Chada Tech Dual-Clock System

A C++ time-display project demonstrating modular design, rollover logic, and user-driven time manipulation.

Project Overview

This program displays both 12-hour and 24-hour clocks side by side in visually formatted boxes.
Users can increment the hour, minute, or second via a menu-driven interface, with complete rollover logic:

• Second → Minute
• Minute → Hour
• Hour → 0–23 cycle

Originally built for CS 210 – Programming Languages, now evolving into a polished portfolio project.

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Table of Contents

• Key Features
• Technical Overview
• File Structure
• How to Build & Run
• Learning Objectives Demonstrated
• Future Enhancements
• Why This Project Matters
• Contributing
• License
• Contact

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Key Features

• ✔ Dual 12-hour + 24-hour clock display
• ✔ AM/PM formatting logic
• ✔ Modular functions for time manipulation
• ✔ Full cascading rollover logic
• ✔ Input validation for menu and initial time
• ✔ Professionally formatted clock UI
• ✔ Clean and readable C++ design

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Technical Overview

• Language: C++17
• Platform: Windows (MSVC)
• Editor: Visual Studio Code
• Paradigm: Modular procedural design

Core Functions

Function	Responsibility
displayMenu()	Prints user menu options
displayClocks()	Renders 12-hour & 24-hour clocks side by side
addHour()	Increments hour with 24-hour rollover
addMinute()	Increments minute; triggers hour rollover
addSecond()	Cascading rollover: second → minute → hour
centerText()	Centers text inside a fixed-width field
validateInitialTime()	Ensures initial time values are valid

Design Goals

• Separation of logic & UI
• No global variables
• Explicit time-state mutation via reference parameters
• Easy future expansion (OOP, ticking clock, etc.)

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File Structure

```text
ChadaTechClocks/
├─ src/
│  └─ ChadaTechClocks.cpp        # Main program source
│
├─ build/                        # Compiled binaries (ignored by git)
│  ├─ ChadaTechClocks.exe
│  └─ ChadaTechClocks.obj
│
├─ .vscode/                      # VS Code build/debug configuration
│  ├─ tasks.json                 # MSVC build task
│  ├─ launch.json                # Debug configuration
│  └─ c_cpp_properties.json      # IntelliSense settings
│
├─ .gitignore
├─ .gitattributes
├─ LICENSE.txt
└─ README.md

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How to Build & Run

✔ Build (VS Code — MSVC)

Press: Ctrl + Shift + B This runs the configured MSVC task and outputs: /build/ChadaTechClocks.exe

Run & Debug (VS Code)

Press: F5 The debugger launches with:

• Breakpoint support
• Variable inspection
• Step over / into / out
• Integrated terminal output

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Learning Objectives Demonstrated

• Modular C++ program structure
• Function declarations & definitions
• Menu-driven user interface
• Control flow with loops & conditionals
• Time formatting (12-hour & 24-hour)
• Rollover algorithms
• Input validation & error handling
• Professional documentation & commenting
• Clean formatting + consistent naming conventions

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Future Enhancements

• Real-time ticking using <chrono>
• Add subtract-time features
• Logging or time history
• Unit tests for edge-case rollovers
• Convert into a class-based OOP model
• Add CLI flags (e.g., verbose mode, auto-tick)

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Why This Project Matters

This project demonstrates practical programming skills used in early engineering roles:

• Modular architecture
• State management
• Functional decomposition
• User input validation
• Clean console UI formatting
• Time-based computation
• Professional-level code clarity and documentation

It functions as both an academic milestone and a portfolio-ready example of craftsmanship and problem-solving.

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Contributing

Pull requests are welcome!
Please open an issue first to discuss major changes.

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License

This project is distributed under the MIT License.

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Contact

Erica Kinch
📧 ek.does.tech@gmail.com 🔗 https://github.com/ekdoestech 🔗LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erica-kinch/