TIL: Documentation Systems and Educational Resources

Today I explored my archive and discovered excellent resources on documentation systems, educational content, and structured learning approaches that every developer should know about.

The Four-Part Documentation System

Divio’s Documentation Framework

Divio’s Documentation System presents a revolutionary approach to organizing technical documentation into four distinct types:

This framework was beautifully explained in the video What Nobody Tells You about Documentation - one of the greatest presentations on documentation structure I’ve encountered.

Why This Framework Works

Each documentation type serves a different user need:

Tutorials guide newcomers through their first successful experience with your product. How-to guides solve specific real-world problems for experienced users. Reference materials provide systematic, complete information. Explanations clarify concepts and design decisions.

Google Season of Docs

Google Season of Docs is a program designed to improve open source documentation by connecting technical writers with open source communities. It’s similar to Google Summer of Code but focuses specifically on documentation projects.

Advanced Sphinx Documentation

Sphinx Tabs Extension

sphinx-tabs enables tabbed content in Sphinx documentation:

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.. tabs::

   .. tab:: Python

      .. code-block:: python

         def hello():
             print("Hello from Python!")

   .. tab:: JavaScript

      .. code-block:: javascript

         function hello() {
             console.log("Hello from JavaScript!");
         }

This creates clean, organized documentation where users can switch between different implementations or languages.

Modern Documentation Themes

MkDocs Material provides a beautiful Material Design theme for MkDocs documentation:

• Responsive Design: Works perfectly on mobile and desktop
• Search Integration: Fast client-side search
• Dark Mode: Automatic theme switching
• Navigation: Intuitive sidebar and navigation
• Code Highlighting: Beautiful syntax highlighting

Computer Science Educational Resources

Comprehensive CS Curriculum

OSSU Computer Science Curriculum provides a complete Computer Science education using free online courses:

Specialized Learning Platforms

Missing Semester of Your CS Education - MIT course covering practical computing skills often overlooked in traditional CS programs:

• Shell scripting and command-line tools
• Version control with Git
• Text editors (Vim)
• Data wrangling
• Virtual machines and containers
• Security and cryptography

CS 61B Data Structures, Spring 2019 - Berkeley’s excellent data structures course with comprehensive materials and assignments.

Mathematics for Programming

Foundations of Applied Mathematics provides extensive Python and data science resources with mathematical foundations:

• Linear Algebra: NumPy-based implementations
• Optimization: Scipy optimization algorithms
• Data Science: Statistics and machine learning
• Numerical Methods: Computational mathematics

Programming Language Resources

Rust Learning Materials

Jon Gjengset’s YouTube Channel features intermediate Rust content:

• Crust of Rust series
• Live coding sessions
• Advanced Rust concepts explanation
• Real-world Rust applications

Jon Gjengset’s Blog includes excellent articles on distributed systems, including MIT 6.824 and RAFT consensus algorithm analysis.

Little Book of Rust Macros - Comprehensive guide to Rust’s macro system:

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// Declarative macros
macro_rules! say_hello {
    () => {
        println!("Hello!");
    };
}

// Procedural macros for more complex transformations

Ruby Object-Oriented Design

Practical Object Oriented Design in Ruby - Sandi Metz is considered the definitive guide to OOP principles in Ruby. Metz explains complex concepts like:

• Single Responsibility Principle
• Dependency injection
• Interface design
• Testing strategies

Functional Programming

Common Lisp: A Gentle Introduction by David S. Touretzky provides an excellent introduction to functional programming concepts:

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;; Recursive function definition
(defun factorial (n)
  (if (<= n 1)
      1
      (* n (factorial (- n 1)))))

Cryptography and Security

Learning Cryptography

Real World Cryptography - Modern approach to understanding cryptographic principles and implementations.

Understanding SHA Algorithms provides deep technical insight into SHA hash functions.

Cryptographic Demonstrations

SHA256 Animation - Visual representation of how SHA-256 hashing works, step by step.

Malicious SHA1 demonstrates practical collision attacks against SHA-1, showing why it’s no longer considered secure.

Project-Based Learning

Learning Through Building

Project-Based Learning Repository curates tutorials organized by programming language where you build real applications:

Learn AI from Scratch

Learn AI from Scratch takes a bottom-up approach to understanding artificial intelligence:

1. Mathematical foundations
2. Linear algebra and calculus
3. Statistics and probability
4. Machine learning algorithms
5. Neural networks
6. Deep learning

Specialized Technical Content

Advanced Screencast Resources

Semicolon&Sons Intermediate Screencasts provides high-quality technical screencasts covering advanced programming topics.

Data Structures Research

Succinct/Compact Data Structures for Python - implementations of space-efficient data structures:

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# Succinct data structures use minimal space
# while maintaining fast query operations
from succinct import BitVector, RankSelect

# Compressed representation of binary data
bv = BitVector("1101001010")
rs = RankSelect(bv)

These structures are crucial for big data applications where memory efficiency is paramount.

Key Learning Insights

Documentation Best Practices

1. Structure Matters: Use the four-type framework for comprehensive documentation
2. User-Centric: Different users need different types of information
3. Visual Enhancement: Tools like Sphinx tabs improve user experience
4. Modern Themes: Good visual design increases documentation adoption

Educational Strategy

1. Systematic Learning: Follow structured curricula like OSSU
2. Practical Application: Project-based learning reinforces concepts
3. Multiple Perspectives: Learn from various sources and authors
4. Depth and Breadth: Balance specialized knowledge with general CS education

Technical Growth

1. Fundamentals First: Strong mathematical and theoretical foundations
2. Language Diversity: Exposure to different programming paradigms
3. Security Awareness: Understanding cryptographic principles
4. Modern Tools: Stay current with documentation and development tools

This exploration reinforces that great technical education requires both systematic study and hands-on practice, supported by excellent documentation and learning resources.

These discoveries from my 2020 learning archive demonstrate the timeless value of well-structured educational content and documentation systems that serve learners at every level.