Not part of the 90 days. Not a mock. Do not swap one in because a lesson feels unfinished, and do not open one in the middle of a timed mock.
Each note is a single sitting under 40 minutes, or skip it until an interview is on the calendar. The course method does not change: requirements, estimates, API and data, design, deep dive, failure.
Notes
| Note | When to open |
|---|---|
| Company quirks | A real interview at Google, Meta, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, or Microsoft is on the calendar. Bias the hour; do not invent a second method. |
| Classic papers | Hub for the three paper notes. Pick one. |
| Dynamo | You need leaderless vocabulary: hashing, N/R/W, sloppy quorum, hinted handoff, conflicts. |
| Spanner | You need external consistency and why a global transaction is expensive. |
| Raft | You need leader / log / election window without deriving the protocol. |
The short map in CURRICULUM.md under “Optional appendices” points here. These pages are the full notes.
Rules
- Recommend, not required.
- Take only what you can use in an answer.
- Do not summarize a paper in the room.
- Do not cite Dynamo as permission to skip a consistency choice.
- Do not invent TrueTime or implement Raft on the whiteboard.
- Say problem and interview, not AI jargon.
- No AI or ML papers belong here.
After day 90
Finish the numbered days first. Appendices are enrichment for a calendar invite, not a Phase 7.