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Learning Roadmap#

Choose your learning path based on your goals. Each path builds on the previous one.

Quick Start#

Start here regardless of your goal:

Step Tutorial What You'll Learn
1 Installation Install Jac and plugins
2 Hello World Basic syntax, functions

Then build your first real app:

Step Tutorial What You'll Learn
3 Part 1: Todo App Nodes, def:pub, reactive frontend
4 Part 2: Add AI by llm(), enum, obj, sem
5 Part 3: Walkers, Auth & Structure Walkers, authentication, multi-file

This 3-part tutorial covers graph storage, AI integration, walkers, and full-stack patterns in one cohesive project.

First App vs Deep-Dive Paths

The Build Your First App tutorial covers graph storage, AI, walkers, and full-stack patterns in one project. The paths below go deeper into each area individually. You don't need both -- choose based on whether you prefer learning by building or by topic.

After the first app tutorial, choose a deeper path:

Path A: Core Language (1 hour)#

Goal: Master Jac syntax and Object-Spatial Programming

Quick Start → Jac Basics → OSP Tutorial → Testing
Step Tutorial Time What You'll Learn
5 Jac Basics 20 min Variables, functions, objects
6 Object-Spatial Programming 30 min Nodes, edges, walkers in depth
7 Testing 10 min Write and run tests

You can now: Write Jac programs, build graph-based applications, test your code.

Path B: AI Integration (1 hour)#

Goal: Build AI-powered applications with LLMs

Prerequisites: Quick Start + Path A recommended

Quick Start → AI Quickstart → Structured Outputs → Agentic AI
Step Tutorial Time What You'll Learn
5 byLLM Quickstart 15 min First AI function
6 Structured Outputs 20 min Type-safe LLM responses
7 Agentic AI & Tools 25 min Tool calling, ReAct pattern

You can now: Create AI-powered functions, build agentic systems, integrate LLMs.

Path C: Full-Stack Apps (2 hours)#

Goal: Build complete web applications with frontend and backend

Prerequisites: Quick Start + Path A recommended

Quick Start → Setup → Components → State → Backend → Auth → Routing
Step Tutorial Time What You'll Learn
5 Project Setup 15 min jac-client, project structure
6 React-Style Components 20 min JSX in Jac, props
7 State & Effects 20 min Reactive state, hooks
8 Backend Integration 25 min Walker APIs, useWalker
9 Authentication 20 min Login, signup, protected routes
10 Routing 15 min Client-side navigation
11 Build a Todo App 25 min Complete example with AI

You can now: Build full-stack web apps, handle authentication, manage state.

Path D: Production Deployment (30 minutes)#

Goal: Deploy Jac applications to production

Prerequisites: Quick Start + at least one other path

Quick Start → Local Server → Kubernetes
Step Tutorial Time What You'll Learn
5 Local API Server 15 min jac start, API endpoints
6 Deploy to Kubernetes 15 min jac-scale, K8s deployment

You can now: Run production servers, scale with Kubernetes, deploy to cloud.

Complete Path#

For comprehensive understanding, follow all paths in order:

Quick Start + Build Your First App
    ↓
Core Language (deep dive)
    ↓
AI Integration (deep dive)
    ↓
Full-Stack Apps (deep dive)
    ↓
Production

Learning by Example#

After completing your chosen path, explore real-world examples:

Example Description Skills Used
LittleX Twitter clone Full-stack, graph modeling
EmailBuddy AI email assistant AI integration, agentic patterns
RAG Chatbot Document Q&A AI, vector search
RPG Generator Game level generator Structured outputs, AI

Quick Reference#

Need to look something up? Use the reference docs:

Topic Reference
Graph operations Graph Operations
Walker responses Walker Responses
Full language Language Reference
CLI commands CLI Reference
Configuration Configuration
byLLM byLLM Reference
jac-client jac-client Reference
jac-scale jac-scale Reference

Stuck?#