Stage 1 · Foundations

How the Web Works

HTTP, DNS, hosting, and what the browser does with your code.

weeks at ~2h/day: ~1
weeks full-time: ~0.5

Your progress0 / 4

Why this stage matters

Every bug you will debug later — a failed request, a slow page, a CORS error — makes sense only if you know what happens between typing a URL and seeing pixels. This is a short stage, but it pays off for your whole career.

What to learn

Must know
Internet, DNS & Hosting
How a domain name turns into an IP address, what a server is, and where websites actually live.
You're done when
- You can explain what happens when you type a URL and press Enter.
- You know the difference between a domain, DNS, and hosting.
Resources
Must know
HTTP & HTTPS
Requests and responses, methods, status codes, headers, and why HTTPS matters.
You're done when
- You can read a request in the Network tab and explain its method, status, and headers.
- You know what 200, 301, 304, 401, 403, 404, and 500 mean without looking them up.
Resources
- MDN — An overview of HTTPDocs
- MDN — HTTP response status codesDocs
Must know
How Browsers Render a Page
Parsing HTML into the DOM, CSS into the CSSOM, then layout, paint, and composite. This is the foundation of performance work.
You're done when
- You can describe the critical rendering path in your own words.
- You know why a script in <head> without defer can block rendering.
Resources
- MDN — How browsers workDocs
- web.dev — Understand the critical pathArticle
Must know
Terminal Basics
Navigating folders, running commands, and reading errors. Every tool you will use later runs from the terminal.
You're done when
- You can create, move, and delete files and folders from the terminal.
- You can stop a running process and read an error message calmly.
Resources
- Command LineElzero Web School · Course · Arabic
- The Odin Project — Command Line BasicsCourse

Common mistakes

Skipping this stage because it has no visible output. You will come back to it the first time CORS or caching breaks.
Memorizing status codes instead of opening the Network tab and watching real requests.

Checkpoint

You can explain, step by step, what happens from typing a URL to seeing the page, and you are comfortable in the terminal.

Stage project

Request Detective

Open three websites you use daily, record their network activity, and write a one-page note on what you found.

Done when

For each site: the main document request, its status, and its caching headers.
The largest file each page downloads and how long it took.
One thing you would change to make the page load faster.

Last reviewed November 2, 2026 · Full roadmap

What to learn

Must know

Internet, DNS & Hosting

How a domain name turns into an IP address, what a server is, and where websites actually live.

You're done when

You can explain what happens when you type a URL and press Enter.
You know the difference between a domain, DNS, and hosting.

Resources

Must know

HTTP & HTTPS

Requests and responses, methods, status codes, headers, and why HTTPS matters.

You're done when

You can read a request in the Network tab and explain its method, status, and headers.
You know what 200, 301, 304, 401, 403, 404, and 500 mean without looking them up.

Resources

Must know

How Browsers Render a Page

Parsing HTML into the DOM, CSS into the CSSOM, then layout, paint, and composite. This is the foundation of performance work.

You're done when

You can describe the critical rendering path in your own words.
You know why a script in <head> without defer can block rendering.

Resources

Must know

Terminal Basics

Navigating folders, running commands, and reading errors. Every tool you will use later runs from the terminal.

You're done when

You can create, move, and delete files and folders from the terminal.
You can stop a running process and read an error message calmly.