Skill Swap Platform

Team Name: Team 1274 Selected Problem Statement: Skill Swap Platform

A modern web application that enables users to exchange skills with each other. Users can list their skills, search for others with specific skills, and request skill swaps in return.

Features

User Management

• User Registration & Authentication: Secure JWT-based authentication
• Profile Management: Users can create and edit their profiles
• Profile Photos: Optional profile photo uploads
• Privacy Settings: Users can make their profiles public or private

Skill Management

• Skills Offered: Users can list skills they can teach
• Skills Wanted: Users can list skills they want to learn
• Skill Details: Each skill includes description and proficiency/priority levels
• Availability: Users can specify when they're available (weekdays, weekends, evenings, mornings)

Search & Discovery

• Browse Users: View all public profiles
• Skill Search: Search users by specific skills
• Location Filtering: Filter users by location
• Availability Filtering: Filter by availability preferences

Swap Management

• Request Swaps: Send skill exchange requests to other users
• Accept/Reject: Recipients can accept or reject swap requests
• Cancel Requests: Requesters can cancel pending requests
• Complete Swaps: Mark swaps as completed after exchange
• Swap History: View all past and current swaps

Rating System

• Post-Swap Ratings: Rate completed swaps (1-5 stars)
• Comments: Add feedback comments to ratings
• User Ratings: Build reputation through ratings
• Average Ratings: Display user's average rating

Tech Stack

Backend

• Node.js with Express.js
• MongoDB with Mongoose ODM
• JWT for authentication
• bcryptjs for password hashing
• multer for file uploads
• express-validator for input validation
• helmet for security headers
• express-rate-limit for rate limiting

Frontend

• React.js with functional components and hooks
• React Router for navigation
• Axios for API calls
• React Hook Form for form management
• React Hot Toast for notifications
• Lucide React for icons
• Tailwind CSS for styling

Project Structure

skillswap/
├── server/                 # Backend API
│   ├── models/            # MongoDB schemas
│   ├── routes/            # API routes
│   ├── middleware/        # Custom middleware
│   ├── uploads/           # File uploads
│   └── index.js           # Server entry point
├── client/                # Frontend React app
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── components/    # Reusable components
│   │   ├── pages/         # Page components
│   │   ├── contexts/      # React contexts
│   │   └── index.js       # App entry point
│   └── public/            # Static files
└── README.md

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v14 or higher)
• MongoDB (local or cloud instance)
• npm or yarn

Installation

1. Clone the repository

   git clone <repository-url>
   cd skillswap

2. Install dependencies

   # Install root dependencies
   npm install
   
   # Install backend dependencies
   cd server
   npm install
   
   # Install frontend dependencies
   cd ../client
   npm install

3. Environment Setup

   Copy the template file and customize it with your settings:

   cd server
   cp .env-template .env

   Then edit the .env file with your MongoDB Atlas connection string:

   MONGODB_URI=mongodb+srv://your-username:your-password@your-cluster.mongodb.net/skillswap?retryWrites=true&w=majority
   JWT_SECRET=your-super-secret-jwt-key-change-this-in-production
   PORT=5000
   NODE_ENV=development

4. Start MongoDB

   Make sure MongoDB is running on your system or use a cloud instance.

5. Run the application

   From the root directory:

   # Start both frontend and backend
   npm run dev
   
   # Or start them separately:
   npm run server  # Backend on port 5000
   npm run client  # Frontend on port 3000

Development Scripts

• npm run dev - Start both frontend and backend in development mode
• npm run server - Start only the backend server
• npm run client - Start only the frontend development server
• npm run build - Build the frontend for production
• npm run install-all - Install dependencies for all packages

API Endpoints

Authentication

• POST /api/auth/register - Register a new user
• POST /api/auth/login - Login user
• GET /api/auth/me - Get current user

Users

• GET /api/users/browse - Browse public users
• GET /api/users/search - Search users by skills
• GET /api/users/:id - Get user profile
• PUT /api/users/profile - Update user profile
• POST /api/users/profile-photo - Upload profile photo
• POST /api/users/skills-offered - Add skill offered
• POST /api/users/skills-wanted - Add skill wanted
• DELETE /api/users/skills-offered/:id - Remove skill offered
• DELETE /api/users/skills-wanted/:id - Remove skill wanted

Swaps

• POST /api/swaps - Create swap request
• GET /api/swaps/my-swaps - Get user's swaps
• GET /api/swaps/:id - Get swap details
• PUT /api/swaps/:id/accept - Accept swap request
• PUT /api/swaps/:id/reject - Reject swap request
• PUT /api/swaps/:id/complete - Complete swap
• PUT /api/swaps/:id/cancel - Cancel swap request
• POST /api/swaps/:id/rate - Rate completed swap

Skills

• GET /api/skills/popular - Get popular skills
• GET /api/skills/suggestions - Get skill suggestions

Usage

1. Register/Login: Create an account or sign in
2. Complete Profile: Add your skills, availability, and bio
3. Browse Users: Search for people with skills you want to learn
4. Request Swaps: Send skill exchange requests
5. Manage Requests: Accept, reject, or cancel swap requests
6. Complete Swaps: Mark swaps as completed after exchange
7. Rate & Review: Provide feedback after completing swaps

Contributing

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