FoundFirst App – Lost & Found + Study Group Planner for ISU

FoundFirst is a unified web application designed for Iowa State University (ISU) students. It combines two essential campus utilities: a Lost and Found portal and a Study Group Planner to streamline campus life and academic collaboration.

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Features

Lost & Found Portal

• Post lost or found items with descriptions and images
• Browse or search categorized listings
• Initiate real-time chat with the item poster to coordinate returns
• Mark items as resolved to keep listings clean
• Image upload support for better item identification
• Location-based filtering for campus areas

Study Group Planner

• Create or join study groups for ISU courses
• Schedule meetings with time slots and locations
• Live group chat and comments for collaboration
• Notifications for group updates and upcoming sessions
• Course-specific group organization
• Meeting reminder system

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Tech Stack

• Backend: Spring Boot, Java
• Database: MySQL
• Real-Time Communication: WebSocket (Spring)
• CI/CD: GitHub Actions + Docker

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Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Java 11 or higher
• MySQL 8.0+
• Maven 3.6+

Installation

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/HrishikeshUchake/FoundFirst.git
cd FoundFirst

2. Set up the database

CREATE DATABASE foundfirst;

3. Configure application properties

# Update Backend/src/main/resources/application.properties with your database credentials

4. Build and run the application

cd Backend
mvn clean install
mvn spring-boot:run

The application will be available at http://localhost:8080

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Key Functionalities

• Real-time Communication: WebSocket-powered chat system for seamless user interaction
• Structured Design: Backed by comprehensive UML design and documentation
• Modular Architecture: Command design pattern implementation for maintainable code
• Automated Deployment: CI/CD pipelines ensuring reliable releases
• User Authentication: Secure login system with OTP verification
• Responsive Design: Mobile-friendly interface for on-the-go access

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API Documentation

The application provides RESTful APIs for:

• User management and authentication
• Lost & found item operations
• Study group management
• Real-time messaging

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Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/new-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -am 'Add new feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/new-feature)
5. Create a Pull Request

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License

MIT License — free to use, share, and modify.

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Team

Created by:

• Hrishikesh Uchake
• Subhajit Guchhait
• Jared Wong
• Adam Abdi

Iowa State University Students
Open to collaboration and feedback!

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Support

For questions or issues, please open an issue on GitHub or contact the development team.