Background
Windows Core Technology is a theme based project
initiative by MSRA University Relations for the
entire Asia Pacific region. It aims at helping universities
across the region to enhance operating system curriculum
development and course content, by leveraging the Microsoft
Windows Academic Program, where a set of resources such as Windows
Research Kernel (WRK) and Windows OS Internals Curriculum
Resource Kit (CRK) that contains the Windows kernel source code can
dramatically help universities in OS courses by bringing real-world
commercial strength OS core technology to the classrooms.
The objectives of this program were three-fold: first,
to improve the diversity of OS instruction by supporting
inclusion of cases based on NT; second, to enable the use of
Windows as a platform for teaching OS courses; and third, to help
reviving the interest in operating systems topics among students
by increasing the excitement and relevance of OS courses.
In the Asia Pacific region, under the Windows Core project
theme, MSRA UR launched an initiative to support pioneer faculties
from top universities to develop experimental course based on WRK
teaching kit. Six well-known faculties in China teaching OS courses
completed an analysis of WRK source code, and developed sample experimental
cases studies that enable students experiencing how to change the configuration
parameters of these cases to influence system behavior and performance.
With this initial success of the initiative in China, MSRA UR is
launching a region-wide Windows Core Theme program in the Asia Pacific
region, to leverage the initial work results from the pioneer faculties
in China, and to enable more faculties in the AP region to take the advantages
and resources offered by WRK/CRK, to build or enhance their own OS teaching
curriculum in their universities.
