HackMyResume/FAQ.md

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How do I get started with HackMyResume?

1. Install with NPM: [sudo] npm install hackmyresume -g.

2. Create a new resume with: hackmyresume NEW <resume-name>.json.

3. Test with hackmyresume BUILD <resume-name>.json. Look in the out/ folder.

4. Play around with different themes with the -t or --theme parameter. You can use any FRESH or JSON Resume theme. The latter have to be installed first.

What is FRESH?

FRESH is the Fluent Resume and Employment System for Humans. It's an open-source, user-first workflow, schema, and set of practices for technical candidates and recruiters.

What is FRESCA?

The FRESH Resume and Employment SChemA—an open-source, JSON-driven schema for resumes, CVs, and other employment artifacts. FRESCA is the recommended schema/format for FRESH, with optional support for JSON Resume.

What is JSON Resume?

An open resume standard sponsored by Hired.com. Like FRESCA, JSON Resume is JSON-driven and open-source. Unlike FRESCA, JSON Resume targets a worldwide audience where FRESCA is optimized for technical candidates.

Should I use the FRESH or JSON Resume format/schema for my resume?

Both! The workflow we like to use:

1. Create a resume in FRESH format for tooling and analysis.
2. Convert it to JSON Resume format for additional themes/tools.
3. Maintain both versions.

Both formats are open-source and both formats are JSON-driven. FRESH was designed as a universal container format and superset of existing formats, where the JSON Resume format is intended for a generic audience.

How do I use a FRESH theme?

Several FRESH themes come preinstalled with HackMyResume; others can be installed from NPM and GitHub.

To use a preinstalled FRESH theme:

1. Pass the theme name into HackMyResume via the --theme or -t parameter:

   hackmyresume build resume.json --theme compact
   

To use an external FRESH theme:

1. Install the theme locally. The easiest way to do that is with NPM.

   npm install fresh-theme-underscore
   

2. Pass the theme folder into HackMyResume:

   hackmyresume BUILD resume.json --theme node_modules/fresh-theme-underscore
   

3. Check your output folder. It's best to view HTML formats over a local web server connection.

How do I use a JSON Resume theme?

JSON Resume (JRS) themes can be installed from NPM and GitHub and passed into HackMyResume via the --theme or -t parameter.

1. Install the theme locally. The easiest way to do that is with NPM.

   npm install jsonresume-theme-classy
   

2. Pass the theme folder path into HackMyResume:

   hackmyresume BUILD resume.json --theme node_modules/jsonresume-theme-classy
   

3. Check your output folder. It's best to view HTML formats over a local web server connection.

Should I keep my resume in version control?

Absolutely! As text-based, JSON-driven documents, both FRESH and JSON Resume are ideal candidates for version control. Future versions of HackMyResume will have this functionality built in.

Can I change the default section titles ("Employment", "Skills", etc.)?

If you're using a FRESH theme, yes. First, create a HackMyResume options file mapping resume sections to your preferred section title:

// myoptions.json
{
  "sectionTitles": {
    "employment": "empleo",
    "skills": "habilidades",
    "education": "educación"
  }
}

Then, pass the options file into the -o or --opts parameter:

hackmyresume BUILD resume.json -o myoptions.json

This ability is currently only supported for FRESH resume themes.

How does resume merging work?

Resume merging is a way of storing your resume in separate files that HackMyResume will merge into a single "master" resume file prior to generating specific output formats like HTML or PDF. It's a way of producing flexible, configurable, targeted resumes with minimal duplication.

For example, a software developer who moonlights as a game programmer might create three FRESH or JRS resumes at different levels of specificity:

• generic.json: A generic technical resume, suitable for all audiences.
• game-developer.json: Overrides and amendments for game developer positions.
• blizzard.json: Overrides and amendments specific to a hypothetical position at Blizzard.

If you run hackmyresume BUILD generic.json TO out/resume.all, HMR will generate all available output formats for the generic.json as usual. But if you instead run...

hackmyresume BUILD generic.json game-developer.json TO out/resume.all

...HackMyResume will notice that multiple source resumes were specified and merge game-developer.json onto generic.json before generating, yielding a resume that's more suitable for game-developer-related positions.

You can take this a step further. Let's say you want to do a targeted resume submission to a game developer position at Blizzard, and blizzard.json contains the edits and revisions you'd like to show up in the targeted resume. In that case, merge again! Feed all three resumes to HackMyResume, in order from most generic to most specific, and HMR will merge them all prior to generating the final output format(s) for your resume.

# Merge blizzard.json onto game-developer.json onto generic.json, then build
hackmyresume BUILD generic.json game-developer.json blizzard.json TO out/resume.all

There's no limit to the number of resumes you can merge this way.

You can also divide your resume into files containing different sections:

• resume-a.json: Contains info, employment, and summary sections.
• resume-b.json: Contains all other sections except references.
• references.json: Contains the private references section.

Under that scenario, hackmyresume BUILD resume-a.json resume-b.json would

The HackMyResume terminal color scheme is giving me a headache. Can I disable it?

Yes. Use the --no-color option to disable terminal colors:

hackmyresume <somecommand> <someoptions> --no-color

What's the difference between a FRESH theme and a JSON Resume theme?

FRESH themes are multiformat (HTML, Word, PDF, etc.) and required to support Markdown formatting, configurable section titles, and various other features.

JSON Resume themes are typically HTML-driven, but capable of expansion to other formats through tools. JSON Resume themes don't support Markdown natively, but HMR does its best to apply your Markdown, when present, to any JSON Resume themes it encounters.

Do I have to have a FRESH resume to use a FRESH theme or a JSON Resume to use a JSON Resume theme?

No. You can mix and match FRESH and JRS-format themes freely. HackMyResume will perform the necessary conversions on the fly.

Can I build my own custom FRESH theme?

Yes. The easiest way is to copy an existing FRESH theme, like modern or compact, and make your changes there. You can test your theme with:

hackmyresume build resume.json --theme path/to/my/theme/folder

Can I build my own custom JSON Resume theme?

Yes. The easiest way is to copy an existing JSON Rsume theme and make your changes there. You can test your theme with:

hackmyresume build resume.json --theme path/to/my/theme/folder

Can I build my own tools / services / apps / websites around FRESH / FRESCA?

Yes! FRESH/FRESCA formats are 100% open source, permissively licensed under MIT, and 100% free from company-specific, tool-specific, or commercially oriented lock-in or cruft. These are clean formats designed for users and builders.

Can I build my own tools / services / apps / websites around JSON Resume?

Yes! HackMyResume is not affiliated with JSON Resume, but like FRESH/FRESCA, JSON Resume is open-source, permissively licensed, and free of proprietary lock-in. See the JSON Resume website for details.