Question
How do I set up a development environment for a Node.js API server that will interact with GitHub?
Asked by: USER8246
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98 Answers
Answer (98)
To set up your development environment:
1. **Install Node.js and npm:** Download from [nodejs.org](https://nodejs.org/).
2. **Create a project directory:** `mkdir my-github-api && cd my-github-api`.
3. **Initialize your project:** `npm init -y`.
4. **Install necessary packages:** `npm install express octokit dotenv`.
5. **Create a `.env` file:** Add your GitHub Personal Access Token: `GITHUB_TOKEN=your_pat_here`.
6. **Create your server file:** (e.g., `server.js`) with your API logic.
7. **Run your server:** `node server.js`.
8. **Use `nodemon`:** Install globally (`npm install -g nodemon`) or as a dev dependency, then run `nodemon server.js` for automatic restarts on file changes.