CST 338 Week02

 During Week 1, I worked on Lab 00 and Lab 01, which focused on getting familiar with IntelliJ, Git, GitHub, and writing basic Java code. I was already very comfortable with Git and GitHub, so that part of the assignment came easily to me. I understood how to clone the repository, make commits, and push changes without any issues. In fact, I was able to help some of my teammates debug their labs and fix problems with their repositories. It felt good to use what I already knew to help others and make sure everyone’s projects were running smoothly.

One thing I did learn more about was the build.gradle file. At first, mine wasn’t working correctly, so I had to troubleshoot and learn what parts of the file were responsible for managing dependencies and building the project. Fixing it helped me better understand how Gradle works behind the scenes with IntelliJ.

The labs also introduced unit tests, which were useful for checking if the code was working as expected. Writing and running the tests helped reinforce how important testing is for catching errors early. We also started looking at interfaces, which I understand act as a kind of contract that defines methods a class must implement. Even though we haven’t gone too deep into that topic yet, it seems like a really powerful concept for keeping code flexible and organized.

Overall, Week 1 went smoothly. I felt confident using the tools and was able to apply my knowledge to help others, while also learning something new about Gradle and testing. These experiences will definitely make future labs easier to manage and debug.