Weather By Zip

Thank you for your time and consideration!

How to Build & Run

Git must be installed to be able to clone from a github repo. Git can be downloaded here.
If you do not already have NodeJS installed on your local machine, install the LTS version from https://nodejs.org following the instructions appropriate for your operating system. Once installed, you should be able to open a terminal (or "command prompt" if using Windows) and type in node. If you do not get an error, then try a command like console.log('Hello World!') to verify proper functionality. If node is working, proceed to the next step.

In your terminal, navigate to the directory in which you would like to download the application.
Enter git clone https://github.com/cmatzenbach/weather-by-zip
Enter cd weather-by-zip/ to navgate to the project root.
If you are running MacOS or Linux, you can simply run ./install.sh to run the custom installation script. It will download all of the dependencies and setup the app. It will take around 5 minutes to complete. Then proceed to step 8.
If you are on Windows, or the script will not execute for whatever reason, installing the application is still simple! Enter npm install to install all of the back-end dependencies. Once this is complete, enter cd client to move into the client directory, where you will need to again run npm install. This will install all of the front-end (react) dependencies. Once this is complete, enter cd ../ to move back into the project root, and proceed to step 8.
A .env file has been included in the email with the project submission. This file contains the API keys necessary for the application to run - please copy and paste this file into the project root (current directory). NOTE: Windows often has problems with so-called dotfiles. You will likely need to rename the .env file .env. and place that in the project root. If you still have issues, create a new .txt file in the project root, paste the contents of the .env file inside, save it, and from windows explorer rename it to .env..

Run the program by typing npm start (be sure you are in the project root). This will generate messages in the terminal about the front and back-end servers, and should automatically open a web browser to the address http://localhost:3000. If the app starts in the console but does not open a browser, please open the browser of your choice and paste in that URL. You will now see the app in your browser!
Enter Ctrl + C while in your terminal to terminate the program.