NISER Mess Menu (messmenu)

TL;DR

Static, browser-only frontend that fetches a published Google Sheet (CSV) and renders the current week’s mess menu (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) as per-day tabs. Auto-selects today when available; no server or build step - update the sheet and the site updates.

Repository Contents

File	Purpose
index.html	Main page container; loads styles + Papa Parse + script.js.
styles.css	Presentation layer (not shown here; customize branding / responsive layout).
script.js	Fetches CSV, parses rows, computes current week range, builds tabs, renders meals.
Code.gs	Google Apps Script utilities attached to the Sheet for housekeeping (duplicates + weekly reset + headers).

Data Source (Google Sheet)

Expected columns (row 1 = headers):

1. Timestamp – Auto-filled by Google Form submission or manual entry; used to determine week range.
2. Day – Full English weekday name: Monday .. Sunday.
3. Breakfast
4. Lunch
5. Snacks (optional - currently commented out in frontend)
6. Dinner

The frontend ignores rows whose Day is missing or not in the predefined order array.

Week Computation Logic

script.js takes the first row's Timestamp, converts it to a Date, then finds the Monday and Sunday bounding that week. The page title shows: MonAbbrev Day - SunAbbrev Day (e.g., Nov 17 - Nov 23).

Tab Rendering Logic

Tabs are generated for all days present in the CSV (ordered Monday → Sunday). The tab for "today" (client local time) is auto-selected if that day's data exists; otherwise it falls back to the first available day.

Google Apps Script (Code.gs)

Attached to the Sheet to keep data clean:

1. deleteOldDuplicateOnFormSubmit(e)
   • Trigger: On form submit (Installable trigger). Removes any previous row with the same Day value, keeping only the most recent submission. Adjusts the target insertion row index when deletions occur above it.
2. clearSheetWeekly()
   • Can be set on a Time-driven (weekly) trigger. Deletes all data rows (preserves header), then calls setupHeaders() to ensure header integrity.
3. setupHeaders()
   • Ensures headers: Timestamp, Day, Breakfast, Lunch, Snacks, Dinner and bold styling.

Recommended Triggers

Function	Trigger Type	Suggested Schedule
deleteOldDuplicateOnFormSubmit	Form Submit	Immediate (on each submission)
clearSheetWeekly	Time-driven	Early Monday (e.g., 00:05) before new menu entries
setupHeaders	Manual / part of weekly clear	Only needed after structural changes

Publishing the Sheet as CSV

1. Open the Google Sheet.
2. File → Share → Publish to web.
3. Choose the specific sheet tab used for menu data.
4. Select "Comma-separated values (.csv)" and publish.
5. Copy the generated URL (it will resemble the one in script.js).
6. Replace the existing csvUrl constant in script.js if the Sheet changes.

If you add columns or rename headers, ensure the JavaScript property names match exactly (Timestamp, Day, etc.).

Local Development

No build step - just static files.

1. Clone repository.
2. Open index.html in a browser (or serve via a lightweight static server if needed for CORS experiments).
3. Ensure the published CSV URL is accessible (test it directly in the browser).
4. Edit and refresh.

Optional Quick Server (Python)

python3 -m http.server 8080

Open: http://localhost:8080/

Maintenance Workflow

Weekly cycle:

1. (Trigger) clearSheetWeekly() runs – old entries cleared.
2. New submissions arrive through the form – duplicates per Day auto-pruned by deleteOldDuplicateOnFormSubmit.
3. Site auto-reflects updates

Handling Duplicates Manually

If triggers misfire, run deleteOldDuplicateOnFormSubmit logic manually by temporarily adapting it into a utility that scans all rows; or just visually prune in the Sheet.

Contributing

Pull requests welcome. Please:

1. Keep changes minimal & focused.
2. Update this README if behavior or data shape changes.
3. Test with a temporary published test Sheet before merging.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Attribution

Made with ❤️ by Harisankar Binod. Maintained by Software Development Group, NISER.

---

Questions / improvements? Open an issue.