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Phase 1: Syntax and Tool Familiarization

Phase 1 focuses on familiarizing you with modern C++20 syntax and building foundational command-line tools. This phase builds practical skills with the language while implementing simplified versions of common Unix utilities.

Learning Objectives​

By the end of Phase 1, you will:

  • Master modern C++20 features including smart pointers, ranges, and coroutines
  • Understand how to build robust command-line applications
  • Implement file processing and text manipulation algorithms
  • Apply proper error handling and logging techniques
  • Use CMake for cross-platform builds
  • Write comprehensive unit tests for your code

Projects in This Phase​

This phase consists of three main projects:

  1. CLI Tools Suite: Simplified implementations of ls, grep, and wc commands
  2. JSON Parser: A lightweight JSON parsing library
  3. Multi-threaded Logger: A thread-safe logging system

Each project is designed to introduce you to different aspects of C++ programming while building practical, useful tools.

Development Environment​

All projects in Phase 1 should be developed and tested in the Docker environment for consistency:

# Enter development container
./scripts/docker-dev.sh exec

# Navigate to project root
cd /app

# Build Phase 1 projects
cd build
cmake ..
make -j4

Testing Strategy​

For each project in Phase 1, you should:

  1. Write unit tests using Google Test framework
  2. Test both normal and edge cases
  3. Verify correct behavior with various inputs
  4. Ensure proper error handling

Run tests with:

./scripts/docker-dev.sh test

Next Steps​

Begin with the CLI Tools project to implement your first command-line utilities!