Added labfiles

Author: buzahid

Instructions/Exercises/03-create-personalized-banner.md

@@ -0,0 +1,303 @@
+---
+lab:
+    title: 'Create a personalized banner app'
+    description: 'Set up a Python project in Visual Studio Code, install a package with pip, and use GitHub Copilot to build a banner app that greets the user.'
+    level: 100
+    duration: 25
+    islab: true
+    status: 'released'
+---
+
+# Create a personalized banner app
+
+In this exercise, you take everything you set up in this module for a test drive. You create a new Python project in Visual Studio Code, set up a virtual environment, install a package with `pip`, and write a small program that turns the user's name into an eye-catching ASCII banner. Along the way, you practice reading an error message and getting help from GitHub Copilot.
+
+This exercise takes approximately **25** minutes.
+
+## Set up your workspace
+
+You'll write and run your code in Visual Studio Code. The starter code for this exercise lives in a GitHub repository — you'll clone that repo and work inside the folder for this exercise.
+
+1. Open a new **Visual Studio Code** window (**File > New Window**).
+
+1. On the Welcome page, select **Clone Git Repository...** (or open the Command Palette with **Ctrl+Shift+P** and run **Git: Clone**).
+
+1. Paste the following URL and press **Enter**:
+
+    ```
+    https://github.com/MicrosoftLearning/mslearn-python-programming.git
+    ```
+
+1. When the file selection dialog appears, create a new folder in a convenient location to hold the repo (for example, `mslearn-python`), select it, and click **Select as Repository Destination**.
+
+1. After the clone completes, select **Open** to open the folder in VS Code.
+
+1. In the File Explorer, expand the `Labfiles/03-create-personalized-banner` subfolder and select the `app.py` file. This is where you'll write your code.
+
+## Set up your Python environment
+
+Every Python project should have its own virtual environment so its packages stay separate from your other work.
+
+1. Open the integrated VS Code terminal by selecting **Terminal > New Terminal**. Make sure the terminal is set to your project folder — you should see a path ending in `03-create-personalized-banner`.
+
+
+1. In the terminal, create a virtual environment named `.venv`:
+
+    ```bash
+    python -m venv .venv
+    ```
+
+    A new hidden folder called `.venv` appears in the Explorer panel.
+
+1. Activate the environment:
+
+    | Platform | Command |
+    |---|---|
+    | Windows | `.venv\Scripts\activate` |
+    | macOS / Linux | `source .venv/bin/activate` |
+
+    When the environment is active, the terminal prompt starts with `(.venv)`.
+
+2. VS Code should automatically detect the environment and offer to use it as the interpreter.
+
+### Troubleshooting
+
+**Interpreter not detected:** If VS Code doesn't detect the virtual environment:
+    - Press **Ctrl+Shift+P** (Windows) or **Cmd+Shift+P** (macOS) to open the Command Palette.
+    - Type `Python: Select Interpreter` and select it.
+    - Choose the interpreter path that includes `.venv`.
+
+**Script disabled (Windows):** If you see an error saying "script execution is disabled on this system," try the following:
+
+1. Seach for "PowerShell" in the Start menu, right-click it, and select **Run as Administrator**.
+2. In the PowerShell window, run:
+
+    ```powershell
+    Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope Process
+    ```
+3. Close the PowerShell window and return to VS Code. In the terminal, try activating your virtual environment again.
+
+## Install a package with pip
+
+Python's standard library is powerful, but real projects almost always use third-party packages too. You'll install **pyfiglet** — a small package that turns plain text into ASCII-art banners.
+
+1. With the virtual environment active, run:
+
+    ```bash
+    pip install pyfiglet
+    ```
+
+    You should see a line like `Successfully installed pyfiglet-...`.
+
+1. Confirm the package is installed:
+
+    ```bash
+    pip list
+    ```
+
+    You should see `pyfiglet` in the list, alongside `pip` itself.
+
+## Review the starter code
+
+1. In the **Explorer** panel, open `app.py`. The `.py` extension tells VS Code this is a Python file. You'll see the following guiding comments already in place:
+
+    ```python
+    # Load the pyfiglet package
+
+    # Ask the user for their name
+
+    # Turn the name into a banner
+
+    # Print a greeting
+    ```
+
+    Remember, comments are ignored by Python when the program runs. They just help you organize your code. In the steps that follow, you'll add code beneath each comment.
+
+## Load the package into your program
+
+Installing a package puts the code on your machine. To actually use it in your program, you tell Python to **import** it.
+
+1. Beneath the `# Load the pyfiglet package` comment, add the following line:
+
+    ```python
+    import pyfiglet
+    ```
+
+    The `import` statement loads the package so you can use the functions inside it.
+
+## Ask the user for their name
+
+You've done this before in earlier modules. You'll capture the name in a variable and clean up any extra spaces the user might type.
+
+1. Beneath the `# Ask the user for their name` comment, add the following lines:
+
+    ```python
+    name = input("What is your name? ")
+    name = name.strip()
+    ```
+
+    The `.strip()` method removes any spaces at the start or end of the text.
+
+## Turn the name into a banner
+
+The pyfiglet package has a function called `figlet_format()` that takes a string and returns a big ASCII version of it.
+
+1. Beneath the `# Turn the name into a banner` comment, add the following line:
+
+    ```python
+    banner = pyfiglet.figlet_format(name)
+    ```
+
+    - `pyfiglet.figlet_format(name)` calls the `figlet_format` function that lives inside the `pyfiglet` package.
+    - The **return value** — the finished ASCII banner — is stored in the `banner` variable.
+
+## Print a greeting
+
+Now put it all together and display the banner along with a friendly message.
+
+1. Beneath the `# Print a greeting` comment, add the following lines:
+
+    ```python
+    print(banner)
+    print(f"Hello, {name.upper()}! Welcome to VS Code.")
+    ```
+
+    - `print(banner)` displays the multi-line ASCII banner.
+    - `name.upper()` converts the name to uppercase inside the f-string, without changing the original `name` variable.
+
+1. Your complete `app.py` should now look like this:
+
+    ```python
+    # Load the pyfiglet package
+    import pyfiglet
+
+    # Ask the user for their name
+    name = input("What is your name? ")
+    name = name.strip()
+
+    # Turn the name into a banner
+    banner = pyfiglet.figlet_format(name)
+
+    # Print a greeting
+    print(banner)
+    print(f"Hello, {name.upper()}! Welcome to VS Code.")
+    ```
+
+## Run the program
+
+1. Select the **▶ Run Python File** button in the top-right corner of the editor, or run it from the terminal:
+
+    ```bash
+    python app.py
+    ```
+
+1. When prompted, type your name and press **Enter**. You should see something like:
+
+    ```output
+    What is your name? Ada
+
+       _        _
+      / \    __| | __ _
+     / _ \  / _` |/ _` |
+    / ___ \| (_| | (_| |
+   /_/   \_\\__,_|\__,_|
+
+    Hello, ADA! Welcome to VS Code.
+    ```
+
+## Read an error message
+
+Errors are a normal part of programming. Learning to read them is one of the most important skills you can build early on.
+
+1. On purpose, change `name.upper()` in the last `print()` line to `nam.upper()` — remove the `e` from `name`:
+
+    ```python
+    print(f"Hello, {nam.upper()}! Welcome to VS Code.")
+    ```
+
+1. Run the program again. Type your name at the prompt. This time you should see an error at the bottom of the terminal:
+
+    ```output
+    Traceback (most recent call last):
+      File "app.py", line 11, in <module>
+        print(f"Hello, {nam.upper()}! Welcome to VS Code.")
+    NameError: name 'nam' is not defined
+    ```
+
+1. Read the error carefully. It tells you:
+    - **What went wrong** — `NameError: name 'nam' is not defined`.
+    - **Where it happened** — `File "app.py", line 11`.
+
+    Python couldn't find a variable called `nam` because you defined it as `name`.
+
+1. Fix the typo by putting the `e` back:
+
+    ```python
+    print(f"Hello, {name.upper()}! Welcome to VS Code.")
+    ```
+
+1. Run the program one more time to confirm everything works again.
+
+## Extend your program with GitHub Copilot
+
+GitHub Copilot can help you build on top of what you already have. You'll use a comment to guide Copilot into adding a farewell banner.
+
+1. At the bottom of your `app.py`, on a new line, type the following comment and press **Enter**:
+
+    ```python
+    # Ask the user how they're feeling today and print their answer as a banner
+    ```
+
+1. Wait a moment. Copilot should display a suggestion in gray text — something similar to:
+
+    ```python
+    feeling = input("How are you feeling today? ")
+    print(pyfiglet.figlet_format(feeling))
+    ```
+
+1. Press **Tab** to accept the suggestion. If Copilot doesn't offer one, press **Enter** once and start typing `feeling = input(` — the suggestion should appear as you type.
+
+    > [!IMPORTANT]
+    > Always **read** what Copilot suggests before you accept it. In this case, the suggestion should use `pyfiglet.figlet_format()` — the same function you already used above. If it suggests something completely different, keep typing to guide it or reject the suggestion and write the line yourself.
+
+1. Run the program one more time and answer both prompts. You should see two banners printed back to back.
+
+## Save your project's dependencies
+
+If you ever share this project — or come back to it on another machine — you'll want a record of which packages it needs. That's what `requirements.txt` is for.
+
+1. In the terminal, run:
+
+    ```bash
+    pip freeze > requirements.txt
+    ```
+
+1. In the Explorer panel, open the new `requirements.txt` file. You should see a single line similar to:
+
+    ```output
+    pyfiglet==1.0.2
+    ```
+
+    Anyone who opens your project can now recreate the exact environment with `pip install -r requirements.txt`.
+
+## Extend with GitHub Copilot
+
+Now that the banner app is working, use GitHub Copilot to extend it. Open the Copilot Chat panel in VS Code (**Ctrl+Alt+I**) and try the following prompts.
+
+**Try a different banner font**
+
+> "I'm using the pyfiglet package in Python. How do I display text in a different font?"
+
+The banner currently uses the default pyfiglet font. Ask the AI about the `font` argument for `figlet_format()`, then update your program to display the banner in a different style — `"slant"`, `"big"`, and `"bubble"` are good ones to start with.
+
+**Center your greeting**
+
+> "In Python, how can I center a string inside a wider space when I print it?"
+
+Right now the `Hello, ...` line sits flush against the left margin, below a wide banner. Ask the AI about the string `.center()` method, then use it to center your greeting inside a 40-character space so it lines up more nicely.
+
+**Ask Copilot to explain your code**
+
+> Open your `app.py`, select the entire program, and ask Copilot Chat: "Explain what this code does, line by line."
+
+Read Copilot's response carefully and compare it to your own understanding. If any line's explanation surprises you, ask a follow-up question (for example, *"Why do we need `.strip()` on the user's name?"*). Using Copilot as a study partner — not just an autocomplete tool — is one of the fastest ways to build understanding as a beginner.

Instructions/Exercises/04-create-rock-paper-scissors-game.md

@@ -16,21 +16,31 @@ This exercise takes approximately **30** minutes.
 
 ## Set up your workspace
 
-You'll write and run your code in Visual Studio Code.
+You'll write and run your code in Visual Studio Code. The starter code for this exercise lives in a GitHub repository — you'll clone that repo now if you haven't already.
 
-1. Open **Visual Studio Code**.
+> **Tip**: If you've already cloned the repo during another exercise, skip to the next section.
 
-1. Select **File > Open Folder**, create a new folder called `rock-paper-scissors` somewhere on your machine, and open it.
+1. Open a new **Visual Studio Code** window (**File > New Window**).
 
-1. In the **Explorer** panel, select the **New File** icon and name the file `game.py`.
+1. On the Welcome page, select **Clone Git Repository...** (or open the Command Palette with **Ctrl+Shift+P** and run **Git: Clone**).
 
-1. Make sure your Python environment is active. You should see a Python version displayed in the bottom status bar. If you see a warning, select it and choose your installed Python interpreter.
+1. Paste the following URL and press **Enter**:
 
-## Set up your starter code
+    ```
+    https://github.com/MicrosoftLearning/mslearn-python-programming.git
+    ```
+
+1. When the file selection dialog appears, create a new folder in a convenient location to hold the repo (for example, `mslearn-python`), select it, and click **Select as Repository Destination**.
+
+1. After the clone completes, select **Open** to open the folder in VS Code.
+
+## Review the starter code
 
-Before writing any logic, you'll paste a set of guiding comments into `game.py`. Because part of this program uses an `if`/`else` block, the starter code includes that structure with comment placeholders inside each branch — so you always know exactly where to add each piece of code.
+1. In the VS Code file explorer, navigate to the `Labfiles/04-create-rock-paper-scissors-game` subfolder.
 
-1. Copy the following code and paste it into `game.py`:
+1. Select the `game.py` file. 
+   
+   Because part of this program uses an `if`/`else` block, the starter code includes that structure with comment placeholders inside each branch — so you always know exactly where to add each piece of code.
 
     ```python
     import random
@@ -42,15 +52,19 @@ Before writing any logic, you'll paste a set of guiding comments into `game.py`.
     # Check if the player's choice is invalid
 
         # Display an invalid input message
-    
+
     # Play the game if the player's choice is valid
 
         # Generate the computer's choice
 
         # Determine the winner
     ```
 
-    > **Note**: Be sure to maintain the correct indentation levels.
+    > **Note**: Be sure to maintain the correct indentation levels as you add code.
+
+    In the steps that follow, you'll fill in each comment with the corresponding logic.
+
+2. Make sure your Python environment is active. You should see a Python version displayed in the bottom status bar. If you see a warning, select it and choose your installed Python interpreter.
 
 ## Display the game title
 
@@ -185,7 +199,7 @@ Now you'll add the game logic inside the `else` block. You'll use `if`/`elif`/`e
     if player != "rock" and player != "paper" and player != "scissors":
         # Display an invalid input message
         print("Invalid choice. Please enter rock, paper, or scissors.")
-        
+
     # Play the game if the player's choice is valid
     else:
         # Generate the computer's choice