Outline of Course Topics

1. Introduction to Linux/UNIX and Operating Systems
   • Linux/UNIX history
   • OS functions, OS types, components (kernel, drivers, etc.)
   • command-line interfaces (CLIs) vs. GUI interfaces (GUIs)
   • CLI: shells, bash, c shell
   • GUI: X windows, window managers
   • file system structure, pathnames, file permissions
   • Linux distributions and application software
2. Effective Shell (CLI) Usage
   • basic commands and utilities (cd, mkdir, rm, cp, cat, etc.)
   • piping, redirection, filters
   • command line editing, history, etc.
   • shell startup files, aliases
3. Introduction to C Language Programming
   • C vs. Java
   • header files, preprocessor directives
   • pointers, arrays, strings
   • dynamic memory allocation
   • command-line arguments, return values
   • standard library I/O functions
4. Linux/UNIX Development Tools and Techniques
   • compiling: GCC, Make, etc.
   • editors and IDEs
   • debugging: GDB, DDD, etc.
   • libraries
5. System Programming
   • files and I/O (open, close, read, write, dup, etc.)
   • processes (fork, exec, etc.)
   • threads [optional]
   • pipes and IPC (pipe, mkfifo, etc.)
   • signals
6. Network Programming
   • networking basics, IP, TCP, UDP
   • client-server model
   • socket, etc. system calls