Distributed systems--software systems that reside on more than one computer--have been around for decades, but their use has changed dramatically in recent years with the emergence of the World Wide Web. Today, people routinely use distributed systems to download information from shared databases at work, post memos on company intranets, surf the Web, do electronic banking and stock trading, and order items over the Internet.

This rapid shift in the way computer systems are designed and used has led DePaul University's School of Computer Science, Telecommunications and Information Systems (CTI), the largest graduate computer program in the country, to launch a new Master of Science degree in Distributed Systems. Although other universities have courses on the subject, DePaul is believed to be the first school in the country to offer a master's degree in distributed systems.

The innovative graduate program responds to the demand by businesses, government agencies and educational institutions for computer professionals with expertise to design and support a variety of sophisticated distributed systems.

Representing a departure from traditional computer science graduate education, the program is a synthesis of computer science, data communications, and software engineering involving large, complex software systems.

"This program is much more software- and applications- oriented than traditional programs," said Martin Kalin, director of CTI's new program. "Almost every major system is now distributed. This is the future of computing."

DePaul will begin offering the graduate program this fall. To earn the degree, students must complete a prerequisite phase and pass 13 evening courses that combine several disciplines of technological study. It takes about two years to complete.

The program focuses heavily on data communications technology including local area networks, protocols and software that allow computers to talk to each other, as well as the Internet, and intranets, which are internal computer networks. Students will study object-oriented computer programming languages, such as Java, that are used to build distributed systems, and database management. Software engineering principles and techniques for designing and testing large distributed systems are also an important part of the program.

Computer professionals who design and develop distributed systems can look forward to lucrative and challenging careers, Kalin said. "There's a heavy emphasis on problem solving," he said, noting that a major issue for developers is to make sure a system's data is consistent and concurrent for large groups of people who continually access and alter it.

"For example, if someone orders clothing and sends their credit card number over the Internet, and then the system goes down, how do you make sure their order goes through safely?" Kalin explained. AHow do you make sure that stockbrokers see the same price quotes at the same time when they trade stock electronically? How do you combine two different intranets of merging companies? These are the types of problems that distributed system developers must solve."