How to quickly learn a skill

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I forked the source code of Ruby China a few days ago, and was completely confused by the unfamiliar Ruby technology stack.
I forked it not just for learning, but to build the community website in my mind in the shortest time. So it is impossible for me to buy a book and read it for half a month for every new technology.
I started Ruby China on my computer and registered a new user, but I couldn't post anything. It said I had to register for more than a month before I could do so. So I went to find the relevant code:

 # Can I post?
 def newbie?
 return   false   if self.verified == true  
    self.created_at > 1 .week.ago
 end

It's obviously a week, and the code doesn't lie. So I changed the text and filed a pull request.
I'm getting off topic. The code says that if it's self.verified, it's not a novice. I went to the management backend to check, but there was no interface to modify this field. So I had to update this field in the database. I roughly know that mongodb is a database, but I don't know how to operate it.

Starting from the macro

When I learn about a new technical term, I will not get stuck into the details directly, but grasp it from a macro perspective. Understand its background, why it appears, what problems it solves, what similar technologies there are, and how we worked before it. With a macro understanding, I can easily associate it with the technology I am familiar with, so as to understand it faster.

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Practice makes perfect

I opened the official website and found a great Try it out. I spent 10 minutes playing it to get a general understanding of how to play it, and then I solved the actual problem.
From the previous Try it out, I learned about the help command, so I learned about show dbs and use ruby_china_dev through help. Based on my experience in using SQL, I naturally thought that updating a field of a record should be like this:

 db.users.update({ "_id" : 3 }, {verified: true })

But I tragically discovered that the entire record was replaced. Well, this is a document-based database. So I searched on Google:

How to update specific field in mongodb

The answer was soon found.

 db.myCollection.update({condField: 'condValue' }, { $set: { dateField: new Date( 2011 , 0 , 1 )}}, false , true );

My needs here are:

 db.users.update({_id: 3 }, {$set:{verified: true }}, false , true )

Problem solved.

As I get more and more involved, I encounter more and more problems. I will put every problem I solve in my Evernote so that I can find the answer quickly next time I encounter it. When I found postach.io, a blog system that can be synchronized with Evernote, I opened such a blog, so that others can find the answer more easily when they encounter the same problem.

When I am really interested in a technology and have enough time to learn it, I usually follow the steps below.

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Teaching is the most important thing

After enough practice, I may feel that I have mastered the technology. But when I try to express it, I will be surprised to find that there are still many concepts that I don't quite understand. So I will look up information and improve my system. Only when I express what I have learned in my own language and the audience can understand it, I have truly mastered the technology.
It is important to learn how to share. Summarize your experience in the technology, write it into a blog, compile it into a book, and then share your practical experience at industry conferences. Only in this way can you become a recognized expert in the field.

Postponing learning

A colleague who reads more than 100 books a year said:

You can only read a few dozen books a year, so don't read all of them. Spend more time choosing books.

Nowadays, new technologies emerge in an endless stream, and we don't have enough time to learn each one in depth. For most technologies, we only need to understand the concept part, understand it from a macro perspective, and decide whether we want to learn it in depth. With this understanding, you can easily chat with others, and you can also make some preparations for future technology selection. When facing real needs, or when you have enough time to make technical preparations, you can enter the practical part.
Programming is an industry where knowledge is updated very quickly. Only those who are truly passionate and have mastered good learning methods can go long.