CST 334 - Week 1

CST 334 Week 1 Summary:

This week was a solid intro to how operating systems work especially around the idea of processes. I learned that what feels like multiple programs running at the same time is really just the OS switching between them really fast — way faster than we notice. The OSTEP reading broke down how context switching works and what’s actually saved when the OS switches from one process to another. It basically tells us that every process has its own state and memory even if it’s just sitting idle.

I also brushed up on basic computer architecture and got more comfortable using the Linux shell. In one of the assignments we used gcc to compile C programs. We also practiced navigating files and running commands. We also went through the process of using gdb to debug C code. Setting breakpoints and stepping through the program made it way easier to see what was actually going wrong. The PA1 assignment was definitely challenging especially getting String__resize to pass all the tests but it pushed me to actually apply everything I was learning. I still don’t feel like an expert, but this week gave me a good foundation. I can already see how low level knowledge like this will help me become a better programmer.