Note
🆕 New for 2026 C-5: IT 140 now uses GitHub repositories to provide assignment starter files, development resources, and supporting documentation.
If you find a problem with this GitHub repository or its instructions, or have a suggestion for improvement, please open GitHub Issues to review existing issues or create a new issue.
- Course: IT 140 - Introduction to Scripting
- Task Title: 1-1: Setup Tasks
- Task Type: Required, non-graded, no submission
- Repository Version: 1.0.2
- Repository Version DTG: 2026-08-30-12-56
In this task, you will prepare your software development environment, also called the course IDE. An integrated development environment (IDE) is software that helps you design, write, run, test, debug, and manage programs and related files in one place.
Course instructions beginning with the Module Two Assignment assume that you have a GitHub account and access to a configured course IDE. The setup sequence below begins with GitHub and the Codio Virtual Desktop (CVD), the course reference environment. You may also configure the course IDE on a supported Windows, macOS, or Linux computer.
The recommended course IDE includes VS Code, Python 3.12, Git and GitHub tools, testing tools, and course extensions. The same core toolset is used across supported environments so that course instructions, examples, automated tests, and technical support work as consistently as possible.
Tip
Want to understand the tools before or after setup? See the Wiki pages What Is the Course IDE? and Setup Options. You do not need to understand every tool before starting setup.
0 Start Here → 1 GitHub → 2 Codio → 3 Local Computer → Done
Follow the links below rather than browsing the repository folders. Each guide tells you what to do, how to recognize a successful result, and where to go next.
Course instructions beginning in Module Two assume that you can access a GitHub account and identify the account information used by the course IDE.
- Open Set Up a GitHub Account.
- Follow that guide through its GitHub Account Ready Check.
- At the end of the GitHub guide, use its link to continue directly to the Codio guide.
The Codio Virtual Desktop (CVD) is the course reference environment used in assignment instructions, screenshots, and instructional videos. It already contains the main system software for IT 140; the setup process updates, configures, and verifies it. We recommend configuring the CVD even if you also plan to work on your own computer.
- Students: Open Set Up the Course IDE on Codio.
- Faculty and staff: Start with the Faculty CVD Setup Guide.
- Continue until the CVD Verification Summary reports the successful completion values shown in the guide.
After you have access to a configured course IDE, you may also configure the course IDE on a supported local computer, if desired.
Choose the guide for the computer you want to use:
If a local computer is managed by an employer, school, or another person, do not bypass security controls or installation restrictions. Use the CVD while you determine whether you have permission to install software.
When you have access to a configured and verified course IDE, return to your IT 140 course in D2L Brightspace and complete any remaining Module One tasks before the end of Week 1.
If you have time remaining, see Explore Your Course IDE for resources you can use to become more comfortable with VS Code, GitHub, and Markdown.
If a setup script reports FAIL, PARTIAL, NOT COMPLIANT, a nonzero exit code, or another unexpected result, do not guess at a repair or automatically continue to the next setup phase. Follow the instructions in the script summary and the README for that step.
Before asking for help, save the exact error message and note the step where it occurred. Setup scripts also save diagnostic logs under ~/it140/logs/ or the corresponding it140/logs folder in your user profile.
See Setup Problems and Support for troubleshooting guidance, what information to collect, and where to ask for help.
Warning
Never share passwords, authentication or verification codes, recovery codes, personal access tokens, or other credentials in screenshots, logs, GitHub posts, or support requests.
You do not need to understand the GitHub repository structure to complete setup. Use the direct links in the guides.
If you want to learn what a repository, README, or Markdown file is, or see how this Setup Tasks repository is organized, visit Using the Setup Tasks Repository.