CS 7960: Advanced Computer Networking

Professor John Carter
MW 3:40-5:00 in the CSL Library
Credits: 3 (not variable)
Email: retrac@cs.utah.edu
URL: http://www.cs.utah.edu/~retrac/cs7960.html

Important Links

Overview

This is a graduate-level special topics class whose goals are:

to understand the state-of-the-art in network protocols, architectures and applications,
to understand how networking research is done.
to investigate novel ideas in the area via semester-long research projects.

CS 7960 is intended for graduate and advanced undergraduate students interested in exploring the state of the art in networking technology. The goal of this class is to pick up where CS 5480 (Networking) left off and to delve into various topics involving emerging networking technology and standards.

The topics that we cover will be driven by the interests of the class. Based on discussion during the first class meeting, topics that we will (likely) cover include (not necessarily in this order):

Internet design philosophy and methodology (background)
fast and fair unicast and multicast routing
unicast and multicast congestion control
reliable multicast protocols
protocols and hardware to support mobile/wireless computing
web protocols and caching algorithms
multimedia (internet telephony, video streaming, adaptive algorithms, etc.)
active networks
internet measurement and monitoring services
location-independent services
network security and encryption

To quote Hari Balakrishnan (MIT): ``This is only the start of the Information Technology revolution, which, if successful, promises to change the way we communicate with each other and conduct our daily activities and business. Massive efforts are underway to develop new uses for the global network infrastructure, which are sure the stress the system. It is critical that designers of these applications (and this is fast becoming the set of most software engineers!) understand how networks work and what they can and cannot do. It is equally important for network researchers and practitioners to constantly evolve the infrastructure to accomodate new applications quickly, and ensure that what they design withstands the stress that new applications can impose on the system. Examples of these applications include streaming audio and video, network games, news updates, online auctions, remote sensing, home network applications, and so on.

In addition, the hardware technologies that are used to put the Internet together are undergoing radical change. Gone are the days when the Internet was the domain of Ethernets and T1 lines. Tomorrow's Internet is sure to be a pot-pourri of high-bandwidth wired links, switched Ethernets, cable networks, ADSL, packet radio links, wireless LANs, satellites, power lines,...''

Syllabus

Prerequisites

Undergraduate systems course covering basic networking concepts (e.g., CS 5480 or equivalent) and/or consent of instructor. Enrollment may be limited.

Course Structure

Class meetings will discuss assigned readings from the literature. This class will emphasize the practical aspects of computer networks and the Internet, and will be centered around discussions and arguments! Class participation is therefore very important.

Grading

Grades will be based primarily on a significant course project. Participants will also write a conference-style paper describing the project and make a presentation of their work at the end of the term.

Homework: The success of this class depends on a high degree of participation in the paper dicussions. Thus, the homework will be to read and criticize the papers in the reading list in advance of the class discussion. Here are the rules: each class will focus on one or two papers. By the start of class, for one of the papers to be discussed, you should hand it a 1/2 page (in other words, keep it short) evaluation of the paper listing (i) the three most important things the paper says, (ii) the most glaring problem with the paper, and (iii) what conclusion you draw from the paper regarding research on the web. Clearly, you may have changed your mind by the end of the class discussion; that's OK (and even expected).

The homeworks will be graded as follows: you start with 20 points on the homeworks. Each homework will be graded with a check (OK) or a minus (not acceptable). Each minus will deduct 2 (of the 20) homework points. Don't worry too much -- the grading will be very easy, particularly in the beginning of class. Also, you may skip up to 1/5 of the homeworks with no penalty. However, the homework for a paper is due at the start of class in which the paper is to be discussed, and late homeworks will not be accepted.

The homework summaries should reflect your understanding of the paper. It is not acceptable to turn in a summary if you have not made an honest effort to read the paper. If you don't have time to read a paper before a class, make use of one of your skip credits.

New: Please print out and use the following form for your reviews. For those of you comfortable using LaTeX, here is the LaTeX source for the form that you can download, edit to add your reviews, compile, and print.

To summarize:

Course Project (Paper + Presentation)	40%
Homeworks (reviews of papers)	20%
Class participation (including paper presentations/discussion leadership)	40%

But remember, this is a graduate class and grades do not (should not) really matter (i.e., grades shouldn't be your primary or only motivator!). What matters is how much you learn about research in networking and how much it excites you! I hope this class and the project you do meets that goal.