Local VS Code Quickstart

1. Clone it

git clone https://github.com/Jesssullivan/dsa-study-packet.git
cd dsa-study-packet

2. Pick a lane

Dev Containers (recommended if you have Docker)

Open the folder in VS Code, then Reopen in Container (Command Palette → "Dev Containers: Reopen in Container"). This runs the exact same .devcontainer/ bootstrap Codespaces uses — uv, just, watchexec, and (if you have Docker/Podman running) the container builds the toolchain for you. If VS Code asks "Allow Automatic Tasks?", click Allow — that is the practice-loop launcher below.

The container's $HOME is its own throwaway filesystem, not your real machine, so this lane behaves identically to Codespaces: same seeding, same first-run trust dialogs handled for you.

Bare metal (no container)

Open the folder directly in VS Code — no Dev Containers extension required. Nothing in .devcontainer/ runs automatically here (its lifecycle hooks only fire inside a container), so install the four tools the practice loop needs yourself:

# uv (Python + dependency manager)
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
# just (recipe runner)
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://just.systems/install.sh | bash -s -- --to ~/.local/bin
# watchexec (optional — only 'just study' watch mode needs it)
# macOS: brew install watchexec   ·   or your package manager of choice

Then sync dependencies and check the toolchain:

uv sync --extra dev
just doctor

just doctor exits non-zero only if a core tool (uv, just) is missing — watchexec, git, and every interviewer CLI are informational, since the loop still works without them. Nix users: direnv allow (or nix develop --impure) pins all four tools plus tectonic/pandoc for PDF generation in one step — see the Getting Started Nix tab.

Never run .devcontainer/setup.sh by hand on bare metal — it is written for the container lifecycle. Its --seed mode would otherwise seed your real global ~/.claude.json / ~/.codex config instead of a throwaway container home; it detects that it is not in a container and skips those writes with a warning, but you should not need it at all here.

3. Give your interviewer a credential (optional)

Nothing is locked without one — Copilot Chat and the solo loop (just interview arrays two_sum) work with zero keys. To have Claude Code or Codex attach automatically, export one of these in your shell profile (~/.zshrc, ~/.bashrc, …) before opening the integrated terminal, so it inherits the value:

Variable	Interviewer	Notes
`CLAUDE_CODE_OAUTH_TOKEN`	Claude Code (subscription)	From `claude setup-token`; no per-token billing
`ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`	Claude Code (API)	Pay-as-you-go; wins over the token above if both are set
`OPENAI_API_KEY`	Codex	Run `codex login --device-auth` instead if you would rather not export a key

This is the local equivalent of the Codespaces secret described in the repo's WELCOME.md — same variable names everywhere, just set as a normal shell export instead of a GitHub secret.

4. The zero-click launcher fires here too

.vscode/tasks.json runs a folderOpen task the moment you open this repo in any VS Code window — container or bare metal. It launches .devcontainer/launch-agent.sh, which:

Picks Claude Code if claude is on PATH and one of the env vars above is set, else Codex if it is already logged in, else drops you into a plain shell with the same "say the line" instructions as Codespaces.
On bare metal it skips the container-only "wait for seeding" pause (there is nothing to wait for outside a container) and starts immediately.

If you would rather not have a terminal auto-launch every time you open the folder, remove or rename the "practice: start" task in .vscode/tasks.json locally — it is a convenience, not a requirement.

5. `code --goto` (rung 2's file-jump)

just interview-comment <topic> <problem> opens the stub at its RESTATE: line using the code CLI, then falls back to printing the path if code is not on PATH. Local VS Code only installs this shell command on request: Command Palette → "Shell Command: Install 'code' command in PATH". Once installed, the same command works whether you are in a Dev Container or bare metal — it always targets the local VS Code window.

6. Same rungs, same commands

Nothing about the practice ladder changes locally — it is the same resident-interviewer persona (AGENTS.md) and the same recipes as Codespaces:

just doctor                          # preflight
just study-spaced 1                  # today's spaced-repetition draw
just interview arrays two_sum        # cold problem, solution stripped
just interview-comment arrays two_sum   # rung 2: comment scaffold, save-gated
just study arrays                    # watch mode: tests re-run on save
just rep "arrays/two_sum C2 L1 A2 R1 P2 h0 <one fix>"
just challenge-done arrays two_sum

Tell your agent "Start my first practice rep." and go — the same one placement question, the same ladder, the same closeout.