The main objective of the course is to provide students with an accurate picture of how the software interacts with the underlying hardware. The student must acquire an approximate vision of how the processor and memory system of a computer works today.

In particular, it is expected that the student to be able to perform quantitative analysis, using figures of merit, of the performance of a computer running a program and know how to make appropriate comparisons between different design alternatives.

Understanding the concurrent techniques used by today’s computers to reduce the execution time. Being aware of the impact on computer performance of taken decisions when programming in a high level language.

Relating the evolution in the integration techniques with the changes undergone by the architecture of computers and how current restrictions will condition the future evolution of computers.