Gerek's ByteTrail Oydssey

  Java Practice This entry covers Week 01 of CST 338 Software Design. This week had us solve functions in Java on CodingBat to brush up on our coding skills. One notable consideration when approaching these problems is understanding what they’re asking to begin with. My take was to take a step back and look at the whole picture. First, before reading the instructions, I glance down at the function to make a mental note of the return types and parameters to see what types I’m working with. Then I look back up at the instructions to see what the specifications are. The section below the instructions gives great examples of how the code should work. This section is quite helpful when the instructions aren’t easily explained with words. The next step I take is determining the logic required to turn the inputs into the desired outputs. I generally divide the problem down into more manageable steps here and I work on one solution at a time. This is the trial-and-error part of the w...

Final Week of the Proseminar             This course helped me gauge the scope of the curriculum that lies ahead. By reviewing the contents of the coursework, I now have a better understanding of what will be expected of me. I also found a lot of the resources extremely useful for understanding how to be a better computer scientist. Working on video projects made me realize that this course has helped me think about how to work in groups. It exposed my weaknesses, but also highlighted my strengths and I was able to understand myself more from the perspective of working on a team.   This class has shown also me the value of having an agenda for group meetings to ensure structured discussions, and I regret not implementing one this semester, as it would have encouraged more equal participation and planning. Another topic covered in the course was the idea of designating a leadership role for each project. I also see assigni...

  Group Project Planning JKO Dynamics (Group 1) did a good job planning for the video project. Through a zoom call we planned out the structure of contents. We also decided to use PowerPoint, Adobe Illustrator, and Adobe Premiere Pro, along with supplemental AI to enhance the visuals in the video. I’m happy with how our group handled this project as well as many projects before. As of right now, one of my team members has uploaded part of his presentation and he did a phenomenal job as a speaker. I’m hoping to be able to match his level of professionalism. Lecture Material This week’s lecture material emphasized the importance of presentation skills. This skill is crucial for presenting to colleagues, subordinates, boards, and customers. The modules this week included examining TED Talks and creating effective PowerPoint presentation. The lecture also covered visual aids to enhance presentations by being colorful and unique. However, it also indicated that they should not ove...

Developing Capstone Ideas with Teammates This week I got the opportunity to explore different capstone project ideas with my teammates in Group 1. Adrian proposed using OpenAI and LLama to develop a custom language model that provides advice for students based on their majors and grades. He is also interested in making an app for flashcards, where users can create, export, and review flashcards locally. This would allow users to manage their study materials easily on their personal devices. Andrew suggested developing a real-time dashboard to track lunch times so that companies can track work hours and reduce overtime costs. This would help make sure that the technicians he oversees are balancing their workloads and that his company is minimizing unnecessary expenses. Andrew also mentioned writing a machine learning program to play or beat a specific game this would basically just be to showcase AI skills. I had two ideas myself. My first one is to use a Raspberry Pi to create ...