Department SQL Class Exercise

Git Pull Request Exercise: Contribute to Class Resources

Your Mission

Make a meaningful contribution to our class resources and earn bonus points (0.5 to 1 pt) for your final grade!

It does not have to be on the first day, you can do it anytime.

Choose Your Target Repository

Option A: Website (GitHub)

  • Repository: https://github.com/KnuxV/advanced_programming_python
  • Good for: Adding resources, fixing typos, improving documentation

Option B: Git Exercises (GitLab Unistra)

  • Repository: https://gitlab.unistra.fr/cours_git
  • Good for: Adding exercises, corrections, translations, clarifications
  • Login with your regular Unistra credentials

What Contributions Are Worth Bonus Points?

High value (1 pt):

  • Add a new exercise or tutorial
  • Translate existing content to another language
  • Add substantial documentation or resources
  • Create comprehensive solution guides

Basic value (0.5 pt):

  • Fix typos and grammar
  • Add small improvements or corrections
  • Minor formatting fixes
  • Fix bugs or issues
  • Add useful clarifications to existing exercises
  • Improve existing documentation structure
  • Provide alternative exercise solutions

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Fork the Repository

  • Go to your chosen repository URL
  • Click “Fork” button
  • You now have your own copy in your account

2. Clone Your Fork to your local machine

# Replace YOUR_USERNAME and choose github.com OR gitlab.unistra.fr
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/advanced_programming_python
# OR
git clone https://gitlab.unistra.fr/YOUR_USERNAME/cours_git

cd repository-name

3. Create a Feature Branch

# Choose a descriptive name
git switch -c fix-typos-chapter3
# OR
git switch -c add-french-translation
# OR  
git switch -c improve-merge-exercise

Important: Never work directly on your main branch!

4. Make Your Changes

  • Edit files, add content, fix issues
  • Test that everything works
  • Make sure your changes are useful!

5. Commit Your Work

git add .
git commit -m "Fix typos in Git merge exercise

- Correct spelling errors in instructions
- Improve clarity of conflict resolution steps"

6. Push Your Feature Branch

# Only push when you're satisfied with your changes
git push origin your-branch-name

7. Create Pull Request

  • After pushing, both GitHub/GitLab will show a helpful banner
  • Click “Create Pull Request” or “Create Merge Request”
  • The PR goes: your-username/feature-branch → original-repo/main
  • Write a clear description of what you changed and why

8. Wait for Review

  • Your instructor will review and provide feedback
  • Make additional changes if requested
  • Celebrate when it gets merged! 🎉

Contribution Ideas

For the Website:

  • Add useful Python resources, links or explanations about the class
  • Fix documentation errors
  • Improve exercise instructions, suggest variants
  • Add examples or clarifications

For Shell, Git and Python Exercises:

  • Add translations (create branch like french-translation with a mention of the branch in the instructions)
  • Clarify confusing instructions
  • Add new practice exercises
  • Fix bugs in existing exercises
  • Provide solution guides
  • Add “common mistakes” sections
  • Create troubleshooting guides

Example Pull Request Description

## What I Changed
Fixed multiple typos and unclear instructions in the merge conflict exercise.

## Why This Helps
- Students were confused by step 4
- Several spelling errors made instructions hard to follow
- Added clearer examples for beginners

## Files Changed
- exercises/merge-conflict.md
- README.md (minor formatting)

Important: PR Direction

You are creating a PR from your feature branch to the original repository’s main branch:

  • ✅ your-fork/feature-branch → original-repo/main
  • ❌ NOT to your own main branch

You don’t need to merge your feature branch into your main branch first!

Quick Commands Reference

# Basic workflow
git clone your-fork-url
cd repository-name
git switch -c your-branch-name
# ... make changes ...
git add .
git commit -m "Clear description of changes"
git push origin your-branch-name
# Then create PR on the website

Tips for Success

  • Be specific: Target one clear improvement, make several specific pull requests instead of a big complicated one.
  • Test everything: Make sure your changes work
  • Explain clearly: Write good commit messages and PR descriptions
  • Start small: Better to make a small, perfect contribution than a large, messy one A pull request must follow a thematic. If you are fixing typos, it’s okay to target many different files because the theme is to fix typo. But don’t fix typo and add a translation in the same pull request.
  • Focus on helping future students: Think about what would be most useful

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Working directly on main branch instead of a feature branch
  • Pushing untested changes
  • Making PRs that are too large or unfocused
  • Not explaining what you changed or why