Introduction to Coding and CS50

Overview

• Coding is a valuable skill.
• Initially, did not know anything about coding before university.
• Found CS50, Harvard's free online course on computer science and programming.
• Presented by David Malan.
• Course involves rigorous weekly challenges, labs, and problem sets.

Course Structure

Week 0: Introduction to Scratch

• Learn basics of computer science and programming.
• Topics:
  • Functions
  • Loops
  • Conditionals
  • Variables
• Lab: Create a game in Scratch (e.g., dodging space debris).
• Focus on syntax and VS Code IDE.
• Problem set options: easier or harder versions.

Week 1: Arrays and Debugging

• Introduction to arrays.
• Learned debugging techniques.
• Lab and problem set challenging but manageable.

Weeks 2-5: Algorithms and Memory Management

• Week 2: Sorting algorithms.
• Weeks 3-5: Very challenging material, especially Tiedemann's problems.
• Week 4: Memory management in C (painful experience).
  • Important but challenging concept.
• Week 5: Data structures (queues, stacks, linked lists, trees, etc.).
  • Implemented spellcheck program using hash tables.

Transition to Python

• Shifted from C to Python.
• Python simplified many C complexities (e.g., memory allocation).
• Revisit previous problem sets using Python.

SQL and Databases

• Week focused on SQL, intuitive and engaging.
• Problem set involved solving a mystery using a SQL database.

Web Development: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript

• Basics of creating websites taught.
• Delivered quickly; felt unprepared for JavaScript.
• Completed a creative homepage project.

Flask and Dynamic Websites

• Introduced Flask for hosting web applications using Python.
• Lab involved creating dynamic web pages based on user input.
• Encountered bugs that complicated the problem set.

Recap and Final Project

• Final project based on learned concepts.
• Created a portfolio website to showcase projects.

Conclusion

• CS50 is a comprehensive and demanding course.
• Requires significant time commitment.
• Despite challenges, provides a solid foundation in coding.
• Encouragement to take the course for those interested in programming.