Programming on the lab machines

Introduction

There are good reasons why our team tend to use the club’s purchased laptops and avoid the computers in the robotics lab.

1. We don’t have administrative access to those machines, so we are restricted to installing applications that don’t require administrative privileges to install.

   Only the ESHS IT department has the authority to install those sorts of applications, and because they are always busy turn-around times can be slow.

2. The desktops are locked down. For instance, on most lab machines, right-clicking in Windows Explorer is disabled.

However, on the other hand:

1. The lab machines are standard Windows 10 installations,

This leads us to a few guiding principles:

1. All applications we install on the lab machines must be either:
   • Installable within the current user’s directory hierarchy (%HOME%); or
   • Portable (the application is self-contained within a single folder, and can be run in-place.)

   This document will indicate which applications are installable and which are portable.

2. Prefer shell access to using Windows Explorer.
   • The shell always works; Windows Explorer only sometimes works.
3. Between cmd and PowerShell, favor PowerShell.
   • But between those and Cmder, favor Cmder!

List of applications

Notepad++ [portable]

Purpose

A programming text editor with decent functionality for beginning coders.

How to install