diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 568a4d2..2f2c0b4 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -1,6 +1,9 @@
 OPENAI_API_KEY=ADD-YOUR-OPENAI_API_KEY-HERE
+REPO_NAME=agentic-ai-workflow
+DOCKERHUB_USERNAME=lpm0073
+
+# These settings are probably fine to leave as-is.
 ENVIRONMENT=local
-DOCKERHUB_USERNAME=ADD-YOUR-DOCKERHUB_USERNAME-HERE
 DOCKERHUB_ACCESS_TOKEN=ADD-YOUR-DOCKERHUB_ACCESS_TOKEN-HERE
 LLM_TOOL_CHOICE=required
 LOGGING_LEVEL=20
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index c7d04ba..1434880 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -1,3 +1,6 @@
+
+.mypy_cache/
+
 # my own homegrown file to store coverage report output from Docker.
 coverage.out
 
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 391fa33..78f6262 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -4,6 +4,28 @@ All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](http://keepachangelog.com/) and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](http://semver.org/).
 
+
+
+## [0.1.7](https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow/compare/v0.1.6...v0.1.7) (2026-05-21)
+
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+* automated build and tear down ([fa572e2](https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow/commit/fa572e289f2fa737f9c30659e8f62303971aef50))
+
+## [0.1.7](https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow/compare/v0.1.6...v0.1.7) (2026-05-21)
+
+
+### Bug Fixes
+
+* automated build and tear down ([fa572e2](https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow/commit/fa572e289f2fa737f9c30659e8f62303971aef50))
+
+# Change Log
+
+All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
+
+The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](http://keepachangelog.com/) and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](http://semver.org/).
+
 ## [0.1.6](https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow/compare/v0.1.5...v0.1.6) (2026-04-02)
 
 ### Bug Fixes
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index cfbbad0..d065dac 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ LABEL maintainer="Lawrence McDaniel <lpm0073@gmail.com>" \
   license="GNU AGPL v3" \
   vcs-url="https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow" \
   org.opencontainers.image.title="StackademyAssistent" \
-  org.opencontainers.image.version="0.1.6" \
+  org.opencontainers.image.version="0.1.7" \
   org.opencontainers.image.authors="Lawrence McDaniel <lpm0073@gmail.com>" \
   org.opencontainers.image.url="https://FullStackWithLawrence.github.io/agentic-ai-workflow/" \
   org.opencontainers.image.source="https://github.com/FullStackWithLawrence/agentic-ai-workflow" \
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 7bebd1b..9662784 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,23 +1,26 @@
-SHELL := /bin/bash
-export PATH := /usr/local/bin:$(PATH)
-export
+# Windows‑optimized Makefile (cmd.exe as shell)
 
+# Detect OS and set Python / venv activation / .env loading
 ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
-    PYTHON := python.exe
-    ACTIVATE_VENV := venv\Scripts\activate
+	PYTHON := python.exe
+	ACTIVATE_VENV := call venv\Scripts\activate
+	LOAD_ENV := for /f "usebackq tokens=1,2 delims==" %%a in (".env") do set %%a=%%b
 else
-    PYTHON := python3.13
-    ACTIVATE_VENV := source venv/bin/activate
+	PYTHON := python3.13
+	ACTIVATE_VENV := . venv/bin/activate
+	LOAD_ENV := set -a && . .env && set +a
 endif
+
 PIP := $(PYTHON) -m pip
 
 ifneq ("$(wildcard .env)","")
-    include .env
+	include .env
 else
-    $(shell cp .env.example .env)
+	$(shell cp .env.example .env)
 endif
 
-.PHONY: analyze pre-commit init lint tear-down test build release
+.PHONY: analyze pre-commit init init-dev lint tear-down test build release \
+		docker-build docker-run docker-test docker-coverage docker-push docker-prune
 
 # Default target executed when no arguments are given to make.
 all: help
@@ -71,21 +74,43 @@ lint:
 	flake8 ./app/
 	pylint ./app/**/*.py
 
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+# tear down venv / node_modules (Windows + *nix)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+	RM_VENV := if exist venv rmdir /S /Q venv
+	RM_NODE := if exist node_modules rmdir /S /Q node_modules
+	RM_PYCACHE := if exist app\__pycache__ rmdir /S /Q app\__pycache__
+	RM_LOCK := if exist package-lock.json del /F /Q package-lock.json
+else
+	RM_VENV := rm -rf venv
+	RM_NODE := rm -rf node_modules
+	RM_PYCACHE := rm -rf app/__pycache__
+	RM_LOCK := rm -f package-lock.json
+endif
+
 tear-down:
-	rm -rf venv node_modules app/__pycache__ package-lock.json
+	$(RM_VENV)
+	$(RM_NODE)
+	$(RM_PYCACHE)
+	$(RM_LOCK)
 
 docker-build:
 	docker build -t ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME} . --build-arg ENVIRONMENT=${ENVIRONMENT}
 
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+# Docker commands using .env (Windows: LOAD_ENV)
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
 docker-push:
-	source .env && \
+	$(LOAD_ENV) && \
 	docker tag ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME} ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest && \
 	echo "${DOCKERHUB_ACCESS_TOKEN}" | docker login --username=${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME} --password-stdin && \
 	docker push ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest
 
 docker-run:
-	source .env && \
-	docker run -it -e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
+	$(LOAD_ENV) && \
+	docker run -it \
+		-e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
 		-e ENVIRONMENT=prod \
 		-e MYSQL_HOST=${MYSQL_HOST} \
 		-e MYSQL_PORT=${MYSQL_PORT} \
@@ -97,7 +122,7 @@ docker-run:
 		-e LLM_TOOL_CHOICE=${LLM_TOOL_CHOICE} ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest
 
 docker-test:
-	source .env && \
+	$(LOAD_ENV) && \
 	docker run --rm \
 		-e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
 		-e ENVIRONMENT=local \
@@ -113,7 +138,7 @@ docker-test:
 		python -m unittest discover -s app/
 
 docker-coverage:
-	source .env && \
+	$(LOAD_ENV) && \
 	docker run --rm \
 		-e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
 		-e ENVIRONMENT=local \
@@ -129,29 +154,26 @@ docker-coverage:
 		/bin/bash -c "python -m coverage run --source=app --omit='app/tests/*' -m unittest discover -s app/tests && python -m coverage report -m --omit='app/tests/*' && python -m coverage xml --omit='app/tests/*'"
 
 docker-prune:
-	@if [ "`docker ps -aq`" ]; then \
-		docker stop $(docker ps -aq); \
-	fi
-	@docker container prune -f
-	@docker image prune -af
-	@docker builder prune -af
+	docker container prune -f
+	docker image prune -af
+	docker builder prune -af
 
 ######################
 # HELP
 ######################
 help:
 	@echo '===================================================================='
-	@echo 'analyze			- generate code analysis report'
-	@echo 'release			- force a new GitHub release'
-	@echo 'init			- create a Python virtual environment and install prod dependencies'
-	@echo 'init-dev		- install dev dependencies'
-	@echo 'test			- run Python unit tests'
-	@echo 'lint			- run Python linting'
-	@echo 'tear-down		- destroy the Python virtual environment'
-	@echo 'pre-commit		- install and run pre-commit hooks'
-	@echo 'docker-build		- build the Docker image'
-	@echo 'docker-run		- run the Docker image'
-	@echo 'docker-test		- run the Docker image for testing'
-	@echo 'docker-coverage		- run the Docker image for testing + coverage report'
-	@echo 'docker-push		- push the Docker image to DockerHub'
-	@echo 'docker-prune		- Docker tear-down containers/images/builders'
+	@echo 'analyze          - generate code analysis report'
+	@echo 'release          - force a new GitHub release'
+	@echo 'init         - create a Python virtual environment and install prod dependencies'
+	@echo 'init-dev     - install dev dependencies'
+	@echo 'test         - run Python unit tests'
+	@echo 'lint         - run Python linting'
+	@echo 'tear-down        - destroy the Python virtual environment'
+	@echo 'pre-commit       - install and run pre-commit hooks'
+	@echo 'docker-build     - build the Docker image'
+	@echo 'docker-run       - run the Docker image'
+	@echo 'docker-test      - run the Docker image for testing'
+	@echo 'docker-coverage      - run the Docker image for testing + coverage report'
+	@echo 'docker-push      - push the Docker image to DockerHub'
+	@echo 'docker-prune     - Docker tear-down containers/images/builders'
diff --git a/Makefile_Original b/Makefile_Original
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..570b1fc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Makefile_Original
@@ -0,0 +1,157 @@
+SHELL := /bin/bash
+export PATH := /usr/local/bin:$(PATH)
+export
+
+ifeq ($(OS),Windows_NT)
+    PYTHON := python.exe
+    ACTIVATE_VENV := venv\Scripts\activate
+else
+    PYTHON := python3.13
+    ACTIVATE_VENV := source venv/bin/activate
+endif
+PIP := $(PYTHON) -m pip
+
+ifneq ("$(wildcard .env)","")
+    include .env
+else
+    $(shell cp .env.example .env)
+endif
+
+.PHONY: analyze pre-commit init lint tear-down test build release
+
+# Default target executed when no arguments are given to make.
+all: help
+
+analyze:
+	cloc . --exclude-ext=svg,json,zip --vcs=git
+
+release:
+	git commit -m "fix: force a new release" --allow-empty && git push
+
+# -------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Install and run pre-commit hooks
+# -------------------------------------------------------------------------
+pre-commit:
+	pre-commit install
+	pre-commit autoupdate
+	pre-commit run --all-files
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+# create python virtual environments for prod
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+init:
+	make tear-down
+	$(PYTHON) -m venv venv && \
+	$(ACTIVATE_VENV) && \
+	$(PIP) install --upgrade pip && \
+	$(PIP) install -r requirements/base.txt
+
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+# create python virtual environments for dev
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+init-dev:
+	make init && \
+	npm install && \
+	$(ACTIVATE_VENV) && \
+	$(PIP) install -r requirements/local.txt && \
+	pre-commit install
+
+test:
+	python -m unittest discover -s app/
+
+coverage:
+	python -m coverage run --source=app --omit='app/tests/*' -m unittest discover -s app/tests
+	python -m coverage report -m --omit='app/tests/*'
+	python -m coverage xml --omit='app/tests/*'
+
+lint:
+	isort .
+	pre-commit run --all-files
+	black .
+	flake8 ./app/
+	pylint ./app/**/*.py
+
+tear-down:
+	rm -rf venv node_modules app/__pycache__ package-lock.json
+
+docker-build:
+	docker build -t ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME} . --build-arg ENVIRONMENT=${ENVIRONMENT}
+
+docker-push:
+	source .env && \
+	docker tag ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME} ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest && \
+	echo "${DOCKERHUB_ACCESS_TOKEN}" | docker login --username=${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME} --password-stdin && \
+	docker push ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest
+
+docker-run:
+	source .env && \
+	docker run -it -e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
+		-e ENVIRONMENT=prod \
+		-e MYSQL_HOST=${MYSQL_HOST} \
+		-e MYSQL_PORT=${MYSQL_PORT} \
+		-e MYSQL_USER=${MYSQL_USER} \
+		-e MYSQL_PASSWORD=${MYSQL_PASSWORD} \
+		-e MYSQL_DATABASE=${MYSQL_DATABASE} \
+		-e MYSQL_CHARSET=${MYSQL_CHARSET} \
+		-e LOGGING_LEVEL=${LOGGING_LEVEL} \
+		-e LLM_TOOL_CHOICE=${LLM_TOOL_CHOICE} ${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest
+
+docker-test:
+	source .env && \
+	docker run --rm \
+		-e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
+		-e ENVIRONMENT=local \
+		-e MYSQL_HOST=${MYSQL_HOST} \
+		-e MYSQL_PORT=${MYSQL_PORT} \
+		-e MYSQL_USER=${MYSQL_USER} \
+		-e MYSQL_PASSWORD=${MYSQL_PASSWORD} \
+		-e MYSQL_DATABASE=${MYSQL_DATABASE} \
+		-e MYSQL_CHARSET=${MYSQL_CHARSET} \
+		-e LOGGING_LEVEL=${LOGGING_LEVEL} \
+		-e LLM_TOOL_CHOICE=${LLM_TOOL_CHOICE} \
+		${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest \
+		python -m unittest discover -s app/
+
+docker-coverage:
+	source .env && \
+	docker run --rm \
+		-e OPENAI_API_KEY=${OPENAI_API_KEY} \
+		-e ENVIRONMENT=local \
+		-e MYSQL_HOST=${MYSQL_HOST} \
+		-e MYSQL_PORT=${MYSQL_PORT} \
+		-e MYSQL_USER=${MYSQL_USER} \
+		-e MYSQL_PASSWORD=${MYSQL_PASSWORD} \
+		-e MYSQL_DATABASE=${MYSQL_DATABASE} \
+		-e MYSQL_CHARSET=${MYSQL_CHARSET} \
+		-e LOGGING_LEVEL=${LOGGING_LEVEL} \
+		-e LLM_TOOL_CHOICE=${LLM_TOOL_CHOICE} \
+		${DOCKERHUB_USERNAME}/${REPO_NAME}:latest \
+		/bin/bash -c "python -m coverage run --source=app --omit='app/tests/*' -m unittest discover -s app/tests && python -m coverage report -m --omit='app/tests/*' && python -m coverage xml --omit='app/tests/*'"
+
+docker-prune:
+	@if [ -n "$$(docker ps -aq)" ]; then \
+		docker stop $$(docker ps -aq); \
+	fi
+	@docker container prune -f
+	@docker image prune -af
+	@docker builder prune -af
+
+######################
+# HELP
+######################
+help:
+	@echo '===================================================================='
+	@echo 'analyze			- generate code analysis report'
+	@echo 'release			- force a new GitHub release'
+	@echo 'init			- create a Python virtual environment and install prod dependencies'
+	@echo 'init-dev		- install dev dependencies'
+	@echo 'test			- run Python unit tests'
+	@echo 'lint			- run Python linting'
+	@echo 'tear-down		- destroy the Python virtual environment'
+	@echo 'pre-commit		- install and run pre-commit hooks'
+	@echo 'docker-build		- build the Docker image'
+	@echo 'docker-run		- run the Docker image'
+	@echo 'docker-test		- run the Docker image for testing'
+	@echo 'docker-coverage		- run the Docker image for testing + coverage report'
+	@echo 'docker-push		- push the Docker image to DockerHub'
+	@echo 'docker-prune		- Docker tear-down containers/images/builders'
diff --git a/app/__version__.py b/app/__version__.py
index 5ecf4c7..a2d6471 100644
--- a/app/__version__.py
+++ b/app/__version__.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
 # -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
 # DO NOT EDIT.
 # Managed via automated CI/CD in .github/workflows/semanticVersionBump.yml.
-__version__ = "0.1.6"
+__version__ = "0.1.7"
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index c6fbb0a..dc72c64 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [project]
 name = "StackademyAI"
-version = "0.1.6"
+version = "0.1.7"
 requires-python = ">=3.10"
 description = "StackademyAI: an AI-powered marketing agent"
 authors = [{ name = "Lawrence McDaniel", email = "lpm0073@gmail.com" }]