A first course introducing students to the fundamentals of computational problem solving. Students will learn a systematic approach to problem solving, including how to frame a problem in computational terms, how to decompose larger problems into smaller components, how to implement innovative software solutions using a contemporary programming language, how to critically debug their solutions, and how to assess the adequacy of the software solution. Additional topics include an introduction to object-oriented programming and data structures such as arrays and stacks. Students will complete both in-class and out-of-class assignments.

This course teaches the student the essential technologies needed by NSSA majors, focused on PC and mainframe hardware topics. They include how those platforms operate, how they are configured, and the operation of their major internal components. Also covered are the basic operating system interactions with those platforms, physical security of assets, and computing-centric mathematical concepts.

This course provides an introduction to wired network infrastructures, topologies, technologies, and the protocols required for effective end-to-end communication. Basic security concepts for TCP/IP based technologies are introduced. Networking layers 1, 2, and 3 are examined in-depth using the International Standards Organization’s Open Systems Interconnection and TCP/IP models as reference. Course topics focus on the TCP/IP protocol suite, the Ethernet LAN protocol, switching technology, and routed and routing protocols common in TCP/IP networks. The lab assignments mirror the lecture content , providing an experiential learning component for each topic covered.

This course explores mid-range (server farms and clusters) and mainframe system architecture, hardware, configuration, and operating system concepts. Students in this course gain understanding of the reasons companies choose mid-range and large-scale systems for their computing environments and how those firms implement those architectures.

This course provides students with a background in the technologies and techniques used to design, implement, and maintain a modern data center. This course will help students to see the interrelated nature of many of these topics and to gain a better understanding of the role of the following technologies in a modern data center: physical facility design, network infrastructures, power distribution, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), storage, high-availability computing, disaster recovery, and emerging data center technologies.