shenyaojin.github.io Shenyao's Github page

How to deploy a blog using the code in this repository?

02 Nov 2025

Author: Shenyao Jin, RCP@CSM, November 2, 2025

I’ll try to explain how to deploy a blog using the code in this repository using plain language. :P

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have met the following requirements:

  • A GitHub account
  • Basic knowledge of Git and GitHub
  • Familiarity with Markdown
  • A web browser
  • A text editor (VSCode is recommended if you want to deploy locally)

Steps to Deploy the Blog

  1. Fork the Repository:
    • Go to the repository page and click on the “Fork” button in the top right corner. Like this: Fork I’m the owner of this repository, so you will see I can not fork it. But you will see the “Fork” button.
  2. Rename the Repository:
    • After forking, navigate to your new repository (it will be under your GitHub username).
    • Click on the “Settings” tab.
    • In the “Repository name” field, change the name to <your-username>.github.io (must be exactly your GitHub username, if you’re abc123, it should be abc123.github.io).
    • Scroll down and click the “Rename” button to save your changes. Rename
  3. Customize Your Blog:
    • You can now edit the content of your blog by modifying the files in the repository.
    • Update _config.yml with your site details (e.g., title, description, URL), the original file looks like this: 
      title:               shenyaojin.github.io <- Change this to your site title
tagline:             Shenyao's Github page <- Change this to your site tagline
description:         shenyaojin.github.io <- Change this to your site description
url:                 http://shenyaojin.github.io <- Change this to your site URL
baseurl:             / <- Change this to your site baseurl
paginate:            5
paginate_path:       
permalink:           /:categories/:title/
markdown: kramdown
author:
  name:              Shenyao Jin <- Change this to your name
  url:               http://shenyaojin.github.io <- Change this to your personal URL
  email:             shenyaojin@mines.edu <- Change this to your email
plugins: xxx <- Keep this as is, don't change it
version:             1.2.0
google_analytics_id: xxx
    • Replace the content in _posts/ with your own blog posts. Each post should be a Markdown file with a specific naming convention (e.g., YYYY-MM-DD-title.md).
    • Edit about.md and other pages to reflect your personal information.
  4. Commit and Push Changes:
    • After making your changes, commit them and push to your GitHub repository: 
       git add .
 git commit -m "Customize my blog"
 git push origin main

      Or you can use the GitHub desktop application to commit and push changes if you’re not comfortable with the command line.

  5. Enable GitHub Pages:
    • Go to the “Settings” tab of your repository.
    • Scroll down to the “Pages” section in the left sidebar.
    • Use the same settings as shown below to enable GitHub Pages: GitHub Pages
  6. Access Your Blog:
    • After a few minutes, your blog should be live at https://<your-username>.github.io.
    • You can share this URL with others to showcase your blog!

Advanced techniques: editing locally and previewing before pushing to GitHub

If you want to edit your blog locally and preview it before pushing changes to GitHub, follow these additional steps:

  1. Clone Your Forked Repository:
    • Open your terminal or command prompt.
    • Clone your forked repository to your local machine: 
      git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/<your-repo-name>.git
cd <your-repo-name>
  2. Install Jekyll and Dependencies: First, you should install Ruby 3.x; on MacOS, you can use Homebrew: 
      brew install ruby

    Then, install Bundler and Jekyll:

      gem install bundler jekyll

    Next, install the required gems:

      bundle install
  3. Serve the Site Locally:
    • You can now serve your site locally to preview changes: 
      bundle exec jekyll serve
    • Open your web browser and go to http://localhost:4000 to see your blog.
  4. Make Changes and Preview:
    • Edit the files in your local repository using your preferred text editor.
    • After making changes, save the files and refresh your browser to see the updates.

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