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Using GitHub (only when you want the code)

You do not need GitHub to learn here. Every lesson, explanation, and assignment prompt is readable right on this site. GitHub is only where the runnable code files live — starter code, examples, and tests — for when you're ready to actually write and run programs. This guide shows the easy way to get them.

The short version

On a repository page, click the green < > Code button → Download ZIP. Unzip it. That's it — no account, no installs, no Git.

What GitHub even is

GitHub is a website for storing and sharing files — especially code. A repository ("repo") is just a project folder with all its files and a history of changes. Think of it as a public Dropbox folder built for code. That's all you need to know to start.

  1. Open the course's code repository (links are on each course page).
  2. Click the green < > Code button near the top right.
  3. Choose Download ZIP.
  4. Find the .zip in your Downloads, double-click to unzip.
  5. Open the folder in your editor (IDLE: File → Open). Done.

No GitHub account is required to download. You can re-download anytime to get the latest version.

Reading a repo (so it's not intimidating)

  • The list in the middle is folders and files. Click to open them; click a folder to go in, the back arrow to come out.
  • The text shown below the files (the README) is the repo's front page — start there.
  • Click any file to read it right in the browser.

Optional: the "real" way with Git (for later)

Once you're comfortable, you can clone a repo — make a live local copy you can update with one command. You don't need this for the course, but when you're curious:

git clone https://github.com/dmill166/msudenver-cs1050.git

(That requires installing Git and is entirely optional.)

Do I have to use GitHub?

No. The learning lives on this site. GitHub is a convenience for distributing code files — use the ZIP download, use Git, or just read the code on the site and type it yourself. Whatever gets you coding.