Background
This issue started when a maintainer couldn't find where their documentation had moved after the Portal 2026 restructuring (PR #1810), with no prior notice that it was being deleted. I asked Claude to do a factual review of the updated site. What follows is that review, unedited.
Navigation
Start Here is effectively hidden. The most important entry point for a new developer is a large image tile inside the Developers hover-dropdown. Anyone who skips images or doesn't know to hover the nav item misses it entirely. There is no top-level nav item that reads "Get Started", "Documentation", or "CLI Reference." The minimum path to any curriculum content is: hover Developers → notice image → click → navigate sidebar. No direct links to any specific module exist anywhere in the nav.
Fundamentals 404. /docs/developers/curriculum/fundamentals/ returns a 404. The correct URL requires the /overview/ suffix. No redirect exists.
"Developer" and "Operator" are a false split for many users. Node setup lives under Operators. Any developer who wants to run a node — to use cardano-cli, to run cardano-testnet, to avoid a third-party API dependency — has to discover that the setup guide they need is in a section labeled for stake pool operators.
Node Setup — The First Gap
The curriculum's second module is titled "Start Building" and begins by telling developers to sign up for a Blockfrost account. Running a node is not mentioned here. The only path to node installation docs is:
- The
cardano-cli tab in "Choose Your Tools" has one sentence: "Install it from the cardano-node releases"
- That link goes to the Operators section
There is no developer-facing "run a node" guide. The entire curriculum assumes a managed provider. This is a valid design choice for TypeScript SDK users, but it means anyone who wants to:
- Use
cardano-cli directly
- Run
cardano-testnet
- Avoid third-party API dependencies
- Develop protocol tooling
...has nowhere to go in the developer section. The node install guide exists in the Operators section but is framed entirely around stake pool operation.
Alternative node implementations (Amaru, Dingo) are not covered. They are mentioned once in passing in the network protocol page as examples of alternate implementations of the Ouroboros wire protocol. There is no guidance on what they are, when a developer would use one, or how to get started with them.
cardano-cli
No hosted reference documentation exists anywhere on the site. The /tools/cardano-cli/ page is two GitHub links and a one-sentence description. There are no command examples, no subcommand reference, no man page mirror.
The CLI tab appears in some curriculum pages but is absent from others. There is no consistent coverage. When it does appear, the examples are minimal.
The basic-operations docs that were removed covered: simple transactions, stake address registration, delegation, deregistration, treasury donations, reward withdrawal, native assets, Plutus scripts, simple scripts, and multi-witness transactions. None of this is now hosted on the portal. The governance and security CLI pages were kept; the day-to-day developer reference was not.
cardano-testnet
Not mentioned anywhere in the current documentation. The tool does not appear on the local testing page, in the operators section, or in any curriculum module.
This is particularly significant because the cardano-testnet page was updated on May 15, 2026 (commit b7b45dfe) by a maintainer who added documentation for newly shipped features (create-env, --node-env, per-node specs, gRPC, KES agent support). That page was deleted six weeks later with no notice. The tool itself is still actively developed and maintained; the portal simply no longer documents it.
The "Links Out" Pattern
The local testing page sends developers to three external domains for its primary recommendations: scalus.org, devkit.yaci.xyz (all five Yaci links are external), and intersectmbo.github.io/evolution-sdk. None of this content is hosted on the portal.
The Builder Tools directory lists 97 tools. Infrastructure tools (cardano-node, cardano-cli, Hydra, Ogmios, Kupo, Mithril) link to GitHub. SDK tools link to their own documentation sites. The portal hosts descriptions; the actual documentation lives elsewhere.
This is the pattern the community specifically asked to move away from. The CLI team moved cardano-cli and cardano-testnet documentation here in response to that request. Portal 2026 reversed the decision without notice to the teams who had contributed content.
Process Failure
Teams moved documentation to this portal at community request, to avoid sprawling docs across individual repositories. The Portal 2026 restructuring deleted that content without advance notice to the contributing teams. There was no deprecation period, no redirect plan, and no communication to affected projects before the deletion shipped. Those projects now have no hosted documentation home.
What Works
The 7-module curriculum structure is coherent and the content quality within it is good. The fundamentals module is well-written. The smart contracts security section is genuinely useful. The operators section is fully self-hosted with a clear 8-step handbook. The exchange integration guide is thorough.
Summary of Gaps
| Gap |
Detail |
| Node setup for developers |
Not in developer section; buried in Operators, framed for SPO use |
cardano-testnet |
Deleted, not replaced, not mentioned anywhere |
cardano-cli reference |
No hosted docs; GitHub links only |
| Alternative nodes (Amaru, Dingo) |
Mentioned once in passing; no setup or usage guidance |
| Navigation to Start Here |
Hidden in image tile inside hover dropdown |
| Fundamentals URL |
404 without /overview/ suffix |
| Local testing tools |
All primary recommendations link to external domains |
| Advance notice to doc contributors |
None given before Portal 2026 deletion |
Background
This issue started when a maintainer couldn't find where their documentation had moved after the Portal 2026 restructuring (PR #1810), with no prior notice that it was being deleted. I asked Claude to do a factual review of the updated site. What follows is that review, unedited.
Navigation
Start Here is effectively hidden. The most important entry point for a new developer is a large image tile inside the Developers hover-dropdown. Anyone who skips images or doesn't know to hover the nav item misses it entirely. There is no top-level nav item that reads "Get Started", "Documentation", or "CLI Reference." The minimum path to any curriculum content is: hover Developers → notice image → click → navigate sidebar. No direct links to any specific module exist anywhere in the nav.
Fundamentals 404.
/docs/developers/curriculum/fundamentals/returns a 404. The correct URL requires the/overview/suffix. No redirect exists."Developer" and "Operator" are a false split for many users. Node setup lives under Operators. Any developer who wants to run a node — to use
cardano-cli, to runcardano-testnet, to avoid a third-party API dependency — has to discover that the setup guide they need is in a section labeled for stake pool operators.Node Setup — The First Gap
The curriculum's second module is titled "Start Building" and begins by telling developers to sign up for a Blockfrost account. Running a node is not mentioned here. The only path to node installation docs is:
cardano-clitab in "Choose Your Tools" has one sentence: "Install it from the cardano-node releases"There is no developer-facing "run a node" guide. The entire curriculum assumes a managed provider. This is a valid design choice for TypeScript SDK users, but it means anyone who wants to:
cardano-clidirectlycardano-testnet...has nowhere to go in the developer section. The node install guide exists in the Operators section but is framed entirely around stake pool operation.
Alternative node implementations (Amaru, Dingo) are not covered. They are mentioned once in passing in the network protocol page as examples of alternate implementations of the Ouroboros wire protocol. There is no guidance on what they are, when a developer would use one, or how to get started with them.
cardano-cli
No hosted reference documentation exists anywhere on the site. The
/tools/cardano-cli/page is two GitHub links and a one-sentence description. There are no command examples, no subcommand reference, no man page mirror.The CLI tab appears in some curriculum pages but is absent from others. There is no consistent coverage. When it does appear, the examples are minimal.
The basic-operations docs that were removed covered: simple transactions, stake address registration, delegation, deregistration, treasury donations, reward withdrawal, native assets, Plutus scripts, simple scripts, and multi-witness transactions. None of this is now hosted on the portal. The governance and security CLI pages were kept; the day-to-day developer reference was not.
cardano-testnet
Not mentioned anywhere in the current documentation. The tool does not appear on the local testing page, in the operators section, or in any curriculum module.
This is particularly significant because the
cardano-testnetpage was updated on May 15, 2026 (commitb7b45dfe) by a maintainer who added documentation for newly shipped features (create-env,--node-env, per-node specs, gRPC, KES agent support). That page was deleted six weeks later with no notice. The tool itself is still actively developed and maintained; the portal simply no longer documents it.The "Links Out" Pattern
The local testing page sends developers to three external domains for its primary recommendations:
scalus.org,devkit.yaci.xyz(all five Yaci links are external), andintersectmbo.github.io/evolution-sdk. None of this content is hosted on the portal.The Builder Tools directory lists 97 tools. Infrastructure tools (cardano-node, cardano-cli, Hydra, Ogmios, Kupo, Mithril) link to GitHub. SDK tools link to their own documentation sites. The portal hosts descriptions; the actual documentation lives elsewhere.
This is the pattern the community specifically asked to move away from. The CLI team moved
cardano-cliandcardano-testnetdocumentation here in response to that request. Portal 2026 reversed the decision without notice to the teams who had contributed content.Process Failure
Teams moved documentation to this portal at community request, to avoid sprawling docs across individual repositories. The Portal 2026 restructuring deleted that content without advance notice to the contributing teams. There was no deprecation period, no redirect plan, and no communication to affected projects before the deletion shipped. Those projects now have no hosted documentation home.
What Works
The 7-module curriculum structure is coherent and the content quality within it is good. The fundamentals module is well-written. The smart contracts security section is genuinely useful. The operators section is fully self-hosted with a clear 8-step handbook. The exchange integration guide is thorough.
Summary of Gaps
cardano-testnetcardano-clireference/overview/suffix