Computer Science Portfolio: 1995-1999

Jeffrey 'Alex' Clark in front of a Sun SPARCstation (circa 1998)

This repository contains a collection of coursework, research projects, and experimental code from my undergraduate Computer Science studies (circa 1995-1999). It serves as a historical archive of my early journey into systems programming, data structures, and compiler construction.

The curriculum and course descriptions are based on the Loyola University Maryland Computer Science major requirements (archived 1998).

🚀 Recent Maintenance & Refactoring (2026)

In April 2026, this repository underwent a "Capstone Refactoring" pass to bring the code into a professional maintenance mode.

Co-authored with Gemini CLI:

• Codebase Professionalization: Scrubbed informal comments and placeholder strings from lexers and data structures.
• Structural Cleanup: Renamed files and directories to follow professional naming conventions (e.g., 462/t/hello.c, 462/f/stuff).
• Memory & Logic Improvements: Ongoing efforts to address legacy memory leaks (Gauss-Jordan) and refactor complex legacy insertion logic (Sparse Matrices).
• Modern Build Standards: Unifying build processes and documentation.

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📚 Curriculum & Projects

262: Programming and Data Structures

Continuation of foundational CS concepts including elementary file handling and abstract data types (lists, stacks, queues, and trees).

• Featured Project: A Sparse Matrix implementation using a 2D linked list (262/list.c).

295: Discrete Structures

Boolean algebra, combinatorics, graphs, inductive and deductive proofs, recurrences, and finite state machines.

301: Computational Linear Algebra

Implementation of numerical methods for linear systems.

• Featured Project: Gauss-Jordan elimination for solving MxN systems (301/gauss/g.c).

364: File and Data Structures

Advanced data organization and storage techniques.

366: Systems Level Programming

Low-level programming, including DOS device drivers and 16-bit Assembly games.

• Featured Project: A "Missile Command" style game written in x86 Assembly (366/src/rocks.asm).
• Featured Project: A dummy block device driver for DOS (366/src/blkdrv.asm).

420: Computer Science Research

Research in Software Construction Methods under Dr. Keith Gallagher. Surveyed development methodologies including clean-room and rapid prototyping.

451: Programming Languages

Comparative study of programming language paradigms.

461: Compiler Construction

Theory and practice of compiler design.

• Featured Project: A lexical analyzer using Flex/Lex (461/project/prac/scan.l).

462: Algorithm Analysis

Complexity analysis and advanced algorithmic strategies.

466: Operating Systems

Principles of OS design, process management, and networking.

• Featured Project: A custom Unix-like shell with redirection and piping support (466/shell2/4/).
• Featured Project: Socket-level network programming utilities (466/tok/socket.c).

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📂 Directory Structure

.
├── 262 (Data Structures)
│   ├── list.c (Sparse Matrix)
│   └── ...
├── 301 (Linear Algebra)
│   ├── gauss/ (Gauss-Jordan Elimination)
│   └── ...
├── 366 (Systems Programming)
│   ├── src/ (x86 Assembly Projects)
│   └── ...
├── 461 (Compiler Construction)
│   ├── project/ (Lexer/Parser logic)
│   └── ...
├── 466 (Operating Systems)
│   ├── shell2/ (Custom Shell)
│   ├── tok/ (Socket Programming)
│   └── ...
└── README.md

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Archive maintained by Jeffrey 'Alex' Clark.