07-08-2026 11:26PM AEST
check out the blog i jtsu wrote for patternforge (a completely vibe coded music DAW) on /projects/patternforge. it covers, the reasons why i made it, some inspiration behind hte look feel and workflow . as well as some comments about modern music as well.. i have been making a lot of progress on CCNA and have looking a lot into IDA as well which has been really inetesring to me, theres some great content by a guy called OALabs on youtube and patreon where he breaks down binaries using ida, great workflow tips as well as solid code explanations.
Currently I have been studying C, networking, and lower level systems to fill in any gaps I may have regarding computing. My goal is to have as strong an understanding as possible and to pursue reverse engineering of malware and exploits.
I am hoping to take and pass the CCNA exam before the end of the year, i have strong fundamentals and believe this is possible
I recently purchased a book called Code (ISBN 978-0137909100), this book has been fundamental as my goal is to understand computing through every layer from the semiconductor physics that makes transistors work, to logic gates, bits in memory, machine-code instructions moving through CPU caches, operating systems and networks. You keep moving upward through the abstractions and eventually arrive at this strange magic: an HTML webpage.
To understand everything inbetween has been my obsession for a while now and to try and make it a reality is probably a little far fetched but even if I only make it 50% of the way to the understanding I want I would be happy.
Systems Depth
┌───────────────┐
│ CCNA │
└───────┬───────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────┐
│ NETWORKING │
│ │
│ TCP/IP · Ethernet · DNS │
│ Routing · Switching · VLANs │
│ Firewalls · VPNs · TLS │
└──────────────┬──────────────┘
│
│
▼
┌───────────────┐ ┌─────────────────────────────┐ ┌───────────────┐
│ RHCSA │────────────▶│ LINUX & SYSTEMS │◀────────────│ RHCE │
└───────────────┘ │ │ └───────────────┘
│ Shell · permissions │
│ Processes · systemd │
│ Storage · networking │
│ Containers · automation │
└──────────────┬──────────────┘
│
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ SYSTEMS DEPTH │
│ │
│ Understand the machine end to end. │
│ Build it · observe it · break it · │
│ explain it. │
└───────┬───────────┬───────────┬─────┘
│ │ │
┌────────────┘ │ └────────────┐
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
┌─────────────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────────────┐
│ CLOUD & AUTOMATION │ │ SYSTEMS PROGRAMMING │ │ OFFENSIVE SECURITY │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ Azure infrastructure │ │ C · pointers · memory │ │ Enumeration │
│ Identity and RBAC │ │ Syscalls · sockets │ │ Exploitation │
│ Monitoring and logging │ │ Assembly · machine code │ │ Privilege escalation │
│ IaC · CI/CD · scripting │ │ ELF / PE binaries │ │ Active Directory │
└────────────┬────────────┘ └────────────┬────────────┘ └────────────┬────────────┘
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
┌─────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐
│ AZ-104 │ │ OPERATING SYSTEMS │ │ PNPT │
└────────┬────────┘ │ │ └────────┬────────┘
│ │ Processes · memory │ │
▼ │ Scheduling · files │ ▼
┌─────────────────┐ │ Drivers · interrupts│ ┌─────────────────┐
│ AZ-400 │ │ Kernel interfaces │ │ OSCP+ │
└─────────────────┘ └──────────┬──────────┘ └────────┬────────┘
│ │
▼ ▼
┌─────────────────────┐ ┌─────────────────┐
│ REVERSE ENGINEERING │◀─────│ OSED │
│ │ └─────────────────┘
│ GDB · disassembly │
│ Static analysis │
│ Dynamic analysis │
│ Malware analysis │
│ Exploit development │
└──────────┬──────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PRACTICAL PROJECTS │
│ │
│ DNS client in C │
│ Ethernet / IP packet parser │
│ ARP scanner │
│ TCP connection inspector │
│ Linux home web server │
│ Active Directory attack lab │
│ Reverse-engineering write-ups │
│ Malware-analysis reports │
└──────────────────┬──────────────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ PUBLIC TECHNICAL RECORD │
│ │
│ dylanperkins.com │
│ │
│ Source code · diagrams · captures │
│ terminal output · explanations │
│ mistakes · debugging · conclusions │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
CERTIFICATIONS ARE CHECKPOINTS
CCNA RHCSA / RHCE AZ-104 / AZ-400 PNPT / OSCP+ / OSED
│ │ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼ ▼
Networking Linux systems Cloud engineering Offensive security
└─────────────────┴──────────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
│
▼
SYSTEMS DEPTH