CS373 Spring 2021: Shaharyar Lakhani — Week 12

Hey there, and welcome back to my Software Engineering blog! I can’t believe there are only a couple of weeks left in the semester!

What did you do this past week?

This past week, I worked on SQL outside of class to get a better understanding of how it works. I had a really busy week last week though, (which is why I didn’t write a blog post last week) because we had phase 3 for our project due and I also had a lot of work for my other classes. It was nice to finally have a bit of time to take it easy since the hardest part of the semester is over (not to say there’s no work left to do, of course).

What’s in your way?

Nothing is really in my way. It’s just weird to think that this is basically my last semester of college. It feels surreal that there are only a couple of weeks left. I’m not sure if I’m ready to be an adult, and it’s approaching faster than I would like.

What will you do next week?

Next week, I will help my group finish up phase 4 of the project and refactor the website a bit. I will also finish up all of the things I have left for the semester to end on a strong note. I’ve also seen a lot of people in CS make their own websites, and after this class, I think I have enough knowledge to make my own as well. Maybe I will try to start that next week.

If you read it, what did you think of the What Happens to Us Does Not Happen to Most of You?

I was once again, disappointed but not surprised. I’m so tired of hearing the same story over and over again. I’m honestly glad that this is being talked about more because maybe this is the beginning of the end. I have a feeling that a lot of change will occur over the next decade.

What was your experience of joins and refactoring? (this question will vary, week to week)

I liked learning how powerful SQL and working with databases are. You can sort millions and millions of cells of data in a fraction of a second. No wonder we are progressing so fast in technology. I also enjoyed the in class exercises; they were like puzzles and it was fun to solve them.

What made you happy this week?

Being able to get enough sleep and not having to worry too much about my homework because the hardest part of the semester is behind me made me really happy. I was able to play a bit of 2k (a basketball video game) with my roommate and enjoy a 10 mile hike with my girlfriend.

What’s your pick-of-the-week or tip-of-the-week?

I would definitely recommend using reddit and Glassdoor to find out about internships and full time jobs. The thing I love about them is that they have honest reviews, and you can get a feel for what working at a company would be like in terms of work life balance, compensation, environment, etc. There’s no fun in working somewhere if you don’t enjoy it; you only get one life.