Monthly Archives: January 2024

Exploring the LibreFoodPantry and Thea’s Pantry

As someone who has been learning about Computer Science for 7 years, I have always wanted to have a shot at being able to create an open-source project both for my career and creativity. When reading through the Values from the LibreFoodPantry Main Page, specifically about the “FOSSisms”, I had very closely related to the 11th FOSSism, the FOSSism that stated “It’s not what you know; it’s what you want to learn”. I had found this particular FOSSism inspiring as I have always wanted to create open-source software for solving particular tasks, even if I did not know anything about the software or the items that the software is trying to process. FOSSism 11 also helps to clarify the importance of FOSSism 3, where the goal is simply to “Give back” to the community, as I am hoping to use the things I learn from working with open-source software to help me with Software Engineering in the future.

After reading through the different items about the LibreFoodPantry, I delved into the documentation under the Thea’s Pantry repository to explore more about the open-source software being used. While I did read through the functionality of the software, some being more familiar than others, I was really intrigued with the User Stories under the Developer documentation. I read through the stories about how a user would think over designing a particular software. Reading through this part of the documentation, I had found that in order for a particular part of the system to function as intended, a user would have to make great use of a real-world problem in order to brainstorm new features to contribute to Thea’s Pantry. I am hoping that these user stories can help me use my current skills as a Computer Scientists to help make a great contribution to Thea’s Pantry.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Elias' Blog by Elias Boone and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

Technology for Social Good: Software to Support Local Food Pantries

Hey everyone!

LibreFoodPantry’s mission is to expand a community of students and faculty who believe software can be used to help society. Specifically, they strive to support local food pantries with free and open source software to help serve their guests. This provides students with the perspective that computing can be used for social good. I found LibreFoodPantry’s goal of using technology for humanitarian aid to be an admirable and useful cause.

The user stories for Thea’s Pantry illustrate some of the key functions the software needs to provide. This includes guest check-in, tracking visits across calendar weeks, recording new inventory donations, looking up current inventory levels, and generating reports. An example is allowing staff to log in and enter guest’s university ID numbers to pull up their registration details. If it’s their first visit, they can fill out a new form which gets saved. For returning guests, staff can review and update details. The system also tracks how much food guests take across multiple visits within the same week. Other stories cover administrators verifying inventory levels and creating monthly reports for partners like the Worcester County Food Bank. I chose to highlight the user stories as they outline valuable features to aid Thea Pantry’s operations through customized software.

The LibreFoodPantry mission and Thea’s Pantry user stories provide insight into the principles and functionality behind developing customized software for food assistance organizations.

January 21, 2024

andicuni

CS@Worcester

CS-448,

Set-up Task #3

From the blog CS@Worcester – A Day in the Life as a CS Blogger by andicuni and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

LibreFoodPantry and Thea’s Pantry

Reading libres food pantry main page, one thing that was interesting was the page with the code of conduct more specifically enforcement guidelines.  What I thought was most interesting about that section was that in each bullet point there was listed a community impact and also a consequence. I thought that was interesting and informative because it gives clarity to the subject. I choose to write about it because it really grabbed my attention on how clear the topics where brought up, it really gave a feel on how serious it is to work in this project. One thing from the Theas Pantry I found interesting from the GitLab was the Thea’s pantry workflow. In this document it goes through the process of the developers and what they should be doing. It starts off with the branches and then tells developer to run the test before committing to their branches. It goes on with talking about commitlint and what to expect and what can possibly happen when committing. The reason why I decided to write about this part of the section was because it was very informative and it was good to refresh commits and the steps of how to with the changelog and version number.  

From the blog CS@Worcester – CS- Raquel Penha by raqpenha and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

Libre Food Pantry & Thea’s Pantry

   Both the main GitLab page for Libre Food Pantry and its repository for Thea’s Pantry were very informative about the overall project and its desired direction. While Libre Food Pantry is a more broad project which contains Thea’s Pantry as a client the webpage was very informative not only on the standard for developing but also for the purpose of this free code.

   The main thing that caught my eye on librefoodpantry.org was the mission page as the page explains that this project is meant to aid humanitarian organizations (food pantries) and help modernize their inner workings. I chose to write about this as I was surprised that multiple other universities are also apart of the project and using it to teach computer science students more about teamwork and different types/categories of code.

   Thea’s Pantry on the other hand as it is a client solution and has more specified content including three systems with frontends and backends there is a lot more code to dive into. The thing I found most interesting in Thea’s Pantry was the Reporting System as this system is not something I would initially think of when developing software for use in a Food Pantry but it is definitely something very useful when it comes to tracking incoming and outgoing products. I chose to write about the reporting system as when reading about the different systems I found the reporting to be something more unique which is not necessarily seen in a large portion of food pantries as a reporting system is not included in the same way in the other projects of Libre Food pantry.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Dylan Brown Computer Science by dylanbrowncs and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

New Semester, New Topics.

As we start the Spring 24 Semester we turn a new page and focus on new courses and topics which will be closely followed during the upcoming months.

 Before I go deeper into what we are focusing on this semester, let me remind everyone of you who continues to read my blog entries of who I am.

My Name is Anairdo Duri or Ano if it’s easier for any of you. I am a Junior Computer Science student at Worcester State University hoping to graduate next year.
Now that we got that out of the way let’s continue.

 The main focus of my blog entries this semester will be focusing on Software Quality Assurance & Testing. I will be looking into various topics related to Software Testing which will include Test cases and evaluation, levels of testing, unit testing, system testing, test automation, code reviews, and so on.

 Software Quality Assurance (SQA) and testing are crucial components of the software development life cycle, aimed at ensuring the delivery of high-quality software products. SQA is a systematic and comprehensive process that ensures the development and maintenance of software meet established quality standards and customer requirements.

  Testing is the process of executing a software application or system with the intent of finding defects and ensuring that it behaves as expected. Its main objectives are to identify defects and ensure they are fixed before software release, to verify that the software meets specified requirements, and to ensure the software functions correctly in different scenarios.

Photo by Sora Shimazaki on Pexels.com

 My goal this semester is to obtain a greater understanding of these two important concepts in the large spectrum of computer science concepts as I already know that it will be useful in my desired career as a computer scientist.

Let’s hope that this semester is as successful as the past ones have been and as always,

Ano out.

References:

https://www.simplilearn.com/software-quality-assurance-article
https://www.ibm.com/topics/software-testing

From the blog CS@Worcester – Anairdo's WSU Computer Science Blog by anairdoduri and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

My Interest in Libre Food Pantry and Thea’s Pantry

When I explored the page for Libre food pantry I found the coordinating committee page to be very interesting. I chose this as the most interesting because it shows the different universities and shop managers that are working on this project. I found that there are people from Nassau Community College, Western New England University, Drexel University, alongside Worcester State who are working on Libre food pantry. I did not know it was such a collaborative effort between so many universities.

While reviewing the Gitlab for Thea’s pantry, I found that going through the workflow and architecture documentation was especially helpful. In the summer, when I was working on linters for Libre Food Pantry and Theas Pantry, I got to get a look at some of the systems for Thea’s pantry but I did not thoroughly understand what each system uses. The part of the architecture documentation that explains the features and their components thoroughly laid out how the systems work together. I found the integration and deployment diagrams to be helpful in providing a visual aspect of how the systems work together. The workflow documentation was helpful because it served as a reminder of the workflow that I used during the summer. The bullet point about using a “breaking change” footer or a “!” after the type if the work introduces a breaking API change is helpful because I’ve never worked on a breaking change.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Live Laugh Code by Shamarah Ramirez and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

Libre Food Pantry & Thea’s Pantry

I found the Code of Conduct from Libre Food Pantry interesting/useful as it provides a great framework for meaningful collaboration that is inclusive to as many people as possible. I chose to write about the Code of Conduct because I believe in the importance of moral coding/development and the Code of Conduct sets quite a few good standards for all contributors to follow. I also like how each level of conduct enforcement is clearly stated so if necessary, any individual may return to the Code of Conduct to clarify why or what may have caused a certain disciplinary action to come about.

I was looking through the Architecture section of Thea’s Pantry and I found searching over the full architecture of the Pantry interesting. I know that we touched upon mostly the GuestInfoSystem side of Thea’s Pantry last semester but relooking over the full microservice architecture was eye-opening since while being comprised of a couple of major systems I know my future may hold even more complex and interesting webbing of microservices. This makes me want to utilize the experience I will gain from this course to further prepare myself for any future projects or ventures I choose to embark on. By attempting to better familiarize myself with the architecture of Thea’s Pantry now, it will potentially help me and my team in the future by building a more robust understanding of the systems comprising Thea’s Pantry.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Eli's Corner of the Internet by Eli and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

A Deeper Dive into LibreFoodPantry’s Code of Conduct

In my exploration of LibreFoodPantry’s main page and Thea’s Pantry, I found myself captivated by the community’s commitment to fostering a positive environment, as reflected in their Code of Conduct.

LibreFoodPantry’s Code of Conduct: A Commitment to Inclusivity

One aspect that particularly caught my attention was LibreFoodPantry’s inclusive pledge. This commitment ensures that participation in the community remains a harassment-free experience for everyone, irrespective of diverse characteristics. The explicit mention of age, body size, disability, ethnicity, gender identity, and more reinforces the community’s dedication to creating a welcoming space for all. Choosing to delve into this aspect was essential as it resonated with my belief in the significance of inclusivity in collaborative environments.

Thea’s Pantry GitLab Group: Enforcing Standards

Diving into Thea’s Pantry GitLab group, I focused on the enforcement responsibilities outlined in their Code of Conduct. Community leaders play a crucial role in clarifying and enforcing acceptable behavior, ensuring a positive and respectful space. The detailed enforcement guidelines, ranging from correction to permanent bans, showcase a structured approach to maintain community standards. Highlighting this aspect in my blog emphasizes the importance of clear guidelines and consequences in creating a conducive collaborative environment.

In conclusion, LibreFoodPantry and Thea’s Pantry’s Codes of Conduct provide a framework for inclusive and respectful collaboration. The commitment to inclusivity in LibreFoodPantry’s pledge and the structured enforcement approach in Thea’s Pantry underscore the essence of fostering positive community dynamics. These aspects not only shape the communities themselves but also serve as an inspiration for others in the open-source landscape. Through these Codes of Conduct, both projects are actively contributing to a culture of diversity, respect, and collaboration in the realm of software development.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Hieu Tran Blog by Trung Hiếu and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

Embarking on the Final Chapter

Greetings, fellow enthusiasts of code and programming! I’m Hieu Tran, a senior majoring in computer science, and I’m thrilled to welcome you to my latest blogging adventure. As I step into the realm of CS-448 Software Development Capstone, I can’t help but feel a blend of excitement and anticipation.

This blog marks a significant milestone in my academic journey, representing the beginning of my final computer science course before donning the cap and gown in May 2024. The Software Development Capstone promises to be a culmination of the knowledge and skills acquired throughout my studies, providing a platform to showcase and apply what I’ve learned in a real-world context.

As I navigate through this capstone experience, I’m eager to share my insights, challenges, and triumphs in the realm of software development. From coding intricacies to project management strategies, I aim to document the various facets of this course that contribute to my growth as a computer scientist.

To my fellow readers and learners, whether you’re a seasoned developer or just starting your coding journey, let’s embark on this final chapter together. As I delve into the complexities of software development, I invite you to join me in exploring the ever-evolving landscape of computer science.

Here’s to a semester of learning, coding, and making the most of every opportunity that CS-448 Software Development Capstone presents. May this journey be as enlightening and rewarding for you as it promises to be for me. Cheers to the coding adventures that lie ahead!

From the blog CS@Worcester – Hieu Tran Blog by Trung Hiếu and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

An Intro to LibreFoodPantry and Thea’s Pantry

In reviewing the information about LibreFoodPantry at their website as preparation for work in the Software Development Capstone, one particular point that I found interesting and surprising – but enlightening was a portion of the Mission statement. Through its Free Open Source Software and other features, LFP aims to convey to our communities and the world as a whole that computing can be used for social good. I had not thought about the project from this perspective, but it is an interesting and exciting value proposition and completely valid – computing could likely be used in many other instances for social good.

In exploring the subsystems in the repository for Thea’s Pantry and specifically the Documentation section, I was most drawn to the Developer repository, containing documentation that will be most relevant to developers working on the project – such as myself and my teammates. All of these contain valuable information about various components of the system/subsystems like the overall architecture, guidelines for Conventional Commits, and more. Furthermore, I have been interested in picking up Documentation writing as a skill and get some experience with it, so this is an area where I may be able to do so and assist Dr. Wurst in filling out the Developer Documentation. I’m looking forward to getting hands-on experience and making progress in improving the Thea’s Pantry systems this semester!

LibreFoodPantry site: https://librefoodpantry.org.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Tech. Worth Talking About by jelbirt and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.