fix: fastpaths content improvements for in-your-account flow

- developer/operator essentials: add base app deploy step so labs work without getting-started
- explore: add link to modular workshop modules
- navigating-labs: restore IDE image at constrained size, clarify Opening the IDE for both event and in-your-account flows
- setup/your-account: constrain stretched images to 600px, add Continue button on using-eksctl, fix pagination to skip terraform stub
- using-terraform: remove pagination links from stub page

Author: svennam92

website/docs/fastpaths/developer/index.md

@@ -18,6 +18,18 @@ $ prepare-environment fastpaths/developer
 
 Welcome to the EKS Workshop Developer Essentials! This is a collection of labs optimized for developers to learn the features of Amazon EKS most commonly required when deploying workloads.
 
+First, let's deploy the sample application to your cluster:
+
+```bash
+$ kubectl apply -k ~/environment/eks-workshop/base-application
+```
+
+Wait for all components to be ready:
+
+```bash
+$ kubectl wait --for=condition=Ready pods --all -A -l app.kubernetes.io/created-by=eks-workshop --timeout=180s
+```
+
 In this learning path, you'll learn:
 
 - How to deploy and manage containerized applications on EKS

website/docs/fastpaths/explore/index.md

@@ -4,7 +4,9 @@ sidebar_position: 80
 pagination_prev: null
 ---
 
-Congratulations you're done with the learning paths! Don't forget to leave us your feedback through the application! If you have some time left, why not explore additional content in our modular options? Don't forget to run the `prepare-environment` command as the start of each module.
+Congratulations you're done with the learning paths! Don't forget to leave us your feedback through the application!
+
+If you have some time left, why not explore additional content in our [modular workshop modules](/docs/introduction)? These cover deeper topics like networking, security, observability, and more. Don't forget to run the `prepare-environment` command at the start of each module.
 
 import HomepageModuleLink from "@site/src/components/HomepageModuleLink";
 

website/docs/fastpaths/navigating-labs.md

@@ -19,9 +19,11 @@ The lab exercises are designed in a way that you can run any modules as a self-c
 
 ## Opening the IDE
 
-If you haven't done so yet, you can open the IDE from the *Event outputs* section at the bottom of the start page.
+If you're **at an AWS event**, open the IDE from the *Event Outputs* section at the bottom of the Workshop Studio start page.
 
- ![Event Outputs copy/paste](/img/fastpaths/ide-open.png)
+<img src="/img/fastpaths/ide-open.png" alt="Event Outputs copy/paste" width="500" />
+
+If you're running **in your own account**, find the `IdeUrl` in your CloudFormation stack's Outputs tab — see the [setup guide](/docs/fastpaths/setup/your-account) for details.
 
 ## Starting a Lab
 

website/docs/fastpaths/operator/index.md

@@ -20,6 +20,18 @@ $ prepare-environment fastpaths/operator
 
 Welcome to the EKS Workshop Operator Essentials! This is a collection of labs optimized for operators to learn the features of Amazon EKS most commonly required when operating EKS clusters.
 
+First, let's deploy the sample application to your cluster:
+
+```bash
+$ kubectl apply -k ~/environment/eks-workshop/base-application
+```
+
+Wait for all components to be ready:
+
+```bash
+$ kubectl wait --for=condition=Ready pods --all -A -l app.kubernetes.io/created-by=eks-workshop --timeout=180s
+```
+
 Throughout this series of exercises you'll learn:
 
 - Configuring cluster autoscaling with Karpenter

website/docs/fastpaths/setup/your-account/index.md

@@ -32,33 +32,33 @@ We are continuously working to optimize the IAM permissions. Please raise a [Git
 
 Scroll to the bottom of the screen and acknowledge the IAM notice:
 
-![acknowledge IAM](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/acknowledge-iam.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/acknowledge-iam.webp" alt="acknowledge IAM" width="600" />
 
 Then click the **Create stack** button:
 
-![Create Stack](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/create-stack.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/create-stack.webp" alt="Create Stack" width="600" />
 
 The CloudFormation stack will take roughly 5 minutes to deploy, and once completed you can retrieve information required to continue from the **Outputs** tab:
 
-![cloudformation outputs](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-outputs.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-outputs.webp" alt="cloudformation outputs" width="600" />
 
 The `IdeUrl` output contains the URL to enter in your browser to access the IDE. The `IdePasswordSecret` contains a link to an AWS Secrets Manager secret that contains a generated password for the IDE.
 
 To retrieve the password open the `IdePasswordSecret` URL and click the **Retrieve** button:
 
-![secretsmanager retrieve](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-password-retrieve.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-password-retrieve.webp" alt="secretsmanager retrieve" width="600" />
 
 The password will then be available for you to copy:
 
-![password in Secrets Manager](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-password-visible.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-password-visible.webp" alt="password in Secrets Manager" width="600" />
 
 Open the IDE URL provided and you will be prompted for the password:
 
-![IDE password prompt](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-password.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-password.webp" alt="IDE password prompt" width="600" />
 
 After submitting your password you will be presented with the initial IDE screen:
 
-![IDE initial screen](/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-splash.webp)
+<img src="/docs/introduction/setup/your-account/vscode-splash.webp" alt="IDE initial screen" width="600" />
 
 The next step is to create an EKS cluster to perform the lab exercises in. Please follow one of the guides below to provision a cluster that meets the requirements for these labs:
 

website/docs/fastpaths/setup/your-account/using-eksctl.md

@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 ---
 title: Using eksctl
 sidebar_position: 20
+pagination_next: fastpaths/navigating-labs
 ---
 
 This section outlines how to build a cluster for the lab exercises using the [eksctl tool](https://eksctl.io/). This is the easiest way to get started, and is recommended for most learners.
@@ -26,9 +27,17 @@ This process will take approximately 20 minutes to complete.
 
 ## Next Steps
 
-Now that the cluster is ready, head to the [Navigating the labs](/docs/fastpaths/navigating-labs) section or skip ahead to any module in the workshop using the top navigation bar. Once you've completed the workshop, follow the steps below to clean up your environment.
+Now that the cluster is ready, head to the Navigating the labs section to get started.
 
-## Cleaning Up (steps once you are done with the Workshop)
+import Link from '@docusaurus/Link';
+
+<Link className="button button--primary button--lg" to="/docs/fastpaths/navigating-labs">Continue to Navigating the Labs →</Link>
+
+<br/><br/>
+
+---
+
+## Cleaning Up (after you're done with the entire Workshop)
 
 :::tip
 The following demonstrates how to clean up resources once you are done using the EKS cluster. Completing these steps will prevent further charges to your AWS account.

website/docs/fastpaths/setup/your-account/using-terraform.md

@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 ---
 title: Using Terraform
 sidebar_position: 30
+pagination_next: null
+pagination_prev: null
 ---
 
 :::danger