Showcasing My Computer Science Projects: The Creation of A Comprehensive Portfolio
As I progress through my computer science journey at Oregon State University (OSU), I find myself eager to highlight the diverse projects I have undertaken. Initially considering a dedicated blog post, I realized the risk of these projects getting lost amidst future posts. To ensure a focused and accessible showcase, I decided to create a dedicated portfolio page. In this blog post, I will share my process of creating this portfolio page, overcoming challenges, and ultimately curating an engaging collection of projects.
Exploring Markdown and Portfolio Structure:
To maintain consistency with my existing blog format, I began by investigating how to create a portfolio page in Markdown. In my research I discovered a limitation with Markdown: although I could link images within Markdown, I could not link PDFs. This would become a problem as I wanted to highlight some of my portfolio project reports, especially because I am limited in the code I am allowed to share for confidentiality reasons.
Typescript and Tailwind CSS: Building a Cohesive Portfolio:
Inspired by my homepage and blog post pages, which utilized Typescript and Tailwind CSS, I decided to build my portfolio page using the same technologies. I researched effective layout strategies, aiming for consistent aesthetics and incorporating banner images reminiscent of my blog posts. Additionally, I explored techniques to link the PDFs I wanted to include, ensuring easy access to project reports.
Striving for Efficient Image Display:
For my computer graphics projects, I wished to showcase screenshots from those projects. However, I encountered a setback when I noticed that the page loading speed was adversely affected due to the large file sizes of the images. Despite resizing the images using Tailwind CSS, the issue persisted. To optimize the loading speed and improve responsiveness, I opted for a creative solution. Using the GIMP program, which I had previously mentioned in my blog posts, I combined all the screenshots into a single composite image. With GIMP's layer functionality, I effortlessly imported each image as a layer and resized them within the canvas dimensions. By arranging the images in an aesthetically pleasing grid and exporting the final composition, I significantly reduced the page's loading time.
My journey at Oregon State University has been marked by a diverse range of computer science projects. Recognizing the need to showcase these accomplishments effectively, I embarked on creating a dedicated portfolio page. Through meticulous research and problem-solving, I overcame challenges such as PDF linking and image optimization. If you would like to view my portfolio as it currently stands, please use one of the Portfolio links provided at the bottom of each page.
