The LinkMap
98 terms and the lines between them.
A single-page
glossary.
Intelligence. AI / ML
On thought made mechanical.
A model that plans, calls tools, and takes turns.
The umbrella for systems that imitate cognition.
Algorithms explained in plain English. Learn what they are, how they shape what you see online, and why they matter, with everyday analogies and examples.
The mechanism that lets a model focus selectively.
Learn what a chatbot is in plain English. See how rule-based and AI chatbots work, real-world examples, and how small businesses can use them every day.
The amount of text a model can hold at once.
Teaching machines to see, name, and measure.
Machine learning with deep, layered neural networks.
A dense vector that places meaning into space.
Adapting a pretrained model to a narrower task.
A statistical model of language at scale.
Model Context Protocol — open plumbing for tools and data.
Programs that improve from examples instead of rules.
Natural Language Processing — the science of text.
Layered weights, loosely modeled on neurons.
The craft of asking a model well.
Retrieval-Augmented Generation: read, then write.
Learning by reward, action, and consequence.
Slicing text into the units a model actually reads.
The attention-based architecture behind modern LLMs.
A database indexed by geometric similarity.
Surface. Web
The thin layer between people and machines.
A contract for one program to call another.
A reusable piece of interface, with its own state.
Cookies explained in plain English. Learn what browser cookies are, why websites use them, and how they affect privacy, with simple analogies and examples.
The visual layer over HTML.
DNS explained in plain English. Learn how the Domain Name System turns website names into numeric IP addresses so your browser can find any page online.
The live, in-memory tree of a web page.
A query language for APIs, schema-first.
The semantic skeleton of every web page.
The request-response protocol of the web.
IP addresses explained in plain English. Learn what an IP address is, how IPv4 and IPv6 work, and why every device online needs one to send and receive data.
The language of the browser, now everywhere.
A pixel is the smallest single dot of color in a digital image or screen. Learn what pixels are, how they work, and why they matter for everyday photos and disp
A library for composing UI out of components.
A discipline of HTTP — resources, verbs, and nouns.
A single-page app that renders client-side.
Rendering the first paint on the server.
JavaScript with a type system bolted carefully on.
A persistent two-way pipe over HTTP.
Sediment. Data
Of what is stored, shaped, and recalled.
Grinding through accumulated data on a schedule.
Datasets too large for one machine to chew on.
A vast bucket of raw, schema-on-read storage.
Extract, Transform, Load — moving data with intent.
A precomputed shortcut for finding rows quickly.
Databases that drop the relational model for scale.
Analytic queries: aggregate, slice, and roll up.
A scheduled flow that moves and transforms data.
The agreed-upon shape of a piece of data.
The query language of relational databases.
Processing data as it arrives, event by event.
A central store optimized for analytic questions.
Substrate. Infra / DevOps
The ground beneath the running.
Bandwidth explained in plain English. Learn what internet bandwidth is, why it matters for streaming and video calls, and how it differs from speed.
Learn what a blockchain is in plain English. Discover how this shared digital ledger works, why it powers Bitcoin, and how businesses use it beyond crypto.
Cache explained in plain English. Learn how caches make apps and websites faster by storing copies of frequently used data, with simple analogies and examples.
A network of edge caches near your users.
Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery.
Renting compute, storage, and services on demand.
An isolated, portable unit of running software.
A way to package an app with everything it needs.
Defining your infrastructure in version-controlled files.
An orchestrator that runs containers in a fleet.
A traffic cop that spreads requests across servers.
A written record of what a system has done.
Many small services in place of one big one.
Watching a system to know when it misbehaves.
Coordinating many moving parts on a schedule.
A polite middleman that fronts your services.
RAM is your device’s short-term working memory that keeps open apps and files instantly reachable. Learn what RAM is, how it works, and why it matters.
Code that runs only when something asks for it.
An SSD is a fast, quiet storage device that has largely replaced spinning hard drives. Learn what an SSD is, how it works, and why upgrading to one matters.
Boundary. Security
Of trust, threat, and the seal.
Proving who you are.
Deciding what an authenticated user may do.
Browser rules for cross-origin HTTP requests.
Tricking a logged-in user's browser into acting.
Making a message unreadable to anyone without the key.
Firewalls explained in plain English. Learn what a firewall does, how it blocks unwanted traffic on your network, and why every device should have one.
A one-way function from data to fingerprint.
HTTP over TLS — the encrypted web.
A signed token that carries claims as JSON.
A protocol for delegating access without giving up passwords.
The protocol that wraps the web in encryption.
VPNs explained in plain English. Learn what a Virtual Private Network does, how it hides your IP address, and when a VPN actually improves online privacy.
Injecting malicious script into someone else's page.
Never trust the network; verify every request.
Discipline. Product / Process
Practices of building, measured.
Designing so more people can actually use it.
Showing two versions to see which performs.
Agile is a way of organizing work around short cycles, frequent feedback, and close teamwork. Learn what Agile is, how it works, and why it matters.
A shared vocabulary of components, tokens, and rules.
DevOps explained in plain English. Learn how developers and operations teams work together to ship software faster, with real-world analogies and examples.
Learn what open source software means in plain English. Discover how open source works, famous examples like Linux and Firefox, and why it matters for everyone.
A working stand-in for the thing you intend to build.
Talking to and observing the people you build for.
Learn what SaaS means in plain English. Explore how Software as a Service works, real-world examples like Gmail and Zoom, and why it matters for businesses.
A named, versioned value for a design decision.
The interface itself — what the user sees and touches.
UI is what users see; UX is what users feel. Learn the difference between UI and UX with simple analogies and examples for small business owners.
The shape of a user's experience with a product.
A low-fidelity sketch of structure before style.
One letter a week,
lasting understanding.
Only essays that don't get scrolled past. No ads, no tracking pixels, no external linkbait — the letter ends inside your inbox.