University of Southern Queensland
School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering
Course Number: ELE3305 Course Name: Comp Sys & Comms Protocols
Internal ?
Assessment No: 1
External ? This Assessment carries 280 of the 1000 marks total for this Course.
Examiner: Dr Alexander Kist Moderator: Mr Mark Phythian
Assignment: Project
Date Given:
Date Due: February 2015
23 March 2015 Penalty for Late Submission: Loss of 5% of total marks for this assignment per day late.
Please submit your assignment electronically via StudyDesk. See the instruction on Study Desk for details.
By submitting this assignment, you agree to the following Student Declaration:
I hereby certify that no part of this assignment has been copied from any other students work or from any other source except where due acknowledgement is made in the assignment. No part of this assignment has been written for me by any other person except where such collaboration has been authorised by the Examiner concerned.
Any non USQ copyright material used herein is reproduced under the provision of Section 200(1)(b) of the copyright Amendment Act 1980.
Brief Research Project
Plagiarism Warning This assignment is an individual assignment. Copying all or part of an assessment from another student, or from the web, is unacceptable. Plagiarism may result in loss of marks, or other penalties as determined by the Academic Integrity Policy:
http://policy.usq.edu.au/documents.php?id=13752PL It is strongly suggested that you review the following pages:
http://www.usq.edu.au/library/referencing/what-is-plagiarism http://www.usq.edu.au/library/referencing/
Submission
Please submit your assignment electronically via StudyDesk:
http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/spider/view.php?id=340597
Both report and presentation have to be submitted by 11.55pm on Wednesday of the week the chosen topic is due.
Extension Guidelines
As the topic deadlines are self-selected, late assignments are normally not accepted and extensions are not granted. However, under exceptional circumstances (typically illness, excessive unplanned work, or family commitments) extensions may be granted.
If you wish to apply for consideration for late submission, it must be done at least one week prior to the due date via email. Include documentary evidence of illness (a medical certificate) or unforeseeable work/family commitments (a written confirmation of changed work circumstances from your supervisor for work reasons; or a written statement for family reasons). Please feel free to contact the examiner to discuss your situation.
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Motivation and Outcomes
In a workplace, you will rarely encounter a situation where one has to sit an exam and reproduce material that has been studied over an extended period of time. It is more likely that a new topic has to researched and presented to colleagues, clients or the boss as an oral presentation or a written report.
It has been widely acknowledged that many students will work in jobs that are not known yet. In education, the focus is no longer solely on content but also on skills that prepare students for rapidly changing environments. It is expected that engineering professionals are able to acquire knowledge, as it is warranted.
Generic and transferable skills are also gaining importance and are seen as essential by employers and professional bodies such as Engineers Australia and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). These include, but are not limited to, lifelong learning, communication and decision-making.
This assignment gives you the opportunity to practice these skills. Learning outcomes include:
• Researching one topic in computer systems or communication protocols.
• Developing a deep understanding of one topic.
• Practising the skills of explaining concepts to others.
• Improving presentation skills.
• Advancing report writing skills.
• Broaden your content knowledge about selected topics in computer systems or communication protocols.
To address these outcomes, the assignment incorporates three activities:
• A written report.
• An oral presentation.
• Peer assessment of other student submissions.
Please note that this is an individual assignment.
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Topics
This assignment covers computer systems and communication protocol topics. A tentative listing of topics is shown below. A comprehensive list of topics and their presentation timeslots will be published on StudyDesk. Each student has to choose one topic and the selection process will open on Monday, 9 March 2015 at 12noon. Selection closes on the 23 March 2015. Topics are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Presentations start in Week 5.
Computer Systems: Approximate Computing, C#, Cloud Computing, Distributed Systems, GNU GPL, Java, OLPC/XO, Open CL, PHP, PLC Internals, Python, Quantum Computing, Server Systems, Shell Scripting, Smart Cards, SQL, Virtualisation and Virtual Machines.
Operating Systems: Android Operating System, Linux History (technical), Mac OS History (technical), Windows History ( technical ).
Storage Management: CD, DVD, Blu-ray, Disk Backup, Disk encryption, ext2/ext3/ext4, NTFS, RAID, Solid State HDDs.
Memory Management: RAM technologies.
Hardware & Performance: Benchmarking, DirectX, MMX/3DNow!/SSE, OpenGL, Processor History (AMD - technical), Processor History (Intel - technical), RISC & CISC.
Network Protocols and Layering: Compare Circuit and Packet Switched Networks, National Broadband Network, Network Resilience, OSI Model, Quality of Experience, Quality of Service, Standards and Organisations.
Local Networks: ADSL, ATM (networking), Deterministic Networking, EPON, Industrial Ethernet, ISDN, Last Mile Access, MODBUS, Satellite Broadband, SONET/SDH, WiMax, Wireless Broadband ( UMTS ).
Wireless and Mobile Networks: 5G Wireless Networks, Ad-Hoc Networks, Backhaul, Mobile IP, WiFi, ZigBee.
Network Security and Configuration: Botnets, Computer Viruses, Cryptanalysis and Passwords, Denial-of-Service Attacks, Firewalls, Malware, Man-in-the-Middle Attacks, Online Security, Virtual Private Networks.
Addressing and Transport: Border Gateway Routing Protocol, Intra Domain Routing Protocols, IPv6, MPLS, NetBIOS, Network Routers, SCTP, TCP.
Applications and Protocols: Ajax, Domain Name System, ftp protocol, http protocol, NFS, P2P Networks, SAMBA, VoIP.
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Technical Depth
This is a third year as well as master level course and it is expected that selected topics are covered in sufficient depth. Some of the topics are not necessarily of technical nature, but students have to make sure that they cover related technical issues in detail.
Due Dates
Presentations and written reports are due on Wednesday of the allocated week. You are encouraged to complete the peer assessments as presentations and reports become available. Please aim to complete peer assessment within two weeks of the due date.
For a proper flow of presentations, this assignment is relying on the students to submit both reports and presentations in the allocated time slots. This has several advantages:
• Presentations relate to and extend the content covered in the modules.
• There is sufficient time for the peer review process.
• Workload does not accumulate at the end of the semester.
• There is flexibility as to when to do the assignment.
• Teaching sessions are more diverse and interesting.
If you are unable to do a presentation on the allocated date, normal procedures apply for the extension of assignment deadlines. Please notify the examiner at least one week in advance, so that the presentation can be rescheduled.
The course specifications show a due date of the 23 March 2015. By this due date your first action is required: to select a topic. The due date for presentations and reports are topic specific. Formal extensions are automatically granted until the scheduled date. Please adhere to the chosen timeslot and submit the presentations and reports on time.
Mark Distribution
Presentation 100
Peer assessment of the other presentations 40
Report 100
Peer assessment of the other reports 40

Total 280
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Marks for presentations and reports are calculated as an average of all peer assessments that have been received. At the end of the semester, presentations and report marks are moderated to account for variation during the semester.
Written Report
The report has to be written in your own words. It has to be a formal, concise document that addresses the chosen topic in appropriate detail. It should be divided into sections and include suitably annotated and referenced diagrams. The report has to include a title, an abstract, a body, conclusions/summary and a bibliography. You cannot copy text from webpages, books or peers; you have to write the report in your own words.
N.B. web sites such as Wikipedia or HowStuffWorks are unsuitable references for professional papers.
The report has to be prepared using the IEEE Templates for Transactions and should be two pages in length. The IEEE template can be downloaded at http://www.ieee.org/ publications_standards/publications/authors/author_templates.html.
Colloquial (informal) writing should be avoided. Please have a look at:http://www.wikihow. com/Avoid-Colloquial-(Informal)-Writing .
Students are reminded of the penalties that apply for plagiarism. Copying all or part of the report from other students or the Internet is unacceptable. Plagiarism constitutes academic misconduct.
The report is assessed by peers in the course using the marking scheme similar to the one given below. This is done via an online facility on StudyDesk. Please see the StudyDesk for a copy of the final marking rubric: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/resource/ view.php?id=340807.
Peer Assessment Marking Guide ( Report )
Technical quality (depth) 16.6 %
Explained concepts clearly 16.6 %
Used high quality references 16.6 %
Structure and IEEE template 16.6 %
Spelling and grammar 16.6 %
Overall quality 16.6 %
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Presentation
The presentation has to be delivered on the date specified in the topic table. The talk should be timed to 10 minutes. An additional 5 minutes per presentation are allocated for questions. The presentations are scheduled as part of the normal class time.
The requirements for off-campus students are the same as they are for on-campus students. However, presentations have to be pre-recorded and might be played on campus in the appropriate timeslot. A screen capture application can be used do record the presentation. Please see the appendix for details on how to record presentations.
It is expected the talk uses presentation software such as PowerPoint. At least the following slides should be included:
• Cover
• Content
• Background
• Main Content
• Conclusions
• Short quiz for the audience Keep the following in mind:
• Introduce self.
• Make sure you understand your topic.
• Practice your presentation – use your husband/wife, friend, colleague, pet, ...
• Keep it interesting.
• Use diagrams and pictures.
• Anticipate questions.
• Do not go overtime.
• The fear of public speaking is very common and your peers probably feel the same.
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Peer Assessment Marking Guide ( Presentation )
Please see below for a sample marking criteria and StudyDesk for a copy of the final version: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/resource/view.php?id=340805.
Coverage 16.6 %
Structure 16.6 %
Use of slides 16.6 %
Timing 16.6 %
Enthusiasm 16.6 %
Overall impression 16.6 %
Peer Assessment
Students are required to assess the presentations and the reports of peers. The main aim of this task is to expose students to additional topics in the field and to give you an opportunity to practice your critiquing skills.
This activity accounts for 80 marks in this assignment. Feedback for at least 14 presentations and reports has to be given. As the talks span over 8 weeks, on average that is less then two topics per week. If this quota is not reached, the marks will be reduced, proportionally. For example, if only feedback for 4 presentation and 4 reports is provided, 23 marks will be allocated for this activity.
Sample Report and Presentation on Approximate Computing
In response to numerous student requests, this year we are providing a sample report: http:
//usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/resource/view.php?id=340806 and a sample presentation: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/resource/view.php?id=340804.
What is included in the Exam?
The content of these presentations and reports is examinable. Some minor aspects that have been addressed by this assignment might be covered in the exam.
Questions?
If there is anything that is unclear in this specification, please feel free to ask questions in the associated forum on StudyDesk: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/forum/ view.php?id=340649 or send an email to the examiner.

End of Assignment
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Appendix 1 – Recording Presentations with CamStudio
• Download and install CamStudio 2.7: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/ resource/view.php?id=340811
• Download and install the Xvid codec: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/m2/mod/ resource/view.php?id=340809
• Download and install the LAME mp3 codec: http://usqstudydesk.usq.edu.au/ m2/mod/resource/view.php?id=340812
Extract the file, right-click on the LameACM.inf and select install.
• Download and install 7zip: http://www.7-zip.org/download.html
Have a look at CamStudio and its various options. There is a lengthy video tutorial available on how to use CamStudio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ5_6szOf48 For your actual recording, please use the following options:
• Select Options ? Video Options. A popup will open.
• Select Xvid MPEG-4 Codec as the Compressor.
• Click ”Configure”
• In the new configuration window, click ”Other Options...”
• Untick ”Display encoding status”
• Click ”OK”
• Click ”OK”
• Set the Quality to 100
• Make sure Auto Adjust is NOT ticked.
• Change Capture Frame Every to 200 milliseconds.
• Change Playback Rate to 5 frames/second. See Figure 1
• Select Options ? Audio Options ? Audio Options for Microphone
• Set the Recording Format to 22.05 kHz, mono, 16 bit
• Choose Compressed Format ? Lame MP3
• Select Options ? Record Audio from Microphone
• Select Region ? Full Screen

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This should do the trick.

Figure 1: Video Options
Before you start CamStudio to do you recording, please reduce your screen resolution to 600x800.
Please compress the file with 7-Zip before it is submitted. Select the following options:
• Archie format: 7 z
• Compression level: Ultra
• Compression method: LZMA
• Dictionary size: 64 MB, Word size: 256.