Changelog
All notable changes to this personal website are documented in this file.
The format is based on Keep a Changelog.
[December 2025] - Major Content Reorganization & Snippets System
Added
- Snippets Collection: New “digital garden” feature for bite-sized insights and learnings
- Custom snippet layout with hover effects and color-coded takeaways
- Dark mode support with improved contrast and visibility
- Board-style layout for browsing snippets
- Writing Hub: Centralized content discovery with themed series and curated routes
- Featured writing strip on homepage
- “Start Here” curated route for new visitors
- Themed series landing pages for related content
- Metadata Validation: Python script to validate and enforce metadata consistency across all content types
- Category System: Renamed and reorganized writing categories with contextual descriptions
Changed
- Transformed blog into comprehensive Writing Index with tabbed navigation
- Improved navigation structure with sticky masthead throughout site
- Enhanced Resources section with PDF documentation
- Updated portfolio and contact page layouts for better consistency
Fixed
- Mobile text overlap issues in hero section
- Navbar color consistency with page backgrounds
- Snippet visibility and contrast in dark mode
- Layout spacing across different content types
[November 2025] - Information Architecture Overhaul
Added
- Comprehensive sitemap with automated Python generator
- Enhanced contact page with card-based design and resume link
- LinkedIn profile integration
Changed
- Phase 1 IA Improvements: Navigation and discoverability enhancements
- Phase 2 IA Improvements: URL standardization and Topics taxonomy
- Consolidated About pages with “My Journey” as primary entry point
- Improved layout consistency across Projects and Contact pages
Fixed
- Masthead navigation background alignment
- Contact page formatting and spacing
- Hero CTA button breakpoints for mobile devices
[September - October 2025] - Design Refresh
Changed
- Major homepage redesign with card-based templates
- Reorganized file structure for better maintainability
- Updated Jekyll configuration and documentation
- Refined project page layouts and descriptions
Fixed
- Various typos and link corrections
- Project page link targets
[June - July 2025] - Visualizations & Analytics
Added
- Fitness dashboard visualization
- New data visualization assets
- Photo galleries (bee photography)
- “Choco” themed updates
[May 2025] - Layout & Navigation Revamp
Added
- Breadcrumb navigation system
- Mermaid diagram support for technical documentation
- Custom layout styling scripts
Changed
- Complete layout revamp with improved visual hierarchy
- Enhanced style consistency across pages
[April 2025] - CareerCraft Project
Added
- CareerCraft project page with comprehensive documentation
- Project-specific images and screenshots
- SVG rendering support for thumbnails
Changed
- Improved project page image handling and display
[February 2025] - GitHub Actions & Analytics
Added
- GitHub Actions workflow for automated deployment
- Midjourney AI art gallery
- Google Analytics 4 (GA4) integration with tag
G-VPLSBQSHER
Changed
- Updated deployment pipeline to Actions v4
- Updated artifact upload process
- Improved gallery organization and ordering
Fixed
- HTML proofing preventing deployment issues
- Analytics tracking in head.html
[January 2025] - Navigation & Cleanup
Added
- Workout dashboard integration
- Enhanced banner functionality with JavaScript
Changed
- Major navigation updates and improvements
- Comprehensive cleanup of resource files
- Removed unused Staticman configuration
Fixed
- Various typos and broken links
- Banner display issues
[December 2024] - Portfolio Enhancement
Added
- Table of Contents (ToC) to portfolio project pages
- Improved portfolio page metadata
Changed
- Updated CoverCraft project information
- Reordered projects for better presentation
- Edited portfolio pages for consistency
Fixed
- Typos across multiple project pages
[November 2024] - Portfolio Collection Launch
Added
- Portfolio page collection in Jekyll
- Custom portfolio layout and templates
Changed
- Portfolio page configuration in
_config.yml - Updated project showcase structure
[October 2024] - Development Branch
Changed
- Created
dev-branchfor site overhaul work - Established workflow for testing major changes
[August - September 2024] - Theme Foundation
Added
- Custom icons and branding elements
Changed
- Updated to Minimal Mistakes theme v4.27.1
- Theme configuration (switched from dark to air skin)
- Updated plugins and dependencies
Fixed
- Theme compatibility issues
- Content rendering after theme updates
[2021 - 2022] - Hiatus
No commits during this period. Site remained live and operational.
[2023] - Maintenance Period
Changed
- Updated resume with latest experience (August)
- Refined About page content (August)
- Updated tutorial posts (April)
Fixed
- Footer layout improvements (April)
[2020 September - December] - Early Content Development
Added
- Temperature Dashboard: Interactive visualization for temperature data
- Stock Ticker: Financial data visualization project
- Sensor Fleet project skeleton pages
- Academic articles and research posters
- First blog posts and tutorials
Changed
- Established domain at barbhs.com (CNAME configuration)
- Enhanced homepage with splash layout and hero imagery
- Created Projects and Publications pages
- Improved navigation structure
Fixed
- Project page linking issues
- Configuration file update problems
- Layout rendering bugs
[2020 August] - Repository Creation & Initial Setup
Added
- Repository Created: Initial commit on August 26, 2020
- Minimal Mistakes theme installation and configuration
- Basic site structure with Jekyll
- Resume page
- Google Search Console verification
- Initial SEO optimization
Changed
- Configured GitHub Pages deployment
- Set up site navigation and basic layouts
- Established project structure and file organization
Fixed
- Include directive errors
- Build configuration issues
- Theme compatibility problems
Repository Timeline Summary
🌱 Foundation (Aug-Dec 2020)
Started as a personal portfolio site built with Jekyll and Minimal Mistakes theme, hosted on GitHub Pages at barbhs.com. Initial focus on showcasing data science projects (Temperature Dashboard, Stock Ticker) and academic work.
💤 Quiet Period (2021-2023)
- 2021-2022: Complete hiatus, no commits
- 2023: Sporadic maintenance (2 update sessions in April and August)
🚀 Renaissance (Aug 2024 - Present)
Major revival with comprehensive modernization beginning August 2024:
- Phase 1 (Aug-Dec 2024): Theme updates, portfolio collection system, dev workflow
- Phase 2 (Jan-Jul 2025): Analytics, automation, visualizations, layout revamp
- Phase 3 (Aug-Dec 2025): Information Architecture overhaul, content reorganization, Snippets digital garden
Key achievements:
- Complete Information Architecture redesign with Claude Code collaboration
- Portfolio and Snippets collection systems
- Automated deployment with GitHub Actions
- Enhanced analytics (GA4) and SEO
- Mobile-first responsive design improvements
- Metadata validation automation
📊 Development Metrics
- Total Commits: 230+
- Repository Age: 4+ years (Aug 2020 - Present)
- Active Development Periods: 2 major phases (2020, 2024-2025)
- Collaboration Tools: Heavy use of Claude Code (Nov 2025+)
- Theme Updates: 2 major Minimal Mistakes version updates
- Collections: 3 (Portfolio, Snippets, Blog)
- Most Active Period: December 2025 (50+ commits)
Why This Format?
This CHANGELOG follows industry best practices:
- Chronological Organization: Grouped by month/quarter with newest changes first
- Semantic Categories: Uses “Added”, “Changed”, “Fixed” to clarify the nature of changes
- Human-Readable: Focuses on features and user-facing changes rather than raw commit messages
- Contextual Grouping: Related commits are grouped into logical features
- Highlights Major Initiatives: Clear sections for significant projects like the Snippets System or IA overhaul
The format makes it easy to:
- Understand what changed and when
- Track major features and improvements over time
- See patterns in development (e.g., heavy design work in late 2025)
- Share updates with collaborators or in documentation