The Preparations: Crafting a Distinctive Path to GSoC

Hey there!

So, as I was gearing up for Google Summer of Code (GSoC), things started to get really exciting. I teamed up with a college friend, and together, we set out to build something unique for GSoC. We weren't just looking to create any old project; we wanted to craft something that would really stand out.

After bouncing around a few ideas, we stumbled upon the Wave Function Collapse algorithm. It was a fresh and fascinating concept that immediately caught our interest. But, there was a twist—we needed to pair it with a graphical interface. That led us into the world of GUI programming.

The idea of combining this cool algorithm with a user-friendly interface was too good to pass up. So, we set to work on our project: a Sudoku solver built in Rust, using the GTK4-RS library for the GUI. It was simple yet intriguing, and we were excited to see where it would take us.

We kicked off our project in December, diving into late-night coding sessions with a mix of determination and caffeine. Rust was our language of choice because it’s both powerful and safe, and GTK4-RS gave our project a slick, intuitive interface.

As we worked through the code, we faced challenges, but they became opportunities to learn and grow. The Wave Function Collapse algorithm, while complex, added an extra layer of excitement. It felt like our project was evolving into something special.

December was a whirlwind of discussions, debugging, and moments of inspiration. Finally, our Sudoku solver was ready to be shared with the world. We even packaged it as a Flatpak package, making it accessible to anyone who wanted to try it.

Seeing our app go live was an incredible feeling. It wasn’t just about the code—it was about the journey, the friendships we built, and the skills we developed along the way. This was just the beginning of our adventure, and as we looked ahead to GSoC, we were ready to face whatever came next with excitement and enthusiasm.

To be continued...