Wk04: Learning Journal Project 1 review

 

  1. Who did you work with for this review?

I worked with my groupmates, Luis Valadez and Faith Thomas!

  1. What was your strategy for solving the assignments?

My strategy was to start by going over the UML diagram and assignment instructions so I had a solid understanding of what was expected. I mapped out the class structure and method names before jumping into the code, which helped keep things organized. I tackled one class at a time, starting with the abstract Monster class, then moved on to each subclass, ElectricRat, FlowerDino, etc.  Running the test file, MonsterTest, often to make sure everything was working right. Once everything was working, I went back and cleaned up the code to make sure it was easy to read and followed the structure from the diagram. Only issues I ran into were some small warnings so I went through my code and picked through my code to figure out how to get rid of my warnings! At this point my code was running smoothly and a weight was lifted off my shoulders.

  1. What was their strategy for solving the assignments?

Faith provided her strategy:

“My strategy was to start with one file at a time. I started monster.java first and explicitly followed the UML diagram for instantiating the variables and fields and methods. Before building the chunky methods I created 4 other branches, each with an individual monster in it, ex: electricRat, flowerDino, etc. Once I finished building my concrete implementations, I was able to build the chunky methods in monster.java without getting errors saying my electricRat or other monsters didn't exist. I don't like red errors lol. After building my chunky methods in monster.java I had to do a lot of debugging. I ran my tests and a lot of them passed but had some things I needed to fix. Got that done, everything ran smoothly, just happy to be done with it!”

Luis provided his strategy:

“I went right in to it, after following the video to help with the check in for the project. I read through the prompt for LDPM first to get an overall idea of the classes and methods. After that I followed the prompt to create the logic for the method which gave me an idea of the each class would apply those methods. Once the Monster class was finished I created the remaining constructor classes and override methods. I ran the unit tests and failed the toString() as it got stuck in a loop which led me back to modify the takeDamage() and attackModifier() methods. Once I fixed those methods the toStringTest passed leaving the setTypeTest as another failed test. That test led me to modify the attackModifier() method where I had assigned a variable to take in the modifier value which I changed to a return statement instead. That changed allowed me to pass the setType(). Overall my approach was to get code written in and modify as needed.”

  1. How would you change your strategy having worked on the assignment?

Next time, I believe I should have started testing earlier on, rather than testing all at once after everything was already done. Running the test class would have likely caught a few issues earlier on and probably saved me time towards the end. I also have considered writing my strategy of attack on paper next time, especially for the large portions. By doing that, I would have a clear structure from the start!

  1. According to your classmates: how well does your code follow the Google Java Style Guide?

My team told me that my code format was consistent and readable. One of them pointed out that the variable naming and spacing followed the guide but some things could have been more clear. They also mentioned that my JavaDoc comments could have had more detail to explain my ideas. I did not know about automating some of the style guide rules, I will likely be utilizing this for my next project in order to save time!

  1. What was the most challenging part?

I struggled with figuring out how to structure the relationship between classes at first glance. The UML definitely helped, but translating it into a working code is where I had some trial and error. Making sure each subclass behaved how they were supposed to was also a struggle.

  1. What was the most interesting?

Watching my code slowly come together was interesting to see. I surprised myself as I kept going and debugging. Soon enough my code was passing tests and was working the way it was supposed to! Seeing how others did this assignment was also really interesting!

  1. What are you most proud of?

I was so proud of myself, being able to get all of my unit tests to pass without really having to fix major issues, just small ones. I also am proud of the support system my group has made. We each support each other and it really helps when you’re stumped and just needs words of encouragement to keep pushing forward!

  1. How did you celebrate completing the assignment?

I immediately gave myself a break, I got a snack and brain rotted for a bit haha! It felt so good to get such a big project off my chest!

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