MakersLab (makerslab.lk)

A collaborative platform designed for university students to showcase their academic projects, fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration within the university community.

Features

For Students

• Project Showcase: Upload and share your academic projects with the community
• Explore Projects: Discover and learn from projects created by other students
• User Profiles: Create and customize your profile to showcase your work
• Project Management: Create, edit, and manage your project submissions
• Interactive Dashboard: Track your projects and engagement

For Administrators

• Analytics Dashboard: Monitor platform usage and engagement metrics
• User Management: Manage user accounts and permissions
• Project Moderation: Review and moderate project submissions
• University Management: Add and manage university listings
• Report System: Handle user reports and feedback

Tech Stack

• Framework: Next.js 16 with App Router
• Frontend: React 19, TypeScript
• Styling: Tailwind CSS, Radix UI
• Database: MongoDB (local or Atlas)
• Authentication: NextAuth.js
• Storage: Firebase Storage
• Package Manager: pnpm

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js 20.x or higher
• pnpm (install via npm install -g pnpm)
• MongoDB (local installation or MongoDB Atlas account)
• Firebase project (for storage)

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/Kavirubc/makerslab.git
   cd makerslab

2. Install dependencies:

   pnpm install

3. Set up environment variables:

   Copy the sample environment file and configure it:

   cp .env.sample .env.local

   Edit .env.local with your configuration:

   • MongoDB connection string
   • NextAuth secret
   • Firebase credentials (both Admin SDK and Client SDK)

4. Seed universities (optional):

   pnpm seed:universities

5. Run the development server:

   pnpm dev

   Open http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

Admin Setup

To promote a user to admin:

pnpm promote:admin

Follow the prompts to enter the user's email address.

Project Structure

makerslab/
├── app/                    # Next.js app directory
│   ├── admin/             # Admin dashboard pages
│   ├── explore/           # Project exploration
│   ├── profile/           # User profiles
│   ├── projects/          # Project pages
│   └── ...
├── components/            # React components
├── lib/                   # Utility functions and configurations
├── public/               # Static assets
├── scripts/              # Database scripts
└── types/                # TypeScript type definitions

Available Scripts

• pnpm dev - Start development server
• pnpm build - Build for production
• pnpm start - Start production server
• pnpm lint - Run ESLint
• pnpm seed:universities - Seed university data
• pnpm promote:admin - Promote user to admin

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please read our Contributing Guidelines before submitting pull requests.

Quick Guidelines

• All commits must be signed (GPG or SSH)
• Follow the conventional commits format
• Create feature branches from main
• Submit pull requests targeting main

See CONTRIBUTING.md for detailed guidelines on:

• Commit signing setup (GPG/SSH)
• Branching strategy
• Commit message format
• Pull request templates
• Issue reporting

Contributors

See the Contributors Page for a list of people who have contributed to this project.

License

This project is private and proprietary. All rights reserved.

Support

For questions or support:

• Open an issue on GitHub
• Contact the maintainers

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