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Today I Learn (TIL) - Quick Daily Learning

Welcome to Today I Learn (TIL) - a collection of short, focused learning articles on specific Google ADK features and patterns.

What are TILs?​

TILs are quick, practical guides designed for busy developers who want to:

  • ✅ Learn one specific feature or pattern
  • ✅ Get working code examples
  • ✅ Understand when to use it
  • ✅ Move on (5-10 minute read)

Perfect for staying current with ADK features and integrating them into your projects.

Available TILs​

Context Compaction (October 19, 2025)​

📖 TIL: Context Compaction with Google ADK 1.16

Automatically summarize conversation history to reduce token usage in long-running agent conversations.

Key Points:

  • 💰 Save 70-90% on tokens in long conversations
  • ⚡ Faster responses with smaller context
  • 🧠 Intelligent summarization preserves key information
  • 🔄 Perfect for 24-hour support agents and research assistants
  • ⏰ Completely automatic and transparent

In 8 minutes you'll learn:

  1. Why context compaction matters
  2. How sliding window compaction works
  3. LLM-based summarization approach
  4. Configuration options
  5. Real-world cost savings
  6. Working implementation with tests

ADK Version: 1.16+
Complexity: Intermediate
Time: ~8 minutes

Why TILs Instead of Full Tutorials?​

AspectTILFull Tutorial
ScopeOne feature or patternComplete topic
Time5-10 minutes30-90 minutes
CodeQuick exampleFull project
DepthSurface-levelComprehensive
Use Case"Learn this TODAY""Master this topic"

Upcoming TILs​

Coming Soon:

  • Context Caching - Cache conversation prefixes to reduce API calls
  • Streaming Responses - Real-time output for better UX
  • Error Recovery Patterns - Handling and recovering from agent errors
  • Tool Composition - Combining multiple tools effectively
  • Performance Tuning - Optimizing agents for production

How to Use TILs​

For Learning​

  1. Pick a TIL based on what you need today
  2. Read through (5-10 minutes)
  3. Run the working code example
  4. Integrate into your project
  5. Check related tutorials for deeper learning

For Teaching​

  • Share specific TILs with your team when they need to learn a feature
  • Link in code reviews: "See TIL: [Feature Name]"
  • Combine multiple TILs to teach a workflow

For Contributing​

Want to create a TIL? See the TIL Template & Guidelines for:

  • Structure and format
  • Best practices
  • Submission process

TIL Guidelines​

Every TIL includes:

✅ Clear problem statement - What is the problem this solves?
✅ One-sentence explanation - Understand it instantly
✅ Why it matters - Concrete benefits
✅ Quick example - Copy-paste ready code
✅ Key concepts - 3-5 main ideas explained
✅ Use cases - When to apply it
✅ Working implementation - Full code with tests
✅ Configuration reference - All options documented
✅ Pro tips - Real-world advice
✅ When NOT to use it - Important caveats

TIL vs Tutorials vs Blog Posts​

TIL:

  • Specific feature or pattern
  • 5-10 minutes
  • Working code example
  • Published weekly
  • Dated for reference

Tutorial:

  • Broader topic or workflow
  • 30-90 minutes
  • Full project structure
  • Comprehensive curriculum
  • Timeless reference

Blog Post:

  • Opinion, experience, or analysis
  • Variable length
  • Personal insights
  • Published as needed
  • Narrative-driven

Stay Updated​

RSS Feed​

Subscribe to the ADK Training RSS Feed to get notified when new TILs are published.

Social​

Follow for TIL announcements:

Weekly Schedule​

New TILs are typically published:

  • Tuesdays - Core ADK features
  • Fridays - Integration patterns and tips

TIL Template & Guidelines​

Want to create a TIL for a feature you've learned about?

📋 See TIL Template & Guidelines

The template includes:

  • Complete structure
  • Best practices
  • DO's and DON'Ts
  • Publishing checklist

Quick Navigation​

Questions?​

💬 Join the Discussion

Have questions or feedback? Discuss this tutorial with the community on GitHub Discussions.