The goal of this assignment is to build a basic--but comprehensive--database-driven web application.
You may work with a partner on this project, if you want to. But no groups larger than two people are allowed. If you're working in pairs, definitely read How Pairs Work below.
You must commit frequently on this project. Now that we're moving past "toy" problems, the need to be organized is huge.
Set a timer and commit your code--whatever its current state of brokenness might be--every 20 minutes. Make no exceptions. Just commit every 20 minutes and write a good message (Remember that git commit without the -m "Blah" part lets you type a longer message) that describes what you're working on at that moment.
Certainly also commit any other time you feel that it's appropriate! (And restart your 20-minute timer when you do.)
You don't have to git push every time you commit. In fact, I suggest you don't, as it slows you down. Just push whenever you take a break, go to bed, or any time you want us to look at your code (Because we can't see it unless it's pushed).
Each person in a pair should maintain their own codebase, so that everyone has their own copy of the application. If people in a pair do some work in the evening without involving the other person, then the first thing the pair does the next morning should be getting the other person caught up.
Pairs must work as a single unit. Pairing is not a way to split up different parts of the application and move faster. That just means each person learns half of what they need to.
Each pair should begin each day with the same understanding of the project. If a member of a pair feels that this has not happened, it is that person's responsibility to exit the pair and resume their work alone. And it's each person's responsibility to respect the unity of the pair.
So if you're the fast-mover in the pair, do not place the burden of keeping the pair unified on the slower-moving partner.
If you cannot commit to working as a single unit comprised of two people, then work alone.
First, fork this repository, if you haven't already.
Then clone your fork on to your local development machine:
cd ~/Code
git clone url_for_your_copy_of_this_assignment(Note: You'll need to replace url_for_your_copy_of_this_assignment with the actual SSH URL for your repository, which looks something like git@github.com:sumeetjain/web-toy__some-assignment.git.)
That will create a folder named for the assignment in ~/Code, and it will download the files from the repository into that folder.
Next, cd into that newly created folder, and run the setup script:
cd the-newly-created-folder
bin/setup(Note: You'll need to replace the-newly-created-folder with the actual name of the folder for your assignment.)
You won't need to run the setup script for this assignment again.
If the setup script does not return any failures or errors, you're ready to work on the assignment. Open the project folder in your code editor, and begin.
This application is used to manage a collegiate swimming competition. The administrator of the competition uses it to manage events, competitors, awards, etc.
The administrator will start by adding the competition's events.
However, competitors cannot sign up for events themselves. This is a system only for the administrator. Imagine that competitors view the list of events at home and send a signup form via postal mail to the administrator (along with their payment). Then then the administrator adds the competitor to the system and indicates which events they're signed up for.
When the administrator adds a competitor, they indicate which college/university that competitor belongs to. Each college/university belongs to a "conference" (e.g. 'East' and 'West'--or two imaginary conferences of your choosing).
After an event has occurred, the administrator enters each competitor's time for that event (e.g. they would enter that Jenny had a time of 1:51 for the 100-meter butterfly event).
If all competitors' times for an event have been entered, the application can indicate who the winners are. For each event, awards are given to first, second, and third place. For now, assume that ties are not possible.
Note: Feel free to imagine a world where colleges are actually space stations, and the competitors are all aliens. And the events are things like "100-Parsec Space Walk". Etc. That is, you are free to flavor this application to suit your interests. But please keep it "work-safe" (whatever that might mean to you--ask if you're unsure).
This Phase is about getting this project set up.
Here are the specific next steps you should take immediately:
Now that you have a PR, you'll use that for getting approvals and asking questions.
From this point on, each person in a pair doesn't need to submit things for approval. Just one person can do it, and that'll count for both partners.
So far, this is a fairly typical/realistic presentation of a project. When someone needs software, they usually describe it in sentences like those above. Since web development is database manipulation™, a developer's first job is usually determining what the database schema for such an application would look like. That is, what tables would be needed to organize all of this application's information?
The deliverable for this Phase is a Google Sheet that shows sample data for this application--just like you did for the database design assignment from the weekend.
This needs to be approved before you begin coding. A faulty database design can lead to many days/weeks/months of lost effort. When you would like someone to take a look at your database design for this application (either for feedback or for approval), comment in your PR and include a link to your Google Sheet.
Make sure you set the Sheet's permissions to 'public'--otherwise we won't be able to see it.
And, as always, post a message with a link to your PR in any help channel so that we know you want us to look at something.
Once you have gotten approval for your database design, you can begin adding create actions for each table.
Once you have create actions for two of your tables, submit for approval. (Obviously you can submit for feedback before that.)
Progress up to this point is due Wednesday morning, but don't stay up so late getting it done that you're a zombie. Just aim for completion by then, but know that you can get help tomorrow if needed.