cs-408

This repository is a collection of study materials for CS-408, the computer science postgraduate entrance exam subject in China. CS-408 covers four areas: data structures, computer organization, operating systems, and computer networks. The author built this repo while preparing for the exam starting in June 2022 and shares both the resources collected along the way and the notes they created.

The main contents include review guidebooks from a popular exam prep series called Wangdao (covering 2023 and 2024 editions), practice workbooks for drilling exam questions, and the author's personal notes made in Microsoft OneNote. Those OneNote notes cover all four subjects in detail, using tables, diagrams, example problems, and cross-linked pages to make review faster and easier than re-reading the textbook.

A large part of the README is actually a personal essay on note-taking strategy. The author tried mind-mapping tools like Xmind and handwriting apps like Notability before settling on OneNote. The reasoning shared is that OneNote makes it easy to insert screenshots, draw comparison tables, embed worked examples, link between pages, and annotate on a tablet. The author believes OneNote's flexibility beats both mind maps and handwritten notes for a subject as detail-heavy and interconnected as CS-408.

The repository is organized by subject, with folders for data structures, computer organization, operating systems, and computer networks, each containing chapter-by-chapter notes, memorization checklists, and past exam long-answer problem breakdowns. A printable PDF version of the notes is mentioned as available separately. The notes are written in Chinese and are aimed at students preparing for the Chinese graduate admissions exam.