How-to guides
Practical articles for developers — workflows, tooling, and techniques you can use today. Each guide is organized with clear headings, context for why steps matter, and copy-paste commands where it helps.
SQL Query Optimization for Large Tables: Indexes, Plans, and Batching
Databases & SQL Intermediate 7 min read
Speed up heavy queries: choose the right indexes, read execution plans, avoid N+1 patterns, and batch work sensibly.
Optimize SQL on big tables: indexes, EXPLAIN, join order hints, avoiding full scans, keyset pagination, and safe batch operations.
Machine Learning Pipeline Basics for Software Developers
Data & machine learning Intermediate 7 min read
From raw data to a served model: training, validation, packaging, and monitoring—framed for engineers who ship services.
Understand ML pipelines: reproducible data, training jobs, metrics, model artifacts, deployment, and production monitoring for app developers.
How to Use AI Coding Assistants Effectively: Context, Prompts, and Review
AI & LLMs Intermediate 6 min read
Get better diffs from Claude, Copilot, or Cursor—narrow files, test-driven prompts, and mandatory human review.
Use AI coding tools productively: tight context, clear prompts, tests, security review, and Git-friendly habits so generated code stays maintainable.
AI Agents for Developers: Patterns, Tools, and Safety Boundaries
AI & LLMs Intermediate 7 min read
From single-shot prompts to tool-using agents—design loops, permissions, and human oversight before you automate production work.
Build safer AI agents: tool use, planning loops, permissions, audit logs, human-in-the-loop, and avoiding runaway automation in real repos.
RAG for Developers: Retrieval-Augmented Generation Explained
AI & LLMs Intermediate 7 min read
Add documents to an LLM’s context safely: chunking, embeddings, vector search, and evaluation—without hand-waving.
Learn RAG: chunk documents, embed text, query a vector store, feed grounded context to an LLM, and avoid hallucinations with citations and evals.
nginx Reverse Proxy and TLS: Upstreams, Headers, and Let’s Encrypt
DevOps & infrastructure Advanced 8 min read
Put nginx in front of your app with proxy_pass, forward client metadata, redirect HTTP to HTTPS, and outline Certbot for free certificates.
Configure nginx reverse proxy with proxy_pass, trusted headers, HTTP to HTTPS, and a high-level Let’s Encrypt / Certbot flow for real servers.
Docker Compose Tutorial: App + Database + Persistent Volumes
DevOps & infrastructure Intermediate 8 min read
Model a small dev stack in docker-compose.yml: web service, Postgres, networks, env files, and healthchecks.
Build a docker-compose.yml with app and database, persistent volumes, networks, env files, and healthchecks—links to Docker install and SQL basics.
How to Install Docker on Linux and Run Your First Container
DevOps & infrastructure Intermediate 7 min read
Install Docker Engine from official repos, add your user to the docker group, and run hello-world plus a useful database image.
Install Docker Engine on Linux, fix permission denied with the docker group, run your first container, understand images and volumes, preview Docker Compose.
Environment Variables & Secrets: .env, Twelve-Factor, and Safe Defaults
Security & secrets Intermediate 6 min read
Separate config from code, ship .env.example, wire CI secrets, and never commit API keys—plus what to do if you leak one.
Use .env and environment variables safely: twelve-factor apps, .env.example, CI secrets, rotation, and pairing with Git hygiene when credentials leak.
REST API Tutorial: HTTP Methods, Status Codes, Headers, and curl
APIs & HTTP Intermediate 7 min read
Call REST APIs with confidence: verbs, common status codes, auth headers, and quick tests from the terminal.
Learn REST: HTTP methods, status codes, headers, JSON bodies, Bearer auth, pagination, and how to test endpoints with curl from your terminal.
SSH Keys for GitHub and GitLab: Generate, Add, and Fix Permission Denied
Security & secrets Intermediate 6 min read
Create an ed25519 key, load it in ssh-agent, add the public key to your host, and debug common auth failures.
Step-by-step SSH keys for Git: ed25519, ssh-agent, GitHub/GitLab settings, known_hosts, and debugging Permission denied when pushing or pulling.
How to Install Node.js and npm: nvm, fnm, and Fix Permission Errors
Languages & runtimes Beginner 6 min read
Use an LTS Node version, switch runtimes with nvm or fnm, and stop EACCES errors when installing global packages.
Install Node.js and npm, use nvm or fnm for version switching, understand package.json and lockfiles, and resolve npm EACCES and permission issues.