Mini course

ModelContextProtocol

what MCP is, why it's built like this, and why it matters right now.

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9 chapters~103 minlast updated 30 Apr 2026level: intermediate

what MCP is, why it's built like this, and why it matters right now.

This course is the layout shell. Real chapter prose lands in a follow-up task — five short essays, one per chapter, each paired with a small interactive widget. Until then, every chapter renders a single placeholder paragraph so the navigation, progress, and rhythm can be exercised end-to-end.

Chapters#

The room before the protocol

before MCP, every AI integration was a one-off — and your terminal already hides the receipt.

Three roles, one connection

MCP isn't peer-to-peer. it's a host that spawns one client per server.

JSON-RPC, the wire that carries it

every MCP message is JSON-RPC 2.0. four fields are the whole story.

The handshake

every session begins with a negotiation. get it wrong and nothing works.

Tools, resources, prompts: the server's three voices

three primitives, three controllers — model, application, user.

Build a server, in the page

by the end of this chapter you've authored a working MCP server.

Build a client, pick a transport

stdio for trust, HTTP for distance. and the smallest host that works.

When the server asks back

sampling, elicitation, roots — and the human in the loop in each.

How MCP gets attacked

MCP is a protocol, not a perimeter. the spec says SHOULD; you ship the MUST.

What you'll know after this course

· what an MCP actually is, in one paragraph.
· why the protocol shape is the way it is.
· when to reach for one — and when not to.