Tech Learning Journey Outline:

1. Full-Stack Web Development (2-3 months)

Core Concepts:

• JavaScript (Vanilla)
• Basics: Variables, loops, functions, and control flow
• DOM Manipulation
• Asynchronous programming (Promises, async/await)
• Version Control (Git, GitHub):
• Setting up repos, branching, and merging
• Handling pull requests and collaboration

Frameworks & Libraries:

• React:
• JSX and components
• State and props
• React hooks (useState, useEffect, etc.)
• Router for navigation
• Backend Development (PERN stack):
• PostgreSQL (or another relational DB)
• Express.js (API development)
• Node.js (Server-side JS)
• Sequelize/Knex (ORMs for DB interaction)

Projects:

• Build a full-stack web app (e.g., a blog, to-do app, or social media app) with:
• Frontend in React
• Backend API with Express
• Database interactions (CRUD operations)
• Authentication (JWT, sessions, or OAuth)
• Deployment (Heroku, Vercel, or Docker)

2. Diving Deeper into DevOps (Parallel to Full-Stack Learning)

Containerization & Orchestration:

• Docker:
• Docker basics: containers, images, and volumes
• Writing a Dockerfile
• Using docker-compose to orchestrate multi-container setups
• Deploying your app with Docker
• Kubernetes (Start with single-node clusters):
• Pods, Deployments, Services, and Volumes
• Managing scaling and fault tolerance
• Tools like K3s or Minikube for lightweight Kubernetes setup
• Learn about Helm and Kubernetes Ingress

CI/CD:

• GitHub Actions:
• Automating builds and deployments
• Creating workflows for tests, linting, and deployments
• Watchtower (Docker auto-update):
• Using Watchtower to automatically update containers on your server
• Deploy new Docker containers without manual intervention

Projects:

• Set up a CI/CD pipeline with GitHub Actions for a full-stack app (React, Express, PostgreSQL).
• Deploy your project in Docker containers and automatically update using Watchtower.
• Set up a Kubernetes cluster on your homelab or Raspberry Pi for practice.

3. DevOps Tools and Open-Source Contributions (3-6 months)

Advanced Kubernetes & Distributed Systems:

• Set up a multi-node Kubernetes cluster (using your homelab or Raspberry Pis).
• Learn about Helm for Kubernetes app deployment.
• Experiment with Kubernetes Networking, Ingress, and Persistent Storage.
• Get familiar with distributed systems concepts: Load balancing, fault tolerance, and scaling.

Open-Source Contributions:

• Find an open-source project (maybe on GitHub) and start contributing.
• Focus on fixing bugs, documentation, and small features at first.
• If possible, contribute to Google Summer of Code or MLH during the summer.
• Explore DevOps-related open-source tools you can contribute to:
• Docker-related projects
• Kubernetes projects
• CI/CD tools like Jenkins, Travis CI, or GitHub Actions
• Cloud-based open-source projects

Projects:

• Contribute to an open-source DevOps or full-stack project.
• Improve your own personal projects based on best practices from the open-source community.

4. Mastery & Deep Understanding (6-12 months)

Continuous Learning:

• Dive into Cloud Computing with platforms like AWS, GCP, or Azure.
• Learn about Serverless Architectures and Microservices.
• Expand your knowledge of CI/CD by integrating with cloud services (e.g., AWS CodePipeline or GitHub Actions with Cloud).

Projects:

• Build an app with a microservices architecture deployed on Kubernetes (learn how to break down a large application into services).
• Implement a serverless project using AWS Lambda or Google Cloud Functions.
• Continuously optimize your CI/CD pipelines and Kubernetes configurations.

Optional: Internship / Freelance (If you get one)

• Work on real-world applications to apply everything you’ve learned in full-stack development and DevOps.
• Use this time to practice deploying applications at scale and improving deployment pipelines.

Things 3 Organization:

You can break this down into projects or tasks in Things 3 based on the topics or time frames. Here’s an example of how to organize it:

Project: Full-Stack Web Development

• Task: Learn JavaScript basics
• Task: Learn React and build a simple project
• Task: Learn Node.js and Express for backend development
• Task: Set up PostgreSQL and connect to backend
• Task: Deploy full-stack app using Docker

Project: DevOps and CI/CD

• Task: Learn Docker basics and create Dockerfile
• Task: Set up Docker Compose for multi-container app
• Task: Set up Kubernetes (Minikube or K3s)
• Task: Learn GitHub Actions for CI/CD

Project: Kubernetes and Clusters

• Task: Set up Kubernetes on Raspberry Pi cluster
• Task: Learn about Helm and deploy an app using Helm charts
• Task: Experiment with Kubernetes Ingress and scaling

Project: Open-Source Contributions

• Task: Find a DevOps-related project to contribute to
• Task: Fix bugs or improve documentation in open-source repo
• Task: Contribute to a Kubernetes or Docker project