Development Workflow

Core Tools

Editor: Emacs with org-mode, tramp, magit
Version Control: Git with conventional commits
Remote Development: ssh ubuntu for ROS2/LeRobot work
Deployment: Cloudflare Workers via Wrangler
Content: org-mode for notes → mayphus.org publishing

Project Lifecycle

Hardware Projects

# New hardware project
mkdir project_name/
cd project_name/
# Create KiCad project
kicad project_name.kicad_pro

# Development cycle
git add . && git commit -m "feat: initial schematic"
# Iterate: schematic → PCB → gerber → review
git commit -m "fix: update power routing"

# Final output
# Generate gerber files for manufacturing

Web Projects

# New web project (use existing as template)
cp -r vocabvibe/ new-project/
cd new-project/

# Setup
npm install
npm run dev  # Local development

# Deploy
npx wrangler deploy  # To Cloudflare Workers
git commit -m "feat: add new feature"

Content Creation

# Create new note in org/
emacsclient --eval "(denote-create-note)"
# Write content in org-mode
# Content auto-syncs to mayphus.org/content/

# Publish
cd mayphus.org/
npm run build && npx wrangler pages deploy dist/

Git Workflow

Commit Style (Conventional Commits)

feat: - New features
fix: - Bug fixes
docs: - Documentation
refactor: - Code refactoring
test: - Tests
chore: - Maintenance

Branch Strategy

main - Stable, deployable code
Feature branches for larger changes
Direct commits to main for small fixes

Important: Force push requires explicit approval

Development Environment

Local Setup

# Primary workspace
cd ~/workspaces/

# Emacs as primary editor
emacsclient filename

# Remote development
ssh ubuntu  # For ROS2/LeRobot work

Central Tool: Emacs

Emacs serves as my primary interface for:

Code development across multiple languages
Note-taking and documentation
Project management and task tracking
Email and communication
File management and system administration

Language and Framework Support

Primary Languages

Emacs Lisp for editor customization and automation
JavaScript/Node.js for web development
C for system-level programming
Python for automation and data processing

Web Development Stack

Astro for static site generation
React for interactive applications
Cloudflare for hosting and edge computing
Modern CSS for styling and responsiveness

MCP Integration

emacs-mcp-server/ - Emacs ↔ LLM integration
llm-mcp-server/ - General LLM tooling
Used for code assistance and automation

Project-Specific Workflows

Hardware Design

Schematic → KiCad electrical design
PCB Layout → Physical board design
DRC Check → Design rule verification
Gerber Export → Manufacturing files
Assembly → Physical testing

Web Development

Local Dev → npm run dev
Build → npm run build
Deploy → npx wrangler deploy
Test → Verify in production

Content Publishing

Write → org-mode files in org/
Sync → Content syncs to mayphus.org/content/
Build → Astro processes org files
Deploy → Cloudflare Pages deployment

Quality Assurance

Before Commit

Hardware: DRC checks pass
Web: Build succeeds, no TypeScript errors
Content: org-mode syntax valid

Deployment Checks

Web projects: Wrangler deployment succeeds
Hardware: Gerber files generated successfully
Content: mayphus.org builds and deploys

Automation Opportunities

Current Manual Steps

Content sync between org/ and mayphus.org/content/
Hardware project file organization
Cross-project dependency updates

Potential Improvements

Automated content sync via git hooks
Project template scaffolding scripts
Unified build/deploy commands across projects

Notes Management

All notes stored in org/ using org-mode:

Descriptive filenames
Tagged categorization
Manual linking between notes
Publishes to https://mayphus.org

Remote Work

Use ssh ubuntu for:

ROS2 development
LeRobot experimentation
Linux-specific testing

Private Cloud Infrastructure

Hardware Foundation

I use a mini PC as my private cloud server - a compact, energy-efficient solution that provides:

24/7 availability for development services
Local network performance for frequent operations
Complete control over the environment
Cost-effective alternative to cloud services

Operating System Choice: FreeBSD

After trying various operating systems, I settled on FreeBSD because:

Simplicity: Clean, logical system organization
Stability: Rock-solid reliability for server operations
Performance: Excellent resource utilization
Documentation: Superior documentation quality
Philosophy: Aligns with my systematic approach to technology

Service Architecture with Jails

FreeBSD jails provide the foundation for service isolation:

Jail 1: Development Services

Git repositories (local mirrors and private repos)
Build servers for continuous integration
Development databases (PostgreSQL, Redis)
Code analysis and documentation tools

Jail 2: Web Services

Nginx reverse proxy and static file serving
Application servers for web projects
SSL certificate management
Monitoring and logging services

Jail 3: Virtualization Platform

Using bhyve inside jails for:

Docker Support: Running containerized applications that require Linux
Kubernetes Clusters: Testing and development environments
Linux VMs: Supporting tools that don't run natively on FreeBSD
Experimentation: Safe environments for testing new technologies

This hybrid approach gives me:

Native FreeBSD performance for core services
Linux compatibility when needed
Complete isolation between environments
Easy backup and migration capabilities

System Administration

Automation Tools

Ansible for configuration management
Custom scripts for routine maintenance
Automated monitoring and alerting
Performance tracking and optimization

Security Framework

Doas for privilege escalation
SSH key management and hardening
Jail-based isolation for service security
Regular security updates and monitoring

Storage Management

ZFS for data integrity and snapshots
Automated backup strategies
Efficient storage allocation for different services
Performance optimization for development workloads

Backup and Disaster Recovery

ZFS snapshots for point-in-time recovery
Off-site backup for critical data
Configuration backup and restoration procedures
Testing of recovery procedures

Linked References