CST 338 Week01

 Learning Journal – Coding Bat Challenges

Working through the Coding Bat challenges was a smooth experience for me, largely because of my prior experience with JavaScript and LeetCode. Since JavaScript and Java share very similar syntax, the transition to Java was fairly intuitive. The main difference I noticed was the need to explicitly define types in Java, which was a small adjustment compared to my usual JavaScript coding habits.

When approaching the challenges, I generally took a structured approach rather than just throwing code at the problem. I read each prompt carefully, thought through the logic, and then translated it into Java. Because I’ve done many algorithmic problems on LeetCode, the style and patterns of the Coding Bat questions felt very familiar.

One thing I did have to look up was the specific Java syntax for accessing arrays, maps, and string methods, since they differ slightly from JavaScript. Once I reviewed those, it was straightforward to implement the solutions correctly. Most of my solutions worked on the first or second try, with the main issues being minor syntax adjustments or type declarations. Overall, I felt comfortable completing the homework, and it reinforced that problem-solving patterns learned in one language can translate well to another with only minor syntax differences.