Git/GitHub Workshop with Mandelbrot in MATLAB

Mandelbrot

Workshop Overview

Welcome to the Git/GitHub Workshop! In this session, you'll learn the fundamentals of Git and GitHub by contributing to a Mandelbrot renderer project. You will fork the repository, add custom zoom and color settings to a JSON file, and submit your changes through a pull request. By the end of this workshop, you'll have hands-on experience with essential Git/GitHub workflows.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

• A GitHub account
• Git installed on your computer
• MATLAB installed on your computer
• Basic understanding of Git/GitHub (helpful but not required)

Workshop Objectives

By the end of this workshop, you will:

1. Understand how to fork a repository on GitHub.
2. Learn to clone a repository to your local machine.
3. Create a new branch for your changes.
4. Add custom zoom and color settings to a JSON file.
5. Commit and push your changes to GitHub.
6. Create a pull request to merge your changes into the main project.
7. Understand how to modify and run the provided MATLAB script for rendering the Mandelbrot set.

Creating and Setting Up a GitHub Token

To use MATLAB Online with GitHub, you need to create a personal access token. Follow these steps:

1. Go to GitHub Personal Access Tokens.
2. Click on "Generate new token".
3. Give your token a descriptive name, such as "MATLAB Online Access".
4. Select the following scopes:
   • repo (Full control of private repositories)
5. Click "Generate token".
6. Important: Copy the token to a secure location. You will not be able to see it again.

Using the Token in MATLAB Online

Not Required since using the Badge will automatically prompt for the username and token to clone the repository. However, if you want to set it up manually, follow these steps:

1. Open MATLAB Online and go to the "Home" tab.
2. Click on "Preferences".
3. Navigate to "MATLAB > Git".
4. In the "Remote" section, enter your GitHub username and paste the personal access token as the password.
5. Click "Apply" and "OK".

Your MATLAB Online is now set up to interact with GitHub using your personal access token.

Getting Started

1. Fork the Repository

1. Go to the Mandelbrot Renderer repository.
2. Click on the "Fork" button at the top right of the page to create a copy of the repository under your GitHub account.

2. Clone the Repository

1. Open your terminal or command prompt.
2. Clone your forked repository to your local machine using the following command:

git clone https://github.com/your-username/mandelbrot-renderer.git

3. Navigate to the repository directory:

cd git_workshop/src/

3. Create a New Branch

1. Create a new branch for your changes:

git checkout -b add-zoom-color-settings

4. Add Your Zoom and Color Settings

1. Open the settings.json file in your preferred text editor.
2. Add your custom zoom and color settings to the JSON file. Example format:

{
  "settings": [
    {
      "xlim": [-0.748766713922161, -0.748766707771757],
      "ylim": [0.123640844894862, 0.123640851045266],
      "maxIterations": 500,
      "gridSize": 1000,
      "colorMap": "jet"
    },
    {
      "xlim": [-0.5, 0.5],
      "ylim": [-0.5, 0.5],
      "maxIterations": 1000,
      "gridSize": 500,
      "colorMap": "hot"
    }
  ]
}

3. Save the file.

5. Commit and Push Your Changes

1. Add the modified file to the staging area:

   git add settings.json

2. Commit your changes with a descriptive message:

git commit -m "Added custom zoom and color settings"

3. Push your changes to your forked repository:

git push

6. Create a Pull Request

1. Go to your forked repository on GitHub.
2. Click on the "Compare & pull request" button.
3. Provide a title and description for your pull request, then click "Create pull request".

7. Running the Mandelbrot Renderer

1. Open MATLAB.
2. Navigate to the directory where you cloned the repository.
3. Open the mandelbrot_render.m script.
4. Modify the script to load the settings from settings.json and apply them to the rendering process.
5. Run the script to see the Mandelbrot set with your custom settings.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You've successfully contributed to the Mandelbrot renderer project using Git and GitHub, and learned how to modify and run a MATLAB script for rendering the Mandelbrot set. This hands-on experience has covered essential Git/GitHub workflows and practical MATLAB usage.

General Resources

• MATLAB and Simulink for Students GitHub
• Git Documentation
• GitHub Guides
• Mandelbrot Set Wikipedia
• MATLAB Mandelbrot Set Example

Workshop Resources

• MATLAB AI Playground

• Open in MATLAB Badge

  Colormaps:

If you have any questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask during the workshop. Happy coding! 🚀