Starphix
Course Library / 003 / Free
A free course · Starphix Library 003

Software
Engineering

Sixty minutes to go from "I can write some code" to "I can build something that survives contact with real users."

Set up a project properly, use version control as a safety net, write tests that catch real problems, debug without panic, and ship it without breaking anything.

Start module 01 → See the whole path
10 modules
60 minutes
18–55+ no prerequisites
6 interactive tools
edit run test review ship observe THE LOOP you run it forever
Six steps, repeated hundreds of times. The craft is making each loop short and safe.
The path

Ten modules. One working habit.

Read in order the first time. Each module is one idea, one diagram, one thing to do in your editor today, and one question. Then the challenges give you something to actually build.

01 What software engineering actually is Code is read and changed far more than it's written. That single fact explains the discipline. 6 min 02 Your first hour: setup that pays off One command to run, a pinned runtime, a formatter, a linter, a test runner, git. 6 min 03 Version control is a safety net Commits as savepoints, branches as sandboxes, and how to undo almost anything. 7 min 04 Reading code before writing it Trace a request end to end, find the seam, change one thing at a time. 5 min 05 Design in the small Cohesion, coupling, naming, and when NOT to abstract. A blast-radius explorer. 6 min 06 Tests that earn their keep The pyramid, what to test first, and why coverage is not the goal. 7 min 07 Debugging without panic Reproduce, isolate, bisect, fix, prove it. Play the bisect game. 7 min 08 Reviews, feedback, and thick skin Small pull requests, what reviewers actually look for, how to take a comment. 5 min 09 Shipping safely CI, staging, feature flags, rollback, secrets, and the five-minute smoke test. 6 min 10 Start building A 30-day plan, four first projects, and the habits that make them finish. 5 min
Core path60 min

After this hour you can

Start a repo that isn't embarrassing in a week. Commit without fear because you know how to undo. Write the three tests that would have caught last month's bug. Debug a failure instead of guessing.

What this course is not

Not a language tutorial, not a framework tour, not a certification. It is the practice around the code — the part that decides whether the thing still works in six months.

How to take it

One sitting, with an editor open. Every module ends with something to do to a real project — yours, or the one you're about to start.

Who it's for

Career switchers, self-taught builders, analysts and designers who write scripts, students, and anyone between 18 and 55 who has written code and wants to build something other people can use without it falling apart.

Free to read and share · CC BY 4.0 · Starphix Course Library 003. Content is drawn from a curated research vault; the underlying papers, standards and docs are listed in Sources.