CS371p Blog Post 3

What did you do this past week?

This past week I worked on The Collatz project. I set up my coding environment using the docker image, set up a GitLab account, familiarized myself with the testing environment, and started work on the code. I have managed to get all of the student tests to pass.

What’s in your way?

Right now my biggest obstacle is that my project is not passing the last HackerRank test. I don’t believe my code is having any issues with accuracy, so I just need to optimize the code more.

What will you do next week?

I will need to finish Collatz. My remaining steps are optimizing the code enough to pass the last HackerRank test, writing the remaining acceptance tests, and doing the necessary steps to turn in the assignment, like adding the graders to my repository and printing out a git log.

If you read it, what did you think of the Continuous Integration?

It was a nice read. It was interesting to see how things that are so common nowadays, like Source Control, had to become common practice at some point. It’s especially interesting that the paper didn’t really mention Git when that is the most common Source Control software. Continuous Integration itself isn’t as commonplace as Source Control, but the paper made a convincing argument that it is necessary, and I have definitely seen it in many code bases.

What was your experience of Collatz? (this question will vary, week to week)

I found it to be a fun project. It was a good introduction to C++ and the unit testing frameworks while also allowing for me to get used to the coding practices in the class.

What was your experience of exceptions? (this question will vary, week to week)

I had already had quite a bit of experience with Exceptions through languages such as Javascript, so it was easy enough to wrap my head around them in C++. I definitely see the need for them and am happy enough to use them.

What made you happy this week?

I figured out a way to get VSCode to open the docker image for me so that I could code in my IDE of choice while still using the docker image. This really helped me to make a lot of progress on the assignment.

Also, I did something really cool in my dnd game.

What’s your pick-of-the-week or tip-of-the-week?

Remember: ints can overflow, so when dealing with large numbers use different data types.