CSUMB Computer Science Learning Journal

Some important differences between the two is the integrity of the data. In a spreadsheet, it is manually implemented using formulas, while in a database, there are rules, constraints, and relationships between tables that keep data clean, reliable, and consistent. Another important difference is that databases are easily scaled to handle large datasets, whereas using a spreadsheet is very slow and inefficient. Learning SQL querying, how to design and analyze databases are a couple of important reasons to learning. Using and learning relational databases is a good experience that helps prepare one to handle real-world technical problems that a computer scientist would come across. I am unsure what else I would like to see within this course to better prepare myself for my future career.

 1. I worked with the entire team, reviewing each of their codes and discussing our solutions to the problem at hand. These people would be Mariah, Claudia, and Cody. 2. My personal strategy for solving the Markov assignment was simple: read the prompt carefully, glance over the unit tests, and begin writing the code accordingly. 3. Mariah's strategy was to stub out the code and follow the prompts until the code compiled. Claudia & Cody's strategy was most similar to mine, which was to read the prompt and go on about coding with minimal planning.  4. I would not change my strategy at this time, as it has been working. In fact, the next project I'll try incorporating paper planning, as it will be much more beneficial when the scale of the projects continues to grow. 5. My classmates claim that I follow the Google Java Style Guide with near perfection, though I doubt it. I automated some of the style guide rules and used common sense to determine what looks good, in conju...

 1. I worked with Cody, Claudia, and Mariah.  2. My strategy was simple: read the prompt and Unit Tests to get a better idea of what needed to be implemented. 3. Mariah and Claudia's strategy was to stub out the code and fill in the blanks via compiler errors and from the prompt. Cody's strategy was similar to mine: read the prompt and study the Unit Tests.  4. I would not have changed my strategy, as it worked out for me in a rather easy manner. 5. My classmates follow the Google formatting, and all have the automatic application of the style. 6. The most challenging part was writing the game logic. 7. The most interesting was also writing the game logic. 8. I am most proud of finishing the project with the least amount of issues possible. 9. I celebrated by playing video games and having some victory drinks with friends.

    This week, it is not over yet. I spend hours every day refining my Java skills and getting back up to speed. It's been mostly smooth, despite some hiccups in learning about loops and parsing strings with them. I am still studying to ensure I fully understand the topics. We used codingbat.com/java for this week's homework, and I first started with the warmup, which I fully completed. Then, I began working on the assigned homework, which included beginner string manipulation, array, and logical problems. The process starts off by dissecting what the text is asking and working the solution carefully around the prompt. I heavily limited the usage of AI unless it was simply used to explain, or if I was incredibly stuck and I couldn't figure out what exactly to do next. I don't really plan out my code, well, I do at least a little in my head before I throw code at the issue. Reading references and API about strings and arrays, watching tutorials and given sources, it sign...

  Part 1 - Review Other Teams' Final Video Projects      I chose to personally review "The Deepfake Dilemma," created by the Tech Heads team, which consists of Sami Hobson, Faith Thomas, and Luis Valadez. Both the general audience version and the professional version  will be reviewed in the following paragraph. The topics in both videos are well-covered with respect for their own audiences. The topics were presented clearly with an evident speaker rotation pattern. The quality of the research is sufficient for the videos. The professional provides in-depth information for those who are interested and knowledgeable in the technology industry. The quality of video production is great. There was no unnecessary visual aid that didn't help explain the content spoken about. Teamwork is somewhat evident, as I believe that they all made their own slides, but, in a way, I suppose dividing up the work is also a form of teamwork. Overall, I believe Tech Heads demonstrate...

 Part One     We collaborated using Canva to create graphic slides for the video presentation. For the script, we used Google Docs to share research links, contribute ideas, and write collaboratively. We held a meeting to discuss what we have learned in-depth and worked together to create a fluent and well-structured script. Communication was handled via Discord, allowing us to coordinate in real-time through text and calls. Finally, we uploaded the finished presentations for both the public and professional audiences to YouTube. The overall process was much smoother than anticipated. We devised a schedule to adhere to. We quickly found tools that aided us in the creation of the projects, and everyone did their parts in research, writing, and rotational speaking in the presentation. Next time doing such a large collaborative project, I think clarification of who does what is needed to prevent accidental overlaps in script writing. Part Two     This week's lectu...

Part One - Help Your Teammates to Develop Capstone Ideas     One idea that Claudia had that particularly caught my interest was that she thought of creating a motion-tracking software for athletes. I thought that would be a unique and strong project for a capstone project. She also talked about creating a firewall, which I also thought was a very nice idea. For Mariah, the project that piqued my interest the most was the pet adoption matching system, where it was described as a match-making system, but for humans to find the perfect pet. A very unique idea that I thought would be excellent and fun to do. I thought for myself, I'd make a forum website or tracking flying insects or birds, and pre-calculate their flight trajectory, and possibly detection of what kind of insect or bird it is. Part Two - Keep Up With Your Learning Journal For this week, I explored various careers, LinkedIn, resumes, cover letters, and internships in depth. I've never created a resume or cover lette...