CSCI 1260
Compilers and Program Analysis
Fall 2024
Introduction
Welcome to CSCI 1260 at Brown University!
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR FALL 2024 REGISTRATION: to request an override for CS1260, please use the central override form provided by the CS department. Do not email Rob or the CS1260 staff. Direct questions or concerns about the course override process to enroll-questions@lists.cs.brown.edu.
Have you ever wondered why C programs seem to run faster than Python programs? Have you ever been confused by an error message and wondered why Java couldn't understand your program? In CSCI 1260, we'll learn how compilers read in code in one language and produce code in another; in particular, we'll learn how to translate high-level languages to code that your computer's processor can understand. We will get hands-on practice developing compilers for a series of increasingly complex languages. Along the way, we'll learn some general best practices for developing and testing complex software systems.
Lectures take place every Monday and Wednesday from 3:00 - 4:20 PM in CIT 368. All course lectures will be recorded and livestreamed on Panopto.
Assignments
| Homework | Out | In |
|---|---|---|
| 0. OCaml Warmup | Sep. 4 | Sep. 11 |
| 1. S-expressions | Sep. 11 | Sep. 18 |
| 2. Characters | Sep. 18 | Sep. 25 |
| 3. DMAOC (div, mul, and, or, case) | Sep. 25 | Oct. 9 |
| 4. Error handling and the heap | Oct. 9 | Oct. 18 |
| 5. Fun with files | Oct. 23 | Oct. 30 |
| 6. Apply, variadic functions | Oct. 30 | Nov. 13 |
| 7. MiniML | Nov. 13 | Nov. 20 |
| 8. Optimizations | Nov. 20 | Dec. 13 (benchmarks Dec 4) |
| Lab | Handout | Github Classroom |
|---|---|---|
| Compiler Infrastructure | Handout | Github Classroom |
| Debugging Assembly | Handout | Github Classroom |
| Parser Generators | Handout | Github Classroom |
| Drill | Out | In |
|---|---|---|
| Drill 1 (Solutions) | Sep. 4 | Sep. 8 |
| Drill 2 (Solutions) | Sep. 11 | Sep. 15 |
| Drill 3 (Solutions) | Sep. 18 | Sep. 22 |
| Drill 4 (Solutions) | Sep. 25 | Sep. 29 |
| Drill 5 | Oct. 9 | Oct. 13 |
| Drill 6 | Oct. 30 | Nov. 3 |
| Drill 7 | Nov. 6 | Nov. 10 |
| Drill 9 | Dec. 2 | Dec 9 |
| Exam | Date |
|---|---|
| Midterm | Oct. 21 |
| Final | Dec. 18 |
Lectures
Lectures take place every Monday and Wednesday from 3:00 - 4:20 PM in CIT 368. The lecture notes will be updated after every class. Streams and recordings will show up in our Panopto folder and are linked here.
Lecture topics for future dates are very tentative.
| Date | Topic | Recording |
|---|---|---|
| September 04 | What is a compiler? | Recording |
| September 09 | OCaml intro; S-Expressions | Recording |
| September 11 | Unary operations | Recording |
| September 16 | Booleans | Recording |
| September 18 | More booleans, conditionals | Recording |
| September 23 | Binary operations | Recording |
| September 25 | Abstract syntax trees | Recording |
| September 30 | Naming expression with let | Recording |
| October 02 | Pairs and the heap | Recording |
| October 07 | Handling errrors | Recording |
| October 09 | Debugging assembly | Recording |
| October 14 | NO CLASS | Recording |
| October 16 | Guest Lecture: Douglas Creager | Recording |
| October 21 | MIDTERM EXAM (In Person) | Recording |
| October 23 | Interacting with the environment | Recording |
| October 28 | Output and functions | Recording |
| October 30 | More on functions | Recording |
| November 04 | Tail calls | Recording |
| November 06 | Function pointers; first-class and anonymous functions | Recording |
| November 11 | Lambda lifting and closures | Recording |
| November 13 | Parsing | Recording |
| November 18 | More on parsing | Recording |
| November 20 | Optimization intro -- constant folding | Recording |
| November 25 | Inlining, CSE | Recording |
| November 27 | NO CLASS | Recording |
| December 02 | IRs and register allocation | Recording |
| December 04 | Trust and verification | Recording |
| December 18 | FINAL EXAM (In Person) | Recording |
Calendar
Zoom links are included in the Google Calendar event, as well as in the Hours Queue.
Resources
Quick Links
- Syllabus
- Software Guide
- Environment Setup Guide
- x86-64 reference
- Compiler from lectures
- EdStem
- Panopto
- Anonymous Feedback Form
- Extension Request Form
Reference Labs
Contact
Staff
Robert Lewis 🫠
Professor | rlewis13
Call me Rob! I'm half computer scientist, half mathematician, and fully excited to learn about compilers with you all this semester. Pronouns: he/him/his
Christina Stepin 🦩
HTA | cstepin
Hi! I'm a senior from Seattle studying Math + CS and Music! Outside of class, I enjoy playing chess and reading Young Adult literature. Pronouns: she/her/hers
Max Guo 🦙
UTA | mguo36
Hi! My name is Max. I'm from New Jersey, and I'm currently a junior studying computer science. I love music (I will listen to anything), basketball, computer graphics, and painting! Pronouns: he/him/his
Oscar McNally 🦎
UTA | omcnally
Hello! I'm a senior from Portland, Maine studying CS and Education. I'm an avid chess player and love to cook and discover new music! Pronouns: they/he
Effy Pelayo Tran 🪐
UTA | ttran59
Hey! I'm a senior from the Bay Area studying CS. In my free time, I love studying art history, biking, and playing pool. Pronouns: she/her/hers
Lukas Strelecky 🍔
UTA | lstrelec
Hi! I'm a junior from New Jersey studying CS. In my free time, I enjoy weightlifting, distance running, and cooking. Pronouns: he/him/his