From 5545d10ac7d62b44bd6ddb6751324fa68f2d5a69 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Srishti Saxena <isrishtivsaxena@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 11 May 2026 17:09:14 +0530
Subject: [PATCH 1/2] Improve recommender scoring documentation

---
 utils/recommender.py | 23 ++++++++++++++++-------
 1 file changed, 16 insertions(+), 7 deletions(-)

diff --git a/utils/recommender.py b/utils/recommender.py
index b2661dfa..3a5b6771 100644
--- a/utils/recommender.py
+++ b/utils/recommender.py
@@ -7,11 +7,13 @@
 # Maximum number of recommendations returned to the user
 MAX_RESULTS = 3
 
-# Point weights for each matching criterion
-WEIGHT_SKILL   = 3   # Skill matches carry the most influence
-WEIGHT_LEVEL   = 2   # Experience level is the next strongest signal
-WEIGHT_INTEREST = 2  # Area of interest is equally important as level
-WEIGHT_TIME    = 1   # Time availability is a tiebreaker
+# Scoring weights used by the recommendation engine.
+# Higher weights mean that criterion has more influence
+# on the final recommendation score.
+WEIGHT_SKILL   = 3   # Skills are weighted highest because they best reflect project compatibility
+WEIGHT_LEVEL   = 2   # Matching experience level helps avoid projects that are too easy or too difficult
+WEIGHT_INTEREST = 2   # Interest alignment improves recommendation relevance
+WEIGHT_TIME    = 1    # Time availability acts as a smaller tie-breaker factor
 
 
 def parse_skills(skills_string):
@@ -38,7 +40,11 @@ def score_single_project(project, user_skills, level, interest, time_availabilit
 
     # Compare user's skills against the project's required skills
     project_skills = [s.lower() for s in project.get("skills", [])]
-    matched_skills = sum(1 for skill in user_skills if skill in project_skills)
+    # Count how many user skills overlap with the
+    # skills required by the current project.
+    matched_skills = sum(1 for skill in user_skills if skill in project_skills) 
+    # Add weighted points based on the number of matching skills.
+    # More overlapping skills result in a higher recommendation score.
     score += matched_skills * WEIGHT_SKILL
 
     # Award points for each additional matching criterion
@@ -74,10 +80,13 @@ def get_recommendations(skills_string, level, interest, time_availability):
         score = score_single_project(
             project, user_skills, level, interest, time_availability
         )
+        # Ignore projects with a score of 0 since they
+        # have no meaningful overlap with the user's inputs.
         if score > 0:
             scored_projects.append({"project": project, "score": score})
 
-    # Sort so the highest-scoring project appears first
+    # Sort projects in descending order so the
+    # most relevant recommendations appear first.
     scored_projects.sort(key=lambda item: item["score"], reverse=True)
 
     # Return only the project dicts, not the score metadata

From 5565da9ee7d01b23c333fbe85289a7406bcc2e3a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Srishti Saxena <isrishtivsaxena@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 12 May 2026 22:03:15 +0530
Subject: [PATCH 2/2] Fix missing starter code files for tests

---
 starter_code/expense_tracker.py | 16 ++++++++++++++++
 utils/file_server.py            |  4 +++-
 2 files changed, 19 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)
 create mode 100644 starter_code/expense_tracker.py

diff --git a/starter_code/expense_tracker.py b/starter_code/expense_tracker.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..f7e53123
--- /dev/null
+++ b/starter_code/expense_tracker.py
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+# Personal Expense Tracker Starter Code
+
+expenses = []
+
+def add_expense(amount, category):
+    expenses.append({
+        "amount": amount,
+        "category": category
+    })
+
+def view_expenses():
+    for expense in expenses:
+        print(expense)
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    print("Expense Tracker Started")
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/utils/file_server.py b/utils/file_server.py
index 149bee4a..5539060e 100644
--- a/utils/file_server.py
+++ b/utils/file_server.py
@@ -4,7 +4,9 @@
 import os
 
 # Absolute path to the starter_code directory
-STARTER_CODE_DIR = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), "..", "starter_code")
+STARTER_CODE_DIR = os.path.abspath(
+    os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), "..", "starter_code")
+)
 
 
 def resolve_starter_file(project):