Описание
Englander f02.tex V2 - December 9, 2013 2:51 P.M. Page xviii
PREFACE
The modern world offers a lot of readily available online resources for learning. Wikipedia,
Google, news sources, millions of Web sites and blogs, even YouTube, offer access to
information in nearly any subject that triggers your curiosity and interest. Nonetheless,
I continue to believe that for deep understanding of something, nothing beats the integrated
approach and focus of an old-fashioned printed-on-paper textbook. Well—maybe the e-book
equivalent, but, still, a textbook.
When I open a new book, in any subject, the first thing I want to know is what the book
has to offer that makes it worth my while to read it. I would like to try to help you answer that
question for the book that you’re holding in your hand or on your tablet.
The information systems and technology fields are wonderfully exciting places to be! It
seems as though every day brings new developments that alter the ways we create and work
with information. Of course, with this excitement comes a challenge. To be a successful player
in IS or IT, we have to be adaptable and flexible.
Much of the change occurs around computer system technology. The computer is, after
all, at the foundation of information systems. A deep understanding of computer systems is,
therefore, an essential element of success.We must be able to understand each new development,
assess its value, and place it in the context of our knowledge of computer systems.
The subject of this book is the architecture of computer systems. Computer architecture is
about the structure and operation of digital computers and computer-based devices. Computer
architecture is concerned with the operational methods of the hardware; with the services
provided by operating system software; with the acquisition, processing, storage, and output of
data; and with the interaction between computer-based devices.
There is a tendency for people in information systems and technology to neglect a study
of computer architecture. After all, the technology changes so rapidly—is it really worth trying
to understand something that may be out of date by the time I finish this book? There is no
question that computer technology has evolved rapidly. The computer in a smartphone is far
more powerful than the mainframe computer of twenty-five years ago, with memory, disk and
flash storage capacity, display and multimedia capability, and ease of use that would have been
unthinkable just a few years ago. Even more important, connecting systems to work together is
now routine and simple.
Interestingly enough, however, as profound as advances in the technology have been, the
concepts of computer architecture that really matter have changed only nominally over the
last seventy years. The new technologies are based on a foundation of architectural concepts
that were developed many years ago. The architecture of a modern computer system was
developed in the 1940s. The instruction set in a modern personal computer or smartphone is
nearly identical to that of computers built in the 1950s and 1960s. Modern operating system
Детали
- Год издания
- 2014
- Format