Now that you've had a chance to practice VS Code Live Share, we're ready to start coding. Over the next four lessons, you are going to be practicing Git workflow. It may be a bit confusing at first but you will be using Git every day while you are a student at Epicodus — so the things we cover today will become very familiar soon.
In this lesson, we'll cover pair programming expectations for in-person and remote students as you practice the Git workflow in the command line.
Instructions for In-Person Students
If you are studying in-person, at this point you no longer need to use VS Code Live Share to pair program. Make sure to continue to switch who's driving and who's observing every 20 – 30 minutes. Setting an alarm can be helpful, because it's a neutral 3rd party keeping track of time and you don't have to remember to switch. There are many online timers available. Try this Pomodoro timer if you like.
Before you move onto the next lesson, keep these in mind:
- Talk to your neighbors when you get stuck! Since everyone is working through the same material, it is very likely that someone near you has the answer to the issue you are facing.
- Consider creating and keeping a cheat sheet of commonly used Git commands. You will soon know these by heart through repeated use, but you shouldn't worry about memorizing every command. A cheat sheet can be the best reference for commonly used commands!
- Use the Help Queue to submit a request for help to your teacher. The Help Queue is a ticketing system that uses a Discord robot called "Dyno" to create tickets on the Epicodus Discord server.
- Periodically check on the "common-room" category on Discord for any new posts to the text channels therein. If you are ever uncertain about how and when to use Discord channels, ask your instructor.
Instructions for Online Students
Git is so important that we want everyone to have hands on keyboards for the next several lessons. So that means we aren't going to use VS Code Live Share quite yet. While a VS Code Live Share host can share write access to their terminal so both pairs can practice, we don't recommend it. When you give someone else write access to your terminal, you are giving them the keys to the kingdom. It's a big security risk!
Because we want everyone to practice using Git in their terminals, we'll use Discord screen sharing capabilities to work together as pairs for the next four lessons.
Fortunately, you've already gotten some practice with using Discord's voice and video channels for your Dev Team Scrum. For the next four lessons, you'll do the following:
Continue to use a voice channel in Discord with your pair to communicate as you walk through each lesson together.
Use a Discord screen share so you and your pair can see each other's desktops as you work. Important: Make sure your desktop looks professional and doesn't reveal any sensitive information. Your pair will be able to see anything on your desktop!
You can share your screen by following the same steps that you followed for your Dev Team Scrum. The difference is you can toggle between a video call and a screen share. From the menu below, you just need to click the second icon from the left:
You'll want to be able to screen share so you can help each other troubleshoot any issues that you might come up with. A big part of pair programming is the idea that two brains are better than one — and having two sets of eyes on the same code also makes it easier to find any mistakes.
Finally, we'll leave you with some general tips:
- Talk to your dev team when you get stuck! Since everyone is working through the same material, it is very likely that someone in your dev team has the answer to the issue you are facing. Alternatively, you can bring your question to your cohort by posting in the questions channel.
- Consider using a timer to define when to switch who's driving and who's observing. You should be doing this every 20 – 30 minutes. Setting an alarm can be helpful, because it's a neutral 3rd party keeping track of time and you don't have to remember to switch. There are many online timers available. Try this Pomodoro timer if you like.
- Consider creating and keeping a cheat sheet of commonly used Git commands. You will soon know these by heart through repeated use, but you shouldn't worry about memorizing every command. A cheat sheet can be the best reference for commonly used commands!
- Use Discord to log a request for help from your teacher in the questions channel.
- Periodically check on the "common-room" category on Discord and your cohort's category for any new posts to the text channels therein. If you are ever uncertain about how and when to use Discord channels, ask your instructor.
Do not continue onto the next lesson until you and your pair have successfully finished all the steps in the current lesson. Don't be afraid to take your time. The classwork schedule in this course section and the independent project have both been designed to accommodate new students, including students that are coding for the first time.