I’m thrilled to share my journey of building my portfolio from scratch and deploying it for the first time. Developing various projects in the past was insightful, but this venture allowed me to see the entire process, from conception to deployment.

Backend and Database

I opted for Python and Django due to its emphasis on rapid development and clean design. PostgreSQL, chosen for its power and scalability, serves as the production database, while SQLite aids development. This choice was crucial for the future scalability of my application.

Frontend

For the frontend, I adapted the free HTML template "Julia" from TemplatesJungle, aligning its minimalistic design with my aesthetic. Bootstrap 5, along with my custom CSS and JS, transformed it into a unique representation of my work. This is a web-responsive design web as well.

Django Templates and Deployment

Working extensively with Django templates and deploying the application challenged me. Customizing "Julia" and configuring the development, staging, and production environments tested my knowledge and problem-solving skills. I chose Railway for its simplicity in building and monitoring applications, paired with AWS S3 for scalable and industry-standard cloud storage.

Challenges and Growth

The deployment phase presented the steepest learning curve. From selecting the hosting service to configuring each environment, every step was a challenge. Overcoming these hurdles marked significant growth in my developer journey. Special thanks to numerous YouTubers like Bobby from DidCoding, StackOverflow posts, and ChatGPT, among others, for providing insights and assistance during the development of this project.

Future Plans

This experience fuels my desire to create more impactful projects. I aim to contribute to the community and enhance my skills continuously.

Thank you for joining me on this journey, and I'm excited to keep you posted on my future endeavors! 🚀

Tech Stack

- Backend: Django

- Database: PostgreSQL (Production), SQLite (Development)

- Frontend: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Bootstrap 5, Django Templates

- Version Control: Git

- Development Server: Django Development Server (Local), Gunicorn (Production)

- Dependency Management: pip

- Virtual Environment: Venv (a virtual environment to isolate project dependencies)

- Deployment: Railway (A cloud for building, shipping, and monitoring applications)

- Authentication and Authorization: Django's Authentication System, Django's Authorization System

- Storage for Static and Media Files: AWS S3 (Stored in the cloud for easy scalability)

- Additional Python/Django Packages:

- Foundation packages for AWS (boto3, botocore)

- For Database URLs usage in your Django Application (dj-database-url)

- Provides a RichTextField, a RichTextUploadingField, and more (ckeditor)

- For debugging during development (django-debug-toolbar)

- Shows a 503 error page when maintenance-mode is on (django-maintenance-mode)

- Add support for one-time passwords (OTPs) to Django (django-otp, qrcode)

- Provides a variety of storage backends in a single library (django-storages)

- Adds image processing capabilities to your Python interpreter (Pillow)

- A PostgreSQL database adapter for the Python programming language (psycopg2)

- Reads key-value pairs from a .env file and can set them as environment variables (python-dotenv)

- Radically simplified static file serving for Python web apps (whitenoise)