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Configuring PyCharm for COMP-1510

This document will cover correctly configuring the IDE for COMP-1510. Namely, ensuring that PEP-8 formatting is checked, and adding a GitHub token to enable you to submit code for lab assignments. The steps here will be the same regardless of your operating system. COMP-1510 requires PyCharm to be configured in a certain way in order to make the most use of it in lab assignments, and one of the easiest ways to avoid losing marks is to ensure that it is configured properly.

Opening PyCharm Settings

Do this first, as the next two sections will assume you have already done this.

  1. Open PyCharm and click Customize from the landing screen. Then click All settings...

  2. If you have previously opened a PyCharm project, PyCharm will re-open that project when it launches and will not show the landing screen. In this case, click the gear icon in the window header, and then click Settings... from the dropdown.

  3. In both cases, this settings panel should appear:

Configuring PEP-8 Validation

PEP-8 is a standard in Python that specifies how code should be formatted. COMP-1510 strictly enforces PEP-8 formatting, and any deviation will result in lost marks. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the IDE is configured to check for PEP-8 and warn you when code does not conform to it.

  1. In the settings panel, type pep 8 into the search bar.

  2. Click on the Profile dropdown, and select Default IDE. This ensures that the settings are applied to the entire IDE and is used as the default for all new projects; instead of being applied to only the currently open project.

  3. There should only be two visible settings: PEP 8 coding style violation, and PEP 8 naming convention violation. Ensure both are checked. They may already be checked by default, but if not, check them.

  4. Click on PEP 8 coding style violation, and set the Scope to In All Scopes, set the Severity to Warning, and set the Highlighting in editor to Warning.

  5. Click on PEP 8 naming convention violation and set the same three parameters as specified in the previous step. This step and the previous step will result in a yellow line under any code that does not conform to PEP-8 formatting. When programming, you can hover your mouse over the yellow line to see the specific PEP-8 rule that the code does not conform to, allowing you to fix it.

  6. Click Apply to save the changes.

Adding a GitHub Personal Access Token

In COMP-1510, you will have weekly graded assignments (called labs) where you submit your work by pushing to a specific GitHub repository. For this, you will need a GitHub account, and to create and add a Personal Access Token to PyCharm to allow it to push code as your account. It is a short text string of random characters that works similarly to am one-time password or the session cookie in a browser.

  1. In the settings panel, type github into the search bar.

  2. Click GitHub in the sidebar.

  3. Click Add account....

  4. From the dropdown, click Log In with Token...

  5. In the popup the appears, click Generate....

  6. Your browser will open to a GitHub login page. Make sure you sign in with the GitHub account that you plan on using to submit coursework.

  7. Once you sign in, you will be redirected to the page for creating tokens. It should already be prepopulated with a name and the required access settings. The default name will be "PyCharm GitHub integration plugin", which you can change. You may also want to use the expiry date dropdown to set the expiry date to after your COMP-1510 class ends, or set it to never expire. You can also adjust the settings for what the token is allowed to access, but for COMP-1510's purposes, you shouldn't need to change anything. When you're done configuring the token, scroll to the borrom of the page and click Generate token.

  8. Copy the new token into your clipboard by clicking the button beside it.

    Warning: The Personal Access Token alone is capable of signing into your account, without even entering your username. Never share it with anyone else, for example, with a classmate over Discord.

    Your instructor, GitHub, or anyone else have no reason to ask you to send them a token, and such emails or other communications are most likely scams with the goal of gaining access to your GitHub account.

  9. Minimize the browser and paste the token into the PyCharm popup, then click Add account....

  10. You should now see your GitHub username and profile picture in the settings panel. Click Apply... to save the setting.

  11. Remember to close (or refresh) the tab that is displaying your token. Then copy something generic into your clipboard, and clear the clipboard history. These prevent accidentally leaking the token, which, as mentioned above, is effectively a password.

  12. If you need to delete or edit the token at a later date, for example, to change permissions or extend the expiry date, go to this link. Click on the name of the token (in blue) to go to the same page shown in step 7.

Next Steps

Now that you have finished configuring PyCharm for use in COMP-1510, it is a good idea to get ahead of the class by gaining some basic experience coding in Python. Like most courses at BCIT, COMP-1510 'hits the ground running', so coming to your first class with even a little bit of knowledge can help tremendously. Proceed to Your First Program to begin your Python coding journey.