocessor synchronization. Prerequisites for the course include CS16 or 18, CS 22, and CS 31. Basic knowledge of data structures and threads is useful, as is “an internal source of caffeine”, according to one student.

Most students felt that Professor Herlihy was clear and straightforward and thought that his teaching techniques were very effective, especially considering the difficult nature of the subject matter. They particularly enjoyed the slides and the review of last class’ subject matter at the beginning of each new class. Some, however, felt that the professor moved a bit too fast and indeed spent more time reviewing what was learned last class than was really necessary.

For “Introduction to Distributed Computing”, students were required to take a midterm and a final and complete five “very time-consuming” homework assignments. Some students felt that the midterm was too long and needs to be shortened. Most reviewers liked the readings for the class, though some remarked that the textbook, which is a work in progress, has many errors in it and needs “cleaning up”. Another common complaint was that the course web page was hard to access.

Students spent an average of four to ten hours per week on this class. Most felt that their level of effort matched their initial expectations, though some felt that the class was easier than they expected. Overall, students felt that “Introduction to Distributed Computing” was a very interesting course, and indeed worth taking.

View CS/0176 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.