When I'm trying to do something 'big', i start with the technical papers on the subject. Often, I get those by finding the syllabus of a graduate class (or clas

When I'm trying to do something 'big', i start with the technical papers on the subject. Often, I get those by finding the syllabus of a graduate class (or classes) in the field. Now that I understand the big picture/state of the art, I spend more time looking for specific techniques using Google and/or Stack Overflow.