Charts for beginners
A beginner's problem is rarely a shortage of explanation. It is that what was explained last week has to be recalled this week, in the middle of doing something else, and it is not there yet. A sheet on the wall covers exactly that gap — and then quietly stops being needed, which is the point.
Most of what is here is for instruments: the first chords on guitar and ukulele, the notes along the fretboard, the layout of the piano keyboard, note values, intervals, the pentatonic box, and the alternate tunings worth meeting early. The rest is for people starting to write code — the flexbox properties, and where a change sits in Git.
Hang them where the practising happens. A reference that makes you put the instrument down has already failed.
CONSTELLATIONS BY SEASON
the northern evening sky through the year: 28 constellations per the Yale Bright Star Catalogue, latitude 40° N, evenings near 9 pm
THE NAMES OF THE ASANAS
twenty foundational poses: Sanskrit, the searchable spelling, the English name — and how old each one is
THREE HAND STITCHES
backstitch · running stitch · whipstitch — what shows on the face and what the thread does underneath
BIG-O NOTATION
the seven growth classes: how many steps, how long they take and how far each one lets you go
THE CRON EXPRESSION
the five schedule fields: what each one means, what values it takes, and how to read stars, lists and steps
CSS GRID
the container properties and the item properties per the css-grid-2 specification — and what each does to the layout
CSS FLEXBOX
main axis and cross axis · which property belongs to which
FLOWCHART SYMBOLS
10 shapes, and one algorithm drawn with them
GIT WORKING AREAS
four areas · the command that moves code between them
GO vs RUST
seven questions, the same to both, and the document each answer is written in
HTTP METHODS · 2026
ten methods per RFC 9110, 5789 and 10008: which are safe, which are idempotent, which can be retried
JAVASCRIPT vs GO
seven questions, the same to both, and the document each answer is written in
JAVASCRIPT vs RUST
seven questions, the same to both, and the document each answer is written in
KANBAN
the board, the limit on work in progress, and the four metrics that measure flow
MARKDOWN SYNTAX
headings, emphasis, lists, links and code per the CommonMark 0.31.2 specification — the core all dialects share
PYTHON vs GO
seven questions, the same to both, and the document each answer is written in
PYTHON vs JAVASCRIPT
seven questions, the same to both, and the document each answer is written in
PYTHON vs RUST
seven questions, the same to both, and the document each answer is written in
REGULAR EXPRESSIONS
anchors, classes, quantifiers and groups: what a pattern is made of and how it reads, token by token
INSERTION SORT
the way cards are ordered in the hand · the trace of one real run
QUICKSORT
splitting around a pivot · the trace of one real run
TWO-CAMERA SPEAKER SETUP
the lighting triangle and where each of the 2 cameras stands · the floor plan from above
THREE-CAMERA SPEAKER SETUP
the lighting triangle and where each of the 3 cameras stands · the floor plan from above
THE SELECT STATEMENT
8 clauses in the order you write them — and the order they take effect in
UML DIAGRAMS
the fourteen kinds, and the notation a class diagram is made of
VIM COMMANDS
modes, motions and editing per the Vim 9.1 help — and the grammar that composes them into commands
FIRST FINGER FOODS
the size, the softness and the shape of a piece for a baby who feeds themselves, by the NHS guidance
MICROPHONE POSITIONS
where to place a mic around an acoustic guitar and how each spot sounds — after Shure’s guides
BARRE CHORDS
two shapes, twelve chords each
KINDS OF BASS
eight instruments at one scale · what each is about and how it sounds
CIRCLE OF FIFTHS
12 keys · key signatures · relative minors
DRUM KIT NOTATION
where every drum and cymbal sits on the staff — per the Percussive Arts Society standard
THE ELECTRIC GUITAR PICKUP
one coil or two · six builds · where it sits along the string, and how high above it
AMP MIC POSITIONS
where to place a mic in front of a guitar cab and how each spot sounds — after the Shure chart
ARPEGGIOS ON FOUR STRINGS
major and minor in one position · exactly an octave, one note per string
ARPEGGIOS ON FIVE STRINGS
major and minor in one position · an octave and a fifth from the root
ARPEGGIOS ON SIX STRINGS
major and minor in one position · two octaves from the root
ACOUSTIC BODY SHAPES
what each one was made for · from the front room to the stage, at true scale
FIRST CHORDS
15 chords every beginner starts with · standard tuning E A D G B e
NOTES ON THE FRETBOARD
standard tuning E A D G B e · first twelve frets
THE PENTATONIC
three positions · the root is marked
STRING MATERIALS
what they are drawn from, how one wrap differs from another and what of that is audible
MICROPHONE TYPES
what picks the sound up and where it stays deaf — five patterns from one formula
THE SEVEN MUSICAL MODES
the same white keys · a different root
NOTE VALUES
from whole to thirty-second · how many fit a 4/4 bar
C MAJOR FINGERING
right and left · one octave and two
B FLAT MAJOR FINGERING
right and left · one octave and two · two flats · B flat and E flat
D MAJOR FINGERING
right and left · one octave and two · two sharps · F sharp and C sharp