Junior Developer Quickstart

1. Overview

This guide explains how to set up the development environment, run the application, and make your first contribution.

2. Prerequisites

Node.js (v18 or later)
pnpm (package manager)
Docker (for backend services, optional)
Git (version control)

3. Repository Setup

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/your-org/zui.git
cd zui

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

4. Running the Application

Frontend

pnpm dev

Open http://localhost:3000 to see the app.

Backend

pnpm start

The backend API will be available at http://localhost:5000.

5. Making Your First Contribution

Create a feature branch:

git checkout -b feat/your-first-contribution

Make a small change:
- Improve a README typo.
- Add a missing JSDoc comment.
- Fix a minor bug.
Run the appropriate tests to ensure your change doesn't break anything:
```
pnpm test
```

Commit your changes with a clear message:

git commit -am "feat: brief description of change"

Push the branch to GitHub:

git push origin feat/your-first-contribution

Open a Pull Request on GitHub, linking the relevant issue.

6. Coding Standards

Follow the patterns in ARCHITECTURE.md and CONTRIBUTING.md.
Use TypeScript with strict mode.
Add JSDoc for all public APIs.
Keep changes small and focused.

7. Helpful Links

ARCHITECTURE.md - High-level architecture overview.
PERFORMANCE_IMPROVEMENTS.md - Performance improvement plan.
CODE_REVIEW_CHECKLIST.md - Checklist for reviewers.

8. FAQ

Q: Do I need to write tests?
A: For bug fixes and new features, yes. Unit tests and integration tests are located under frontend/src/app/**/*.test.tsx.

Q: How do I run the linter?
A: pnpm lint.

Q: Where can I find more documentation?
A: See the docs/ directory and the repository wiki.

---\nHappy coding!

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