onboarding-helper by aiskillstore

---
name: onboarding-helper
description: Generate comprehensive onboarding documentation and guides for new developers joining your team o...
---

# Onboarding Helper Skill

Generate comprehensive onboarding documentation and guides for new developers joining your team or project.

## Instructions

You are an onboarding and developer experience expert. When invoked:

1. **Assess Onboarding Needs**:
   - Project complexity and technology stack
   - Team size and structure
   - Development workflow and processes
   - Domain knowledge requirements
   - Common onboarding challenges

2. **Create Onboarding Materials**:
   - Welcome documentation
   - Development environment setup guides
   - Codebase architecture overview
   - First-task tutorials
   - Team processes and conventions

3. **Organize Learning Path**:
   - Day 1, Week 1, Month 1 goals
   - Progressive complexity
   - Hands-on exercises
   - Checkpoint milestones
   - Resources and references

4. **Document Team Culture**:
   - Communication channels
   - Meeting schedules
   - Code review practices
   - Decision-making processes
   - Team values and norms

5. **Enable Self-Service**:
   - FAQ sections
   - Troubleshooting guides
   - Links to resources
   - Who to ask for what
   - Common gotchas

## Onboarding Documentation Structure

### Complete Onboarding Guide Template

```markdown
# Welcome to [Project Name]! 👋

Welcome! We're excited to have you on the team. This guide will help you get up to speed quickly and smoothly.

## Table of Contents
1. [Overview](#overview)
2. [Day 1: Getting Started](#day-1-getting-started)
3. [Week 1: Core Concepts](#week-1-core-concepts)
4. [Month 1: Making Impact](#month-1-making-impact)
5. [Team & Processes](#team--processes)
6. [Resources](#resources)
7. [FAQ](#faq)

---

## Overview

### What We're Building
We're building a modern e-commerce platform that helps small businesses sell online. Our platform handles:
- Product catalog management
- Shopping cart and checkout
- Payment processing (Stripe integration)
- Order fulfillment and tracking
- Customer relationship management

**Our Mission**: Make e-commerce accessible to businesses of all sizes.

**Our Users**: Small to medium business owners with 10-1000 products.

### Technology Stack

**Frontend**:
- React 18 with TypeScript
- Redux Toolkit for state management
- Material-UI component library
- React Query for API calls
- Vite for build tooling

**Backend**:
- Node.js with Express
- PostgreSQL database
- Redis for caching
- Stripe for payments
- AWS S3 for file storage

**Infrastructure**:
- Docker for local development
- Kubernetes for production
- GitHub Actions for CI/CD
- AWS (EC2, RDS, S3, CloudFront)
- DataDog for monitoring

### Project Statistics
- **Started**: January 2023
- **Team Size**: 12 engineers (4 frontend, 5 backend, 3 full-stack)
- **Codebase**: ~150K lines of code
- **Active Users**: 5,000+ businesses
- **Monthly Transactions**: $2M+

---

## Day 1: Getting Started

### Your First Day Checklist

- [ ] Complete HR onboarding
- [ ] Get added to communication channels
- [ ] Set up development environment
- [ ] Clone the repository
- [ ] Run the application locally
- [ ] Deploy to your personal dev environment
- [ ] Introduce yourself to the team
- [ ] Schedule 1:1s with your manager and buddy

### Access & Accounts

**Required Accounts**:
1. **GitHub** - Source code ([github.com/company/project](https://github.com))
   - Request access from @engineering-manager
2. **Slack** - Team communication
   - Channels: #engineering, #frontend, #backend, #general
3. **Jira** - Project management ([company.atlassian.net](https://company.atlassian.net))
4. **Figma** - Design files
5. **AWS Console** - Production access (read-only initially)
6. **DataDog** - Monitoring and logs

**Development Tools**:
- Docker Desktop
- Node.js 18+ (use nvm)
- PostgreSQL client (psql or pgAdmin)
- Postman or Insomnia (API testing)
- VS Code (recommended, see extensions below)

### Environment Setup

#### 1. Install Prerequisites

**macOS**:
```bash
# Install Homebrew
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# Install Node.js via nvm
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.39.0/install.sh | bash
nvm install 18
nvm use 18

# Install Docker Desktop
brew install --cask docker

# Install PostgreSQL client
brew install postgresql@14
```

**Windows**:
```bash
# Install using Chocolatey
choco install nodejs-lts docker-desktop postgresql14
```

#### 2. Clone Repository

```bash
# Clone the repo
git clone [email protected]:company/ecommerce-platform.git
cd ecommerce-platform

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Copy environment variables
cp .env.example .env.local
```

#### 3. Configure Environment Variables

Edit `.env.local`:
```bash
# Database (local Docker)
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://postgres:password@localhost:5432/ecommerce_dev

# Redis
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379

# Stripe (use test keys)
STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=sk_test_... # Get from @backend-lead
STRIPE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=pk_test_...

# AWS S3 (dev bucket)
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=... # Get from @devops
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=...
AWS_S3_BUCKET=ecommerce-dev-uploads

# Session
SESSION_SECRET=your-random-secret-here
```

**Where to get credentials**:
- Stripe test keys: 1Password vault "Development Secrets"
- AWS credentials: Request from @devops in #engineering
- Session secret: Generate with `openssl rand -base64 32`

#### 4. Start Development Environment

```bash
# Start Docker services (PostgreSQL, Redis)
docker-compose up -d

# Run database migrations
npm run db:migrate

# Seed database with sample data
npm run db:seed

# Start development server
npm run dev
```

**Expected output**:
```
✔ Database migrated successfully
✔ Seeded 100 products, 50 users
✔ Server running on http://localhost:3000
✔ API available at http://localhost:3000/api
```

#### 5. Verify Installation

Open your browser to http://localhost:3000

You should see the application home page with sample products.

**Test credentials**:
- Email: `[email protected]`
- Password: `password123`

**Troubleshooting**:
- **Port 3000 in use**: Kill the process with `lsof -ti:3000 | xargs kill -9`
- **Database connection failed**: Check Docker is running with `docker ps`
- **Module not found**: Delete `node_modules` and run `npm install` again

See [Troubleshooting Guide](docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md) for more help.

### VS Code Setup

**Recommended Extensions**:
```json
{
  "recommendations": [
    "dbaeumer.vscode-eslint",
    "esbenp.prettier-vscode",
    "bradlc.vscode-tailwindcss",
    "ms-azuretools.vscode-docker",
    "eamodio.gitlens",
    "orta.vscode-jest",
    "prisma.prisma"
  ]
}
```

**Settings** (`.vscode/settings.json`):
```json
{
  "editor.formatOnSave": true,
  "editor.defaultFormatter": "esbenp.prettier-vscode",
  "editor.codeActionsOnSave": {
    "source.fixAll.eslint": true
  },
  "typescript.tsdk": "node_modules/typescript/lib"
}
```

### Your First Commit

Let's make a simple change to verify your setup:

1. **Create a branch**:
   ```bash
   git checkout -b test/your-name-setup
   ```

2. **Add your name to the team page**:
   Edit `src/pages/About.tsx`:
   ```typescript
   const teamMembers = [
     // ... existing members
     { name: 'Your Name', role: 'Software Engineer', joinedDate: '2024-01-15' }
   ];
   ```

3. **Test your change**:
   ```bash
   npm run test
   npm run lint
   ```

4. **Commit and push**:
   ```bash
   git add .
   git commit -m "docs: Add [Your Name] to team page"
   git push origin test/your-name-setup
   ```

5. **Create a PR**:
   - Go to GitHub
   - Click "Compare & pull request"
   - Fill out the PR template
   - Request review from your buddy

Congrats on your first contribution! 🎉

### End of Day 1

**You should now have**:
- ✅ Development environment running locally
- ✅ Application accessible in your browser
- ✅ First PR created
- ✅ Access to all team tools and channels

**Questions?** Ask in #engineering or DM your buddy!

---

## Week 1: Core Concepts

### Project Architecture

#### High-Level Architecture
```
┌─────────────┐
│   Browser   │
│  (React)    │
└──────┬──────┘
       │ HTTPS
       ▼
┌─────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐
│ API Gateway │────▶│  Auth Service│
│  (Express)  │     │   (JWT)      │
└──────┬──────┘     └──────────────┘
       │
       ├────▶ Product Service
       │
       ├────▶ Order Service
       │
       ├────▶ Payment Service ────▶ Stripe API
       │
       └────▶ User Service
              │
              ▼
         ┌──────────┐
         │PostgreSQL│
         └──────────┘
```

#### Directory Structure
```
ecommerce-platform/
├── client/                 # Frontend React app
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── components/    # Reusable UI components
│   │   ├── pages/         # Page components
│   │   ├── hooks/         # Custom React hooks
│   │   ├── store/         # Redux store and slices
│   │   ├── api/           # API client functions
│   │   ├── utils/         # Utility functions
│   │   └── types/         # TypeScript type definitions
│   └── tests/             # Frontend tests
│
├── server/                # Backend Node.js app
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── routes/        # Express route handlers
│   │   ├── controllers/   # Business logic
│   │   ├── services/      # External integrations
│   │   ├── models/        # Database models (Prisma)
│   │   ├── middleware/    # Express middleware
│   │   ├── utils/         # Utility functions
│   │   └── types/         # TypeScript types
│   └── tests/             # Backend tests
│
├── docs/                  # Documentation
├── scripts/               # Build and deployment scripts
├── .github/               # GitHub Actions workflows
└── docker-compose.yml     # Local development services
```

### Key Concepts

#### 1. Authentication Flow

```javascript
// User logs in
POST /api/auth/login
{ email, password }
  ↓
// Server validates credentials
// Generates JWT token
  ↓
// Client stores token
localStorage.setItem('token', token)
  ↓
// Client includes token in requests
Authorization: Bearer <token>
  ↓
// Server validates token
// Attaches user to request
req.user = decodedToken
```

**Code location**: `server/src/middleware/auth.ts`

#### 2. State Management (Redux)

We use Redux Toolkit for client-side state:

```typescript
// Store structure
{
  auth: {
    user: User | null,
    isAuthenticated: boolean,
    loading: boolean
  },
  cart: {
    items: CartItem[],
    total: number
  },
  products: {
    list: Product[],
    filters: FilterState,
    loading: boolean
  }
}
```

**Reading from store**:
```typescript
import { useAppSelector } from '@/hooks/redux';

const user = useAppSelector(state => state.auth.user);
const cartItems = useAppSelector(state => state.cart.items);
```

**Dispatching actions**:
```typescript
import { useAppDispatch } from '@/hooks/redux';
import { addToCart } from '@/store/slices/cartSlice';

const dispatch = useAppDispatch();
dispatch(addToCart({ productId, quantity: 1 }));
```

**Code location**: `client/src/store/`

#### 3. API Communication

We use React Query for server state:

```typescript
import { useQuery, useMutation } from '@tanstack/react-query';
import { api } from '@/api/client';

// Fetching data
const { data, isLoading, error } = useQuery({
  queryKey: ['products'],
  queryFn: () => api.products.getAll()
});

// Mutating data
const mutation = useMutation({
  mutationFn: (product) => api.products.create(product),
  onSuccess: () => {
    queryClient.invalidateQueries(['products']);
  }
});
```

**Code location**: `client/src/api/`

#### 4. Database Access (Prisma)

We use Prisma ORM for database operations:

```typescript
import { prisma } from '@/lib/prisma';

// Find one
const user = await prisma.user.findUnique({
  where: { id: userId }
});

// Find many with filters
const products = await prisma.product.findMany({
  where: {
    category: 'electronics',
    price: { lt: 1000 }
  },
  include: {
    images: true,
    reviews: true
  }
});

// Create
const order = await prisma.order.create({
  data: {
    userId,
    total: 100,
    items: {
      create: [
        { productId: 1, quantity: 2, price: 50 }
      ]
    }
  }
});
```

**Code location**: `server/src/models/`
**Schema**: `prisma/schema.prisma`

### Your First Real Task

**Goal**: Add a "Recently Viewed" feature to product pages.

**Requirements**:
- Track products a user views
- Display last 5 viewed products
- Persist across sessions (use localStorage)
- Show on product detail page

**Steps**:

1. **Create a feature branch**:
   ```bash
   git checkout -b feature/recently-viewed-products
   ```

2. **Frontend: Add hook** (`client/src/hooks/useRecentlyViewed.ts`):
   ```typescript
   export function useRecentlyViewed() {
     const addToRecentlyViewed = (product: Product) => {
       // Get existing
       const recent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem('recentlyViewed') || '[]');

       // Add new (avoid duplicates)
       const updated = [
         product,
         ...recent.filter((p: Product) => p.id !== product.id)
       ].slice(0, 5);

       // Save
       localStorage.setItem('recentlyViewed', JSON.stringify(updated));
     };

     const getRecentlyViewed = (): Product[] => {
       return JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem('recentlyViewed') || '[]');
     };

     return { addToRecentlyViewed, getRecentlyViewed };
   }
   ```

3. **Frontend: Use in product page** (`client/src/pages/ProductDetail.tsx`):
   ```typescript
   const { addToRecentlyViewed, getRecentlyViewed } = useRecentlyViewed();

   useEffect(() => {
     if (product) {
       addToRecentlyViewed(product);
     }
   }, [product]);

   const recentProducts = getRecentlyViewed();
   ```

4. **Frontend: Display component** (`client/src/components/RecentlyViewed.tsx`):
   ```typescript
   export function RecentlyViewed({ currentProductId }: Props) {
     const { getRecentlyViewed } = useRecentlyViewed();
     const products = getRecentlyViewed()
       .filter(p => p.id !== currentProductId);

     if (products.length === 0) return null;

     return (
       <section>
         <h2>Recently Viewed</h2>
         <ProductGrid products={products} />
       </section>
     );
   }
   ```

5. **Add tests**:
   ```typescript
   describe('useRecentlyViewed', () => {
     it('should add product to recently viewed', () => {
       const { addToRecentlyViewed, getRecentlyViewed } = useRecentlyViewed();

       addToRecentlyViewed(mockProduct);

       expect(getRecentlyViewed()).toContainEqual(mockProduct);
     });

     it('should limit to 5 products', () => {
       // Add 6 products, check only 5 remain
     });

     it('should move duplicate to front', () => {
       // Add same product twice, check it appears once at front
     });
   });
   ```

6. **Test manually**:
   - View several products
   - Check localStorage in DevTools
   - Verify list appears on product pages
   - Test edge cases (empty state, single item)

7. **Create PR**:
   - Use PR template
   - Add screenshots
   - Request review from @frontend-team

**Resources**:
- [React Hooks Guide](https://react.dev/reference/react)
- [LocalStorage API](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/Window/localStorage)
- [Our Testing Guide](docs/TESTING.md)

### Week 1 Learning Resources

**Must Read**:
- [ ] [Project README](README.md)
- [ ] [Architecture Decision Records](docs/adr/)
- [ ] [API Documentation](docs/API.md)
- [ ] [Contributing Guidelines](CONTRIBUTING.md)

**Optional Deep Dives**:
- [ ] [Redux Toolkit Docs](https://redux-toolkit.js.org/)
- [ ] [React Query Docs](https://tanstack.com/query/latest)
- [ ] [Prisma Docs](https://www.prisma.io/docs)
- [ ] [Our Style Guide](docs/STYLE_GUIDE.md)

### End of Week 1

**You should now**:
- ✅ Understand overall architecture
- ✅ Know key technologies and tools
- ✅ Have completed your first feature
- ✅ Understand our development workflow
- ✅ Feel comfortable asking questions

**Checkpoint Meeting**: Schedule 30min with your manager to review progress.

---

## Month 1: Making Impact

### Month 1 Goals

1. **Ship Features**: Complete 3-5 features independently
2. **Code Reviews**: Provide meaningful feedback on 10+ PRs
3. **Fix Bugs**: Tackle 2-3 bug fixes
4. **Improve Something**: Find and fix a small pain point
5. **Learn Domain**: Understand e-commerce business basics

### Suggested Feature Ideas

**Beginner Friendly**:
- Add product sorting (price, rating, newest)
- Implement wishlist functionality
- Create order history page
- Add email notifications

**Intermediate**:
- Implement product reviews and ratings
- Add search autocomplete
- Create admin dashboard for orders
- Optimize image loading performance

**Advanced**:
- Implement shopping cart abandonment recovery
- Add real-time inventory tracking
- Create recommendation engine
- Set up A/B testing framework

**Finding Tasks**: Check Jira board for issues labeled `good-first-issue`.

### Code Review Best Practices

**As an Author**:
- Keep PRs small (< 400 lines changed)
- Write clear descriptions
- Add screenshots for UI changes
- Respond to feedback promptly
- Test thoroughly before requesting review

**As a Reviewer**:
- Review within 24 hours
- Be kind and constructive
- Ask questions rather than demand changes
- Highlight good practices
- Approve when ready (don't nitpick)

**Review Checklist**:
- [ ] Code follows style guide
- [ ] Tests included and passing
- [ ] No console.logs in production code
- [ ] Error handling implemented
- [ ] Performance considerations addressed
- [ ] Security best practices followed

**Resources**: [Code Review Guide](docs/CODE_REVIEW.md)

### Testing Guidelines

**What to Test**:
- Business logic (always)
- User interactions (important flows)
- Edge cases and error states
- API integrations (with mocks)

**Testing Pyramid**:
```
       /\
      /  \    E2E Tests (few)
     /────\
    /      \  Integration Tests (some)
   /────────\
  /          \ Unit Tests (many)
 /────────────\
```

**Running Tests**:
```bash
# All tests
npm test

# Watch mode
npm test -- --watch

# Coverage
npm test -- --coverage

# Specific file
npm test UserService.test.ts
```

**Writing Tests**:
```typescript
describe('CartService', () => {
  describe('addToCart', () => {
    it('should add item to empty cart', () => {
      // Arrange
      const cart = new Cart();
      const item = { productId: 1, quantity: 2 };

      // Act
      cart.addItem(item);

      // Assert
      expect(cart.items).toHaveLength(1);
      expect(cart.items[0]).toEqual(item);
    });

    it('should increase quantity if item exists', () => {
      // Test implementation
    });

    it('should throw error if quantity is negative', () => {
      // Test implementation
    });
  });
});
```

**Resources**: [Testing Guide](docs/TESTING.md)

### Deployment Process

**Environments**:
- **Development**: Your local machine
- **Staging**: https://staging.ecommerce.example.com
- **Production**: https://ecommerce.example.com

**Deployment Flow**:
```
main branch
    │
    ▼
CI runs (tests, lint, build)
    │
    ▼
Auto-deploy to Staging
    │
    ▼
Manual QA testing
    │
    ▼
Create release tag
    │
    ▼
Deploy to Production (gradual rollout)
```

**You can deploy**: Staging (automatic on merge to main)
**You cannot deploy**: Production (requires approval)

**Monitoring**:
- Logs: DataDog dashboard
- Errors: Sentry alerts
- Metrics: Custom dashboards

---

## Team & Processes

### Team Structure

**Engineering Team**:
- **Engineering Manager**: @alice (1:1s, career growth)
- **Tech Lead**: @bob (architecture decisions, technical direction)
- **Frontend Team** (4 engineers): @carol, @dave, @eve, @frank
- **Backend Team** (5 engineers): @grace, @henry, @ivy, @jack, @kate
- **Full-Stack** (3 engineers): @liam, @maya, @noah

**Adjacent Teams**:
- **Product**: @olivia (product manager)
- **Design**: @peter, @quinn (UI/UX designers)
- **QA**: @rachel, @sam (test engineers)
- **DevOps**: @taylor (infrastructure)

### Communication Channels

**Slack Channels**:
- `#engineering` - General engineering discussions
- `#frontend` - Frontend-specific topics
- `#backend` - Backend-specific topics
- `#deploys` - Deployment notifications
- `#incidents` - Production issues
- `#random` - Non-work chat

**When to use what**:
- **Slack**: Quick questions, discussions, FYIs
- **Jira**: Task tracking, bug reports
- **GitHub**: Code discussions, PR reviews
- **Email**: External communication, formal notices
- **Zoom**: Meetings, pair programming, deep discussions

### Meetings

**Weekly**:
- **Team Standup** (Mon/Wed/Fri, 10am, 15min)
  - What you did
  - What you're doing
  - Any blockers
- **Sprint Planning** (Monday, 1pm, 1hr)
  - Plan next sprint
  - Estimate stories
- **Retro** (Friday, 2pm, 45min)
  - What went well
  - What could improve
  - Action items

**Bi-weekly**:
- **1:1 with Manager** (30min)
  - Career growth
  - Feedback
  - Questions

**Monthly**:
- **All-Hands** (First Friday, 3pm, 1hr)
  - Company updates
  - Team showcases

**Meeting Norms**:
- Cameras on when possible
- Mute when not speaking
- Be on time
- Come prepared
- Take notes

### Development Workflow

**Git Workflow**:
```
main (protected)
  ├─ feature/add-wishlist
  ├─ fix/cart-bug
  └─ refactor/payment-service
```

**Branch Naming**:
- `feature/description` - New features
- `fix/description` - Bug fixes
- `refactor/description` - Code refactoring
- `docs/description` - Documentation
- `test/description` - Tests only

**Commit Messages**:
```
type(scope): description

feat(cart): add wishlist functionality
fix(auth): resolve token expiration issue
docs(readme): update setup instructions
test(orders): add integration tests
refactor(database): optimize queries
```

**PR Process**:
1. Create feature branch
2. Make changes
3. Write tests
4. Create PR (use template)
5. Request review (minimum 1 approval)
6. Address feedback
7. Merge (squash and merge)

### On-Call Rotation

**You won't be on-call** for your first 3 months.

When you join rotation:
- 1 week on-call per month
- Respond to PagerDuty alerts
- Fix production issues
- Escalate if needed

**Resources**: [On-Call Runbook](docs/ON_CALL.md)

---

## Resources

### Documentation

- [README](README.md) - Project overview
- [Architecture](docs/ARCHITECTURE.md) - System design
- [API Docs](docs/API.md) - API reference
- [Contributing](CONTRIBUTING.md) - How to contribute
- [Style Guide](docs/STYLE_GUIDE.md) - Code conventions
- [Testing Guide](docs/TESTING.md) - Testing practices
- [Deployment](docs/DEPLOYMENT.md) - Deployment process
- [Troubleshooting](docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md) - Common issues

### Learning Resources

**JavaScript/TypeScript**:
- [TypeScript Handbook](https://www.typescriptlang.org/docs/)
- [JavaScript.info](https://javascript.info/)
- [You Don't Know JS](https://github.com/getify/You-Dont-Know-JS)

**React**:
- [React Docs](https://react.dev)
- [React TypeScript Cheatsheet](https://react-typescript-cheatsheet.netlify.app/)
- [Epic React by Kent C. Dodds](https://epicreact.dev/)

**Node.js**:
- [Node.js Best Practices](https://github.com/goldbergyoni/nodebestpractices)
- [Express.js Guide](https://expressjs.com/en/guide/routing.html)

**Databases**:
- [Prisma Guides](https://www.prisma.io/docs/guides)
- [PostgreSQL Tutorial](https://www.postgresqltutorial.com/)

**System Design**:
- [System Design Primer](https://github.com/donnemartin/system-design-primer)
- [Web Architecture 101](https://engineering.videoblocks.com/web-architecture-101-a3224e126947)

### Internal Tools

- **1Password**: Shared credentials
- **Notion**: Team wiki and docs
- **Figma**: Design files
- **DataDog**: Monitoring and logs
- **Sentry**: Error tracking
- **GitHub**: Code repository
- **Jira**: Project management

### Your Buddy

Your onboarding buddy is **@buddy-name**.

**Your buddy will**:
- Answer day-to-day questions
- Review your first few PRs
- Introduce you to the team
- Help you navigate processes
- Meet with you weekly (first month)

**Don't hesitate to ask them anything!**

---

## FAQ

### Development

**Q: How do I reset my local database?**
```bash
npm run db:reset  # Drops all data and re-runs migrations
npm run db:seed   # Adds sample data
```

**Q: Tests are failing locally but passing in CI. Why?**
- Check Node version matches (use `nvm use`)
- Clear `node_modules` and reinstall
- Check for environment-specific tests

**Q: How do I debug the backend?**
Add `debugger;` statement and run:
```bash
node --inspect-brk server/src/index.ts
```
Then open Chrome DevTools.

**Q: Where do I find API credentials for development?**
Check 1Password vault "Development Secrets" or ask in #engineering.

### Code & Practices

**Q: When should I create a new component vs. modify existing?**
- Create new: Reusable, self-contained functionality
- Modify existing: Extending current component's capabilities
- When in doubt, ask in PR review

**Q: How much test coverage is expected?**
- Aim for 80% overall
- 100% for business-critical logic (payments, auth)
- Focus on valuable tests, not just coverage numbers

**Q: Can I refactor code I'm working on?**
Yes, but:
- Keep refactoring in separate commits
- Don't mix feature work with large refactors
- For big refactors, create separate PR

**Q: What if I disagree with PR feedback?**
- Discuss politely in PR comments
- Explain your reasoning
- Escalate to tech lead if needed
- Remember: we're all learning

### Process

**Q: How do I report a production bug?**
1. Post in #incidents with details
2. Create Jira ticket (type: Bug, priority: based on severity)
3. If urgent, ping on-call engineer

**Q: Can I work on something not in Jira?**
- Small improvements: Yes, create ticket after
- Large projects: Check with manager first
- Tech debt: Discuss in sprint planning

**Q: How do I request time off?**
- Add to team calendar
- Message manager on Slack
- Update Jira board if you have active work

**Q: I'm stuck on a problem for hours. What should I do?**
1. Try debugging and Googling (30 min)
2. Ask in #engineering (don't struggle alone)
3. Schedule pairing session with teammate
4. Escalate to tech lead if still stuck

**Rule of thumb**: Ask for help after 30 minutes of being stuck.

### Career & Growth

**Q: How is performance evaluated?**
- Quarterly reviews with manager
- Based on: code quality, velocity, collaboration, growth
- Transparent rubric provided

**Q: How do I learn more about [specific topic]?**
- Ask in #engineering for recommendations
- Check internal wiki for resources
- Request Udemy/book budget from manager

**Q: Can I switch teams/projects?**
- Discuss with manager after 6 months
- Internal mobility encouraged

---

## Welcome Aboard!

Remember:
- **Ask Questions**: No question is too small
- **Take Breaks**: Onboarding is exhausting
- **Be Patient**: It takes 3+ months to feel productive
- **Have Fun**: We're building something cool together!

**Need help?** Your buddy (@buddy-name) and manager (@manager-name) are here for you.

Welcome to the team! 🚀
```

## Usage Examples

```
@onboarding-helper
@onboarding-helper --type full-guide
@onboarding-helper --type quick-start
@onboarding-helper --type architecture-overview
@onboarding-helper --focus frontend
@onboarding-helper --include-exercises
```

## Best Practices

### Make It Personal
- Address new team member by name
- Assign a buddy/mentor
- Include team photos and bios
- Share team culture and values

### Progressive Disclosure
- Day 1: Just get running
- Week 1: Understand basics
- Month 1: Ship features
- Month 3: Full productivity

### Make It Interactive
- Include hands-on exercises
- Provide starter tasks
- Encourage pair programming
- Set up regular check-ins

### Keep It Updated
- Review quarterly
- Get feedback from new hires
- Update for tech stack changes
- Improve based on common questions

### Make It Discoverable
- Central location (wiki, README)
- Easy to navigate
- Searchable
- Version controlled

## Notes

- Onboarding is an ongoing process, not a one-time event
- Great onboarding significantly reduces time-to-productivity
- Documentation should be discoverable and up-to-date
- Assign mentors/buddies for personal guidance
- Include both technical and cultural onboarding
- Celebrate early wins to build confidence
- Check in regularly during first 3 months
- Encourage questions and create safe learning environment
- Provide clear learning path with milestones
- Make resources easily accessible
- Update documentation based on new hire feedback