Glosarium
Every concept in a field, ordered by when you actually need it. Pick a track, start at the first level, and ignore the rest until it comes up.
Tracks
- Backend Engineer
Every concept a backend engineer meets, in the order you actually need it.
- Data Analyst
Every concept a data analyst meets, from trusted SQL to experiment-driven recommendations, in the order you actually need it.
- Data Engineer
Every concept a data engineer meets, from collecting events to serving trusted tables, in the order you actually need it.
- Frontend Engineer
Every concept a frontend engineer meets, in the order you actually need it.
Domains
- Programming Fundamentals
The building blocks every program is made of, in any language.
Programming Basics · Collections · Object-Oriented Programming · Functional Programming · Error Handling · Type Systems · Concurrency & Async · Memory & Runtime
- Engineering Craft
The everyday skills of the job: Git, reviews, debugging, testing and writing code others can maintain.
Version Control (Git) · Branching & Releases · Pull Requests & Code Review · Debugging · Testing · Clean Code & Principles · Refactoring · Design Patterns · Developer Tooling · AI-Assisted Development · Documentation & Writing
- Computer Science
Data structures, algorithms and how computers actually run your code.
Data Structures · Algorithms · Math for Programmers · Computer Architecture · Operating Systems · Compilers & Languages
- Web & Networking
How data gets from one machine to another: networks, HTTP, TLS, APIs and browsers.
Networking Fundamentals · HTTP · TLS & Certificates · API Styles & Formats · How Browsers Work · Real-Time Communication
- Frontend Development
Building what users see and touch: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, frameworks, performance and accessibility.
HTML · CSS · JavaScript & TypeScript · UI Frameworks & Components · State Management & Data Fetching · Rendering Strategies · Web Performance · Accessibility · Frontend Build Tooling · UI/UX for Engineers
- Backend Development
Servers, APIs, databases, caches and queues: everything behind the interface.
Backend Basics · API Design · Relational Databases & SQL · Indexing & Query Performance · Transactions & Concurrency Control · Database Internals · NoSQL & Other Data Stores · Schema Migrations · Database Operations · Caching · Queues & Async Processing · Email & Notifications · Files & Media · Product Building Blocks
- Architecture & System Design
How systems are structured, scaled and kept running, and the trade-offs behind each choice.
Architecture Styles · Domain-Driven Design · System Design Fundamentals · Distributed Systems · Reliability & Resilience · Performance & Scalability · Events & Integration · Cloud Design Patterns
- Security
Keeping the wrong people out, the right people in, and the data safe in between.
Authentication & Authorization · Web Application Security · Cryptography Basics · Secure Development · Privacy & Compliance
- Infrastructure & Operations
Where code runs and how it gets there: Linux, containers, cloud, CI/CD, observability and incidents.
Linux & Servers · Containers · Kubernetes & Orchestration · Cloud Computing · Infrastructure as Code · CI/CD & Deployment · Observability · Incidents & SRE · Working in Production
- Data Engineering
Collecting, moving, storing and shaping data so the rest of the company can trust and use it.
Data Engineering Foundations · Collection & Instrumentation · Ingestion · Storage, Formats & Lakehouse · Data Modeling for Analytics · Batch & Distributed Processing · Stream Processing · Transformation & Analytics SQL · Orchestration & Pipelines · Data Quality & Observability · Data Governance & Privacy · Serving & Analytics · DataOps & Platform · Working as a Data Engineer
- Data Analysis
Turning data into answers: statistics, visualization, experiments and the judgements that make a number worth acting on.
Statistics · Charts & Visualization · Experiments · Types of Analysis · Time & Forecasting · The Analyst's Toolkit
- AI & Data
What every software engineer should know about data pipelines, machine learning and building with LLMs.
Data Engineering Basics · Machine Learning Basics · LLM & AI Engineering
- Collaboration & Process
How teams plan, estimate, communicate and decide what to build.
Agile & Delivery Process · Estimation & Planning · Communication · Product Thinking
- Career & Leadership
Growing as an engineer, from your first job to leading across an organization.
Junior Habits & First Job · Career Growth · Technical Leadership