NAME

NetsBlox - Networked block-based programming language for teaching distributed computing

SYNOPSIS

2017 - 2019; JavaScript, Node.js, MongoDB, WebSockets, Snap!
github | live

DESCRIPTION

Open-source, web-based visual programming environment that extends Snap! with message passing and remote procedure calls, so students build networked apps with blocks. As a research assistant at Vanderbilt ISIS from 2017 to 2019, worked on the Node.js server: the RPC framework, service caching, the message router, API doc generation, and CI. Landed 213 merged PRs and co-authored papers on the platform at SIGCSE and IEEE Blocks and Beyond.

HIGHLIGHTS

Improved messaging throughput by up to 24x under load with selective caching and cache busting near the networking layer
Standardized a base class for RPC services, cutting lines of code by up to 70%
Built a parser that generates documentation for service APIs, covering 130 modules
Reduced production client bugs by 20% through automated browser tests, a chaos monkey, and CI
Roboscape service work: access control and extendable ciphers including Speck

MEDIA

NetsBlox home page with the Create button and the RoboScape extension banner

NetsBlox editor showing a Hangman game built from visual blocks next to its stage