Its easy to make mistakes when you’re checking in software to a source code control system. You can forget to include necessary files, you can break tests, you can introduce compilation errors. This is bad enough when you are working alone, but can be very annoying in a team context, as several people may have to down tools to locate a problem that may have been introduced days before it was found.

Continuous integration addresses this issue, but setting up an automated team member, a machine, whose sole purpose is to continuously check out the code, compile it, test it, and make sure its of the required quality.

This screencast explains all you need to know to get continuous integration understood and implanted as a practice with your team. It covers the following topics:

* where continuous integration fits in the software development process
* what problems it helps to solve or avoid
* what is a build server
* downloading and installing TeamCity
* build breakage notification strategies, especially large build monitors
* downloading and installing the Piazza TeamCity plugin
* and as a side issue, removing duplication in an ant file.

The quality of the text in the video is substandard. Subsequent videos are HD quality. Its best to watch in fullscreen.