🎬 Movies Dataset Web API

University of Washington Tacoma
School of Engineering and Technology
Computer Science and Systems
TCSS 460 A – Client/Server Programming for Internet Applications
Autumn 2025
Instructor: Professor Charles Bryan

Team Members:

• Ryder DeBack
• Faisal Nur
• Kevin Nam Hoang
• Mutahar Wafayee

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📚 Project Overview

The Movies Dataset Web API is a group project for TCSS 460, focused on developing a RESTful API using Node.js and Express.js.
This API will allow users to interact with a movies dataset — retrieving, adding, updating, and deleting movie records.

The dataset contains information such as titles, genres, release years, directors, and ratings, making it ideal for practicing full-stack API development concepts.

All diagrams, scripts, and planning documents are located in the /project_files directory.

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🧩 Alpha Sprint Contribution

Team Member	Contribution
Ryder DeBack	Created the GitHub repository, built the ER diagram, and developed the Swagger YAML file that documents the proposed endpoints and operations.
Faisal Nur	Authored the planning document outlining the Web API’s functionality, written for a non-technical audience, describing how the API interacts with the dataset.
Kevin Nam Hoang	Researched and prepared the cloud hosting options document for Node.js/Express with PostgreSQL. Compared Heroku and Render, tested both using the HelloWorld API, and summarized pros and cons.
Mutahar Wafayee	Wrote and organized the main README.md file, consolidating all deliverables and summarizing team progress for the Alpha Sprint submission.

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💬 Alpha Sprint Meetings

Our group coordinated primarily through Discord, using a shared project channel for scheduling, discussion, and file sharing.

• Ryder created the GitHub repository and first meeting documentation.
• Kevin proposed the use of online meetings since multiple members were remote.
• The team agreed to meet Friday mornings for progress discussions and updates.
• Files and drafts (ER diagram, hosting document, Swagger YAML, and project plan) were shared directly in Discord before being uploaded to GitHub.

This communication style helped the team stay organized and transparent about who was working on each task.

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📝 Alpha Sprint Comments

• The GitHub repository (RyderDProgrammer/TCSS460-MovieWebAPI) was created and shared with all collaborators.
• The movies dataset was reviewed, and key entities identified for the ER diagram.
• Swagger YAML was generated to outline endpoints for retrieving and managing movies.
• Hosting options were explored, and both Heroku and Render were tested using the HelloWorld API.
• The planning document was completed using AI-assisted writing and refined by the group.
• The SQL initialization script is being developed to define tables and load data from the CSV dataset.

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☁️ Cloud Hosting Summary

The group explored two cloud platforms for hosting a Node.js/Express API with PostgreSQL integration. Both options were tested with the HelloWorld API.

Platform	Highlights	Pros	Cons
Heroku	Git-based deployment, PostgreSQL add-on, automatic SSL, free GitHub credits	Easy setup, student credits, built-in DB	Free apps sleep after inactivity
Render	Always-on free tier, PostgreSQL service, auto-deploy from GitHub	No sleeping apps, simple UI, free SSL	Slightly slower build times

✅ Recommendation: Render is preferred for continuous hosting and demonstrations, while Heroku remains great for fast setup using GitHub Student Pack credits.
Full comparison and test documentation can be found in /project_files/cloud-hosting-options.md.

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⚙️ Planned API Functionality

HTTP Method	Endpoint	Description
GET	/movies	Retrieve all movies
GET	/movies/:id	Retrieve a movie by ID
POST	/movies	Add a new movie
PUT	/movies/:id	Update existing movie details
DELETE	/movies/:id	Delete a movie record

Each route will return JSON responses and include proper error handling.

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📁 Project Structure

Movies-Dataset-WebAPI/
│
├── /project_files
│   ├── planning_document.pdf          # Non-technical project overview
│   ├── er_diagram.png                 # Entity-Relationship diagram
│   ├── init_script.sql                # SQL table creation and dataset import
│   ├── cloud-hosting-options.md       # Hosting comparison and tests
│   ├── swagger.yaml                   # API design documentation
│
├── README.md                          # This file
└── .gitignore

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🧠 Learning Objectives

By completing this project, students will:

• Learn to design RESTful APIs using Express.js
• Understand database design and SQL scripting through ER diagrams
• Use Swagger for documenting and testing endpoints
• Practice version control and collaboration via GitHub
• Deploy Node.js APIs to cloud platforms using free-tier services

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🎯 Next Steps

1. Finalize and validate the SQL initialization script.
2. Implement API routes and connect with PostgreSQL.
3. Test endpoints using Swagger UI and Postman.
4. Deploy the working API to Render or Heroku.
5. Submit the completed project for evaluation.

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🚀 Beta Sprint

🌐 Hosted Web API

Live URL: https://tcss460-moviewebapi.onrender.com
Hosted on Render, auto-deploys on pushes to the main branch.

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🧩 Beta Sprint Contribution

Team Member	Contribution
Ryder DeBack	Redesigned the database for efficiency, merging multiple scripts into one SQL insert process. Updated ER diagram and optimized import speed from 13 hours to under 3 minutes.
Kevin Nam Hoang	Deployed and hosted the working API on Render. Implemented and verified the /moviesbyyear?year=YYYY route and ensured it queries from the external cloud-hosted database.
Faisal Nur	Developed the Postman collection to test all implemented routes (/movies, /movies/:id, /moviesbyyear, /health) and exported it to /testing/postman/postman.json.
Mutahar Wafayee	Completed the API documentation (/api-docs) for hosted deployment, added the /moviesbyyear route details in Swagger YAML, and updated this README file for the Beta Sprint submission.

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🗓️ Beta Sprint Meetings

• Oct 14 – Initial Planning Meeting (Discord):
  Ryder and Kevin discussed new database design and division of responsibilities.
  Tasks were assigned: Ryder (Database), Kevin (Hosting), Faisal (Testing), Mutahar (Documentation).

• Oct 15–16 – Progress Updates (Discord):
  Discussed database import improvements, Render deployment status, and route testing plan.
  Ryder confirmed DB optimization; Kevin confirmed /moviesbyyear worked on Render.

• Oct 17 – Final Review (Discord & GitHub):
  Faisal completed testing and shared results; Mutahar finalized /api-docs and README updates.

Primary Communication: Discord text and file-sharing.
Secondary Tools: GitHub commits, comments, and Render build logs.

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💬 Beta Sprint Comments

• Import performance increased drastically after redesign (3 minutes vs. 13 hours).
• Render free tier occasionally returns “502 Bad Gateway” after inactivity, which resolves after waking.
• The /moviesbyyear route is fully implemented and tested, returning correct JSON data for year queries.
• Postman test collection confirms all working endpoints.
• Swagger /api-docs reflects accurate routes and marks unimplemented ones as “Not Implemented Yet.”
• Future sprints will focus on completing relationship tables and CRUD routes for genres, studios, and people.

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Built with 🎬, ☁️, and 💻 by Group 4 – Movies Dataset Web API Team