Building a Digital Dojo

Project Evolution

This page documents the initial setup of the Digital Dojo. For details on the recent upgrade to the scripting and automation workflow, see the Scripting Upgrade page.

How I Built My Digital Dojo Using MkDocs

1. Installing Python

First things first: checking if Python was already installed. I tested that by running py --version or python --version
Since it wasn't installed on my machine, I installed it using:
```
winget install --id Python.Python.3 --source winget
```
This was the cleanest, most straightforward way to do it via PowerShell.
Then I hit my first bump in the road: py --version worked, but python --version didn’t. So I had to figure out the difference.

Difference between py and python commands

`py` is the launcher. `python` is the interpreter.

py is a small helper that comes with the official Python install on Windows. Its job is to find and launch the right Python version.
python is the actual interpreter — the program that runs your code.

Why does this matter?

Because py usually works even if your PATH isn't set up right. But python might be broken, hijacked, or just point to the wrong thing (like the Microsoft Store version).

Bottom line:

Use py when your system is fresh and you’re still figuring things out.
But for full control and compatibility (especially with scripts, tools, and virtual environments), make sure python points to your real install — and then use python from that point forward.

If py is the butler, python is the king.
Eventually, you don’t want to talk to the butler anymore.

To fix this, I disabled the Microsoft Store’s shortcut under:
```
Settings > Apps > App execution aliases
```
That forced python to point to the real install.

2. Installed MkDocs

This was straightforward. I installed MkDocs using pip:
```
pip install mkdocs
```
I picked a good spot for my project folder, navigated into it, and ran:
```
mkdocs new .
```
This initialized a fresh MkDocs site in the current directory.

3. Git & GitHub Setup

I checked if Git was installed
```
git --version
```
It wasn’t, so I installed it using:
```
winget install --id git.git -e
```

Then I configured Git with:

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your@email.com"

I initialized my repo and set up the remote:

git init
git remote add origin https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/my-wiki.git
git add .
git commit -m "Initial commit"
git push -u origin main

That’s where I hit the next wall: the push failed. Why? Because I hadn’t set up GitHub authentication on this machine.

GitHub setup

Since this was a fresh install, I needed to authenticate with GitHub using SSH:

Generated an SSH key (ssh-keygen) and copied the public key.
Added the key to GitHub under Settings > SSH and GPG keys.
Switched the Git remote to use SSH:

git remote set-url origin git@github.com:username/repo.git

With that out of the way, I built and deployed the site:
```
mkdocs build
mkdocs gh-deploy
```
MkDocs created a gh-pages branch with only the built site and pushed it to GitHub
— ready to be served.

4. What's Next

Writing actual content: The infrastructure’s ready. Now comes the real work: documenting ideas, tools, commands, thoughts.
Structuring the knowledge: Tags, categories, maybe a TOC plugin. I want a digital brain that grows with me.
Styling the site: Playing with themes (starting with Material for MkDocs) and customizing fonts, colors, and layout.