Scott Weeden - Personal Profile & Blog

Personal profile and academic blog for Scott Weeden, Master of Computer Science student at Texas Tech University. This Jekyll-based static site showcases research, projects, and technical writing in computer science and machine learning.

Overview

This site features:

• About - Personal introduction and academic journey
• Resume/CV - Academic and professional experience
• Research & Projects - Showcase of publications and technical projects
• Blog - Technical articles on CS, ML, and algorithm analysis

Design Philosophy: Academic Minimalism with Technical Precision - inspired by Linear, Notion, and Stripe.

Technology Stack

Core Technologies

• Jekyll 4.x - Static site generator
• Liquid - Templating language
• Kramdown - Markdown processor with math support
• Sass/SCSS - CSS preprocessing
• Ruby - Build environment

UI & Display Libraries

Mathematical Formulas - KaTeX

KaTeX is used for rendering complex mathematical formulas in research articles and blog posts.

Why KaTeX over MathJax:

• Performance: ~2x faster rendering, smaller bundle size (~115KB vs ~600KB)
• Synchronous rendering: No page reflows or layout shifts
• Better Core Web Vitals: Improved LCP and CLS scores
• Server-side compatible: Can be pre-rendered during Jekyll build

Usage in blog posts:

Inline math: $E = mc^2$

Display math:
$$
\int_0^\infty e^{-x^2} dx = \frac{\sqrt{\pi}}{2}
$$

Configuration: Auto-render plugin configured in _layouts/default.html

References:

• KaTeX Documentation
• KaTeX vs MathJax Comparison

Syntax Highlighting - Prism.js

Prism.js provides beautiful, lightweight syntax highlighting for code blocks.

Why Prism.js over Highlight.js:

• Smaller footprint: Core is ~2KB (vs ~10KB), modular language loading
• Better performance: 15KB/ms parsing speed vs 9KB/ms
• Customization: Extensive theming and plugin ecosystem
• Line highlighting: Built-in support for line numbers and highlights

Supported Languages (loaded in default layout):

• Python, JavaScript, Java, C++, Bash
• Add more in _layouts/default.html as needed

Usage:

​```python
def hello_world():
    print("Hello, World!")
​```

Custom Theme: Using prism-tomorrow.css for clean, minimalist code display

References:

• Prism.js Documentation
• Performance Comparison

Responsive Navigation

Vanilla JavaScript with minimal Alpine.js-inspired patterns for responsive menu.

Why No Heavy Framework:

• Performance: < 1KB of custom JS vs 50KB+ frameworks
• Progressive Enhancement: Works without JavaScript
• Accessibility: Semantic HTML + ARIA attributes
• Maintainability: Simple, readable code

Features:

• Mobile hamburger menu with smooth transitions
• Keyboard navigation support
• Focus management for accessibility
• No external dependencies

Implementation: See assets/js/main.js

Additional Tools

Development

• html-proofer - HTML validation and link checking
• pa11y-ci - Accessibility testing (WCAG AA compliance)
• markdownlint - Markdown linting
• Lighthouse CI - Performance and SEO auditing

CI/CD

• GitHub Actions - Automated deployment and testing
• Jekyll Build Action - Optimized Jekyll builds
• Pages Deploy - Automated GitHub Pages deployment

Quick Start

Prerequisites

# Check Ruby version (2.7+ required)
ruby --version

# Install Bundler
gem install bundler

# Install Jekyll
gem install jekyll

Installation

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/profile.git
cd profile

# Install dependencies
bundle install

# Serve locally with live reload
bundle exec jekyll serve --livereload

# Visit http://localhost:4000

Build for Production

# Set production environment
JEKYLL_ENV=production bundle exec jekyll build

# Output in _site/ directory

Git Hooks

This repository uses git hooks to ensure code quality and build integrity. Hooks are stored in .githooks/ and automatically used via git config core.hooksPath .githooks.

Available Hooks:

• pre-push - Requires successful Jekyll build before allowing push

  • Runs bundle exec jekyll build (or jekyll build if bundle unavailable)
  • Prevents pushing code that would break the site build
  • Can be bypassed with git push --no-verify if needed (not recommended)

• post-checkout / post-merge - Regenerates Agent A lecture inventory after repository updates

Testing the Build Hook:

# The hook will automatically run on git push
git push

# If build fails, fix errors and try again
# To skip the hook (not recommended):
git push --no-verify

Project Structure

profile/
├── _config.yml              # Jekyll configuration
├── Gemfile                  # Ruby dependencies
├── CLAUDE.md               # AI assistant instructions
│
├── _layouts/                # Page templates
│   ├── default.html        # Base layout with KaTeX + Prism.js
│   ├── page.html           # Standard pages
│   ├── post.html           # Blog posts
│   └── project.html        # Project showcases
│
├── _includes/              # Reusable components
│   ├── header.html         # Site header with navigation
│   ├── footer.html         # Site footer
│   ├── nav.html            # Navigation menu
│   └── meta.html           # SEO meta tags
│
├── _sass/                  # Sass partials
│   ├── _variables.scss     # Design tokens (colors, spacing, typography)
│   ├── _typography.scss    # Typography styles
│   ├── _layout.scss        # Layout and structure
│   └── _components.scss    # Reusable components
│
├── assets/
│   ├── css/
│   │   └── main.scss       # Main stylesheet (imports all partials)
│   ├── js/
│   │   └── main.js         # Vanilla JS for navigation & enhancements
│   └── images/             # Images and media
│
├── _posts/                 # Blog posts (YYYY-MM-DD-title.md)
├── _projects/              # Project collection
├── _drafts/                # Draft posts (not published)
│
├── templates/              # Templates and utilities
│   ├── latex/              # LaTeX templates
│   │   ├── academic-paper.tex          # IEEE-style research paper
│   │   ├── academic-resume.tex         # CV template
│   │   └── blog-post-supplement.tex    # Technical supplement
│   │
│   └── ci-cd/              # GitHub Actions workflows
│       ├── jekyll-deploy.yml          # Auto-deploy to GitHub Pages
│       ├── quality-checks.yml         # HTML validation, link checking
│       └── lighthouse-performance.yml  # Performance testing
│
├── about.md                # About page
├── resume.md               # Resume/CV page
├── research.md             # Research & Projects page
├── blog/                   # Blog index
└── index.html              # Homepage

Files, Templates, and Utilities

LaTeX Templates

Professional templates for academic writing and research documentation.

1. Academic Research Paper (templates/latex/academic-paper.tex)

IEEE-style conference paper template for research publications.

Features:

• IEEE conference format
• Abstract, keywords, sections
• Figure and table support
• Bibliography with BibTeX
• Mathematical equation support

Usage:

cd templates/latex
pdflatex academic-paper.tex
bibtex academic-paper
pdflatex academic-paper.tex
pdflatex academic-paper.tex

2. Academic Resume/CV (templates/latex/academic-resume.tex)

ModernCV template for professional academic CVs.

Features:

• Clean, professional design
• Education, research, publications sections
• Project and skills showcase
• Customizable colors and styles

Usage:

cd templates/latex
pdflatex academic-resume.tex

3. Blog Post Supplement (templates/latex/blog-post-supplement.tex)

Extended technical documentation for blog posts.

Features:

• Mathematical proofs and derivations
• Algorithm pseudocode
• Code listings with syntax highlighting
• Theorem environments

Usage: Companion to blog posts for readers wanting deep mathematical details.

CI/CD Workflows

GitHub Actions workflows for automated testing and deployment.

1. Jekyll Deploy (templates/ci-cd/jekyll-deploy.yml)

Automatic deployment to GitHub Pages on push to main.

Setup:

1. Copy to .github/workflows/jekyll-deploy.yml
2. Enable GitHub Pages in repository settings
3. Push to main branch - automatic deployment

2. Quality Checks (templates/ci-cd/quality-checks.yml)

Automated testing on pull requests.

Tests:

• HTML validation (html-proofer)
• Markdown linting (markdownlint)
• Accessibility checks (pa11y-ci)
• Broken link detection

Setup:

# Copy workflow
cp templates/ci-cd/quality-checks.yml .github/workflows/

# Install local testing tools
gem install html-proofer
npm install -g pa11y-ci markdownlint-cli

3. Lighthouse Performance (templates/ci-cd/lighthouse-performance.yml)

Performance and SEO auditing with Google Lighthouse.

Targets:

• Performance Score: 90+
• Accessibility Score: 90+
• Best Practices: 90+
• SEO Score: 90+
• FCP < 1.5s, LCP < 2.5s

Setup:

1. Copy workflow to .github/workflows/
2. Lighthouse config in .lighthouserc.json (already configured)
3. Results posted as PR comments

Development Workflow

Creating a Blog Post

# Create new post file
touch _posts/2026-01-10-your-post-title.md

# Add frontmatter and content
cat > _posts/2026-01-10-your-post-title.md << 'EOF'
---
layout: post
title: "Your Post Title"
date: 2026-01-10
categories: [machine-learning, research]
tags: [python, algorithms]
excerpt: "Brief description for previews"
reading_time: 8
---

Your post content here with $\LaTeX$ math and ```code``` blocks.
EOF

# Preview locally
bundle exec jekyll serve --drafts

# Commit and push
git add _posts/2026-01-10-your-post-title.md
git commit -m "Add blog post: Your Post Title"
git push

Creating a Project

# Create project file
touch _projects/project-name.md

# Add project frontmatter
cat > _projects/project-name.md << 'EOF'
---
layout: project
title: "Project Name"
subtitle: "Brief tagline"
date: 2026-01-10
status: "Completed"
tech_stack: [Python, TensorFlow, Docker]
links:
  demo: https://demo.example.com
  github: https://github.com/username/project
  paper: https://doi.org/xxxx
outcomes:
  - "Achieved 92% accuracy on benchmark dataset"
  - "Published in IEEE Conference 2026"
---

Project description and details here.
EOF

Testing & Quality Assurance

Local Testing

# Serve locally
bundle exec jekyll serve

# Build production site
JEKYLL_ENV=production bundle exec jekyll build

# Validate HTML
bundle exec htmlproofer ./_site --disable-external

# Check accessibility
pa11y http://localhost:4000

# Lint Markdown
markdownlint _posts _projects *.md

Performance Testing

# Serve production build
cd _site && python3 -m http.server 8000

# Run Lighthouse
npm install -g @lhci/cli
lhci autorun --config=.lighthouserc.json

Design System

The site uses a comprehensive design system defined in _sass/_variables.scss:

Colors

• Primary: Academic Blue (#2563eb)
• Text: Slate scale (#0f172a to #94a3b8)
• Backgrounds: White to light gray (#ffffff to #f1f5f9)

Typography

• Sans: Inter, SF Pro Display, system fonts
• Mono: JetBrains Mono, Fira Code, SF Mono
• Scale: 1.250 (Major Third) - 16px base

Spacing

• Base: 8px grid system
• Scale: 4px to 96px (xs to 4xl)

See CLAUDE.md for complete design specifications.

Deployment

GitHub Pages

The site auto-deploys to GitHub Pages via GitHub Actions.

Setup:

1. Push to main branch
2. GitHub Actions builds and deploys automatically
3. Site available at https://username.github.io/

Custom Domain (Optional)

# Add CNAME file
echo "yourdomain.com" > CNAME

# Configure DNS A records:
# 185.199.108.153
# 185.199.109.153
# 185.199.110.153
# 185.199.111.153

git add CNAME
git commit -m "Add custom domain"
git push

Browser Support

• Chrome (latest)
• Firefox (latest)
• Safari (latest)
• Edge (latest)
• Mobile Safari (iOS 13+)
• Chrome Mobile (Android 8+)

Contributing

This is a personal portfolio site. If you find issues or have suggestions:

1. Open an issue describing the problem
2. For code contributions, fork and submit a pull request
3. Ensure all tests pass (bundle exec htmlproofer ./_site)

License

Content is © 2026 Scott Weeden. All rights reserved.

Code is MIT licensed - feel free to use the Jekyll setup and design system for your own projects.

Resources

Documentation

• Jekyll Documentation
• KaTeX Documentation
• Prism.js Documentation
• GitHub Pages Guide

Design References

• Inter Font
• JetBrains Mono
• WCAG Guidelines

Tools

• HTML Proofer
• Pa11y Accessibility Testing
• Lighthouse CI

Contact

• Email: [email protected]
• GitHub: @yourusername
• LinkedIn: yourprofile

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Built with precision and care. Every pixel matters.