Technology Stack Analysis - brandonjplambert Project

Generated: 2025-10-12 Project Path: C:/Users/brand/Development/Project_Workspace/active-development/brandonjplambert Project Type: Academic Portfolio & Educational Resource Platform

Executive Summary

This is a sophisticated bilingual (English/Spanish) academic portfolio platform built with Jekyll 3.10.0 and deployed on GitHub Pages. The project features a modern design system, Sveltia CMS integration for content management, and extensive Python utilities for data processing and verification. The architecture emphasizes zero external dependencies, clean separation of concerns, and full compatibility with GitHub Pages hosting.

1. Operating System & Infrastructure

Development Environment

Version Control

Architectural Note: The project uses Git for version control with a focus on GitHub Pages compatibility. All build and deployment processes are optimized for the GitHub Pages environment.

2. Static Site Generation (Core Framework)

Jekyll Framework

Jekyll Configuration

- Markdown Engine: kramdown
- Theme: Custom (null/no external theme)
- Encoding: UTF-8
- Timezone: America/New_York
- Build Output: _site directory

Jekyll Plugins (GitHub Pages Whitelist)

Architectural Decision: Using the github-pages gem ensures 100% compatibility with GitHub Pages hosting while locking all plugin versions to whitelisted versions. This prevents deployment issues from version mismatches.

3. Frontend Technologies

Markup & Templating

Styling Architecture

SASS File Structure

_sass/
├── _base.scss              # Reset and base styles
├── _components.scss        # UI component styles (22KB)
├── _gallery.scss           # Image gallery system (11KB)
├── _layout.scss            # Layout system (14KB)
├── _responsive.scss        # Responsive breakpoints (6KB)
├── _typography.scss        # Font and text styles
├── _utilities.scss         # Utility classes
├── _variables.scss         # Design tokens
├── design-system-pro.scss  # Professional design system (16KB)
└── main.scss               # Import orchestration

Architectural Note: The SASS architecture follows a component-based approach with clear separation between base styles, layout, components, and utilities. The design system is modular and maintainable, with a professional-grade design system file.

JavaScript Modules (Vanilla JS - No Framework)

Architectural Decision: Zero JavaScript framework dependencies. All interactions are built with vanilla JavaScript for maximum performance, minimal bundle size, and no framework lock-in. Total JS payload: ~20KB (unminified).

UI Components

Gallery System: Custom mini-gallery component with modal lightbox
Navigation: Responsive navigation with mobile hamburger menu
Modal System: Reusable modal dialogs for project details
Filtering: Client-side filtering for projects and resources
Tooltips: Custom tooltip system for technology tags
Back-to-Top: Smooth scroll-to-top button

4. Backend & Runtime

Primary Runtime (Static Site)

Content Management System (CMS)

CMS Collections

Profile (singleton)
Teaching Principles
Education
Career Timeline
AI Projects
Learning Tools
Spanish Accounts
Navigation
Featured Work

Architectural Note: Sveltia CMS provides a user-friendly content editing interface while keeping all content in Git. No database required - all content is stored as YAML data files in _data/.

5. Languages & Development Tools

Primary Languages

TypeScript Development (Optional)

Note: TypeScript is configured but not actively used in production. The tsc command is available via npm scripts.

6. Python Ecosystem (Utility Scripts)

Python Package Dependencies

# From scripts/requirements.txt
aiohttp >= 3.8.0      # Async HTTP client
pyyaml >= 6.0         # YAML parsing
pandas >= 1.5.0       # Data manipulation
openpyxl >= 3.0.0     # Excel file handling
numpy >= 1.21.0       # Numerical computing

Python Script Categories (36 total)

Key Python Scripts:

complete_verification.py - Complete verification workflow
enrich_yaml_accounts.py - Data enrichment pipeline
instagram_http_verifier.py - Instagram link verification
export_spanish_accounts_to_csv.py - Data export utility
pattern_url_discovery.py - URL pattern analysis

Architectural Note: Python scripts are used exclusively for data processing, verification, and maintenance tasks. They don’t run in production - only during content updates and quality assurance workflows.

7. Testing & Quality Assurance

JavaScript Testing

Code Quality Tools

| Tool | Version | Purpose | |——|———|———| | ESLint | 9.36.0 | JavaScript linting | | Prettier | 3.6.2 | Code formatting |

Testing Configuration

"scripts": {
  "test": "jest",
  "typecheck": "tsc --noEmit",
  "lint": "eslint ."
}

Current Status: Testing infrastructure is configured but test files need to be created. Directory structure includes a tests/ folder.

8. Build System & Task Automation

Build Tools

NPM Scripts (CI/CD & Workflows)

{
  "build": "tsc",                    // TypeScript compilation
  "test": "jest",                    // Run tests
  "lint": "eslint .",                // Lint JavaScript
  "typecheck": "tsc --noEmit",       // Type checking

  // SPARC Development Methodology
  "sparc:modes": "npx claude-flow@alpha sparc modes",
  "sparc:run": "npx claude-flow@alpha sparc run",
  "sparc:tdd": "npx claude-flow@alpha sparc tdd",
  "sparc:batch": "npx claude-flow@alpha sparc batch",
  "sparc:pipeline": "npx claude-flow@alpha sparc pipeline",

  // Swarm Orchestration
  "flow:start": "npx claude-flow@alpha start",
  "flow:status": "npx claude-flow@alpha status",
  "flow:memory": "npx claude-flow@alpha memory",
  "swarm:init": "npx claude-flow@alpha swarm init",
  "swarm:status": "npx claude-flow@alpha swarm status"
}

Architectural Note: The project uses SPARC (Specification, Pseudocode, Architecture, Refinement, Completion) methodology with claude-flow orchestration for Test-Driven Development workflows.

9. DevOps & Deployment

Hosting & Deployment

CI/CD Pipeline

Current Deployment: The GitHub Actions workflow is disabled (.yml.disabled). The site likely deploys via GitHub Pages’ automatic Jekyll build or a manual process.

Workflow Configuration (when enabled):

- Ruby Setup: 3.1
- Build: bundle exec jekyll build
- Environment: production
- Upload: GitHub Pages artifact
- Deploy: GitHub Pages

Environment Management

No .env files in use (static site)
No secrets management required (public site)
Configuration: Via _config.yml

10. MCP (Model Context Protocol) Servers

AI Development Infrastructure

Configuration: .mcp.json in project root

Architectural Note: MCP servers enable AI-assisted development workflows including:

Swarm-based agent coordination
Neural network training patterns
GitHub integration for PR management
Real-time execution monitoring
Cloud sandbox execution
Multi-agent task orchestration

11. Data Storage & Management

Data Architecture

| Type | Format | Location | Purpose | |——|——–|———-|———| | Content Data | YAML | _data/*.yml | Structured content (profile, projects, etc.) | | Posts | Markdown | _posts/*.md | Blog posts | | Pages | Markdown | _pages/*.md | Static pages | | Configuration | YAML | _config.yml | Site configuration | | Navigation | YAML | _data/navigation.yml | Menu structure | | Assets | Binary | assets/images/ | Images |

No Traditional Database

No SQL database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, etc.)
No NoSQL database (MongoDB, Redis, etc.)
Git as database: All content versioned in Git
Build-time data: YAML files processed during Jekyll build

Architectural Decision: Using YAML files as the data layer provides version control for all content, simplifies hosting (no database server), and enables static site generation while maintaining structured data.

12. Internationalization (i18n)

Language Support

| Feature | Implementation | Languages | |———|—————|———–| | Bilingual Content | Jekyll collections | English, Spanish | | Default Language | en | English | | Language Switching | Path-based (/es/*) | URL routing | | Locale Settings | YAML front matter | Per-page configuration |

i18n Configuration

languages: ["en", "es"]
default_lang: "en"
timezone: America/New_York

Content Organization:

English content: Root level
Spanish content: /es/ subdirectory
Shared templates with language-aware logic

13. Security & Privacy

Security Measures

Privacy Features

No analytics tracking configured (placeholder in _config.yml)
No cookies (static site)
No user tracking
Privacy-friendly approach

Architectural Note: The static site architecture inherently provides security benefits - no server-side code execution, no database vulnerabilities, and minimal attack surface.

14. Performance Optimization

Jekyll Optimization

Frontend Performance

Zero framework overhead: Vanilla JavaScript
Minified SASS: Compressed CSS output
Static HTML: Pre-generated pages
CDN delivery: GitHub Pages CDN
No database queries: Build-time data processing

Caching Strategy

Browser caching: Static assets
CDN caching: GitHub Pages CDN
Build artifacts: Jekyll _site/ directory

15. Development Tools & Utilities

Node.js Ecosystem

Development Dependencies (Node)

{
  "@types/jest": "^30.0.0",
  "@types/node": "^24.5.2",
  "eslint": "^9.36.0",
  "jest": "^30.1.3",
  "prettier": "^3.6.2",
  "ts-jest": "^29.4.4",
  "typescript": "^5.9.2"
}

Editor Configuration

CLAUDE.md: Claude Code AI assistant configuration
Project instructions: Multiple levels (root, parent, project)
SPARC methodology: Integrated development workflow

16. Project Structure & Organization

Directory Architecture

brandonjplambert/
├── _config.yml              # Jekyll configuration
├── _data/                   # YAML data files (CMS content)
├── _includes/               # Reusable HTML/Liquid components
├── _layouts/                # Page templates
├── _pages/                  # Static pages
├── _posts/                  # Blog posts
├── _sass/                   # SASS stylesheets (11 files)
├── _site/                   # Generated static site (build output)
├── admin/                   # Sveltia CMS interface
│   ├── config.yml          # CMS configuration
│   └── index.html          # CMS entry point
├── assets/                  # Static assets
│   ├── css/                # Compiled CSS
│   ├── images/             # Images
│   └── js/                 # JavaScript modules (8 files)
├── docs/                    # Documentation
│   └── ad_hoc_reports/     # Generated reports
├── scripts/                 # Python utility scripts (36 files)
│   ├── account-management/ # Account management scripts
│   ├── data-processing/    # Data enrichment scripts
│   ├── verification/       # Link verification scripts
│   ├── utilities/          # Utility scripts
│   └── requirements.txt    # Python dependencies
├── .github/
│   └── workflows/          # CI/CD workflows (disabled)
├── .claude/                # Claude Code configuration
├── .claude-flow/           # Claude Flow state
├── .hive-mind/            # AI orchestration config
├── .mcp.json              # MCP server configuration
├── .swarm/                # Swarm coordination state
├── Gemfile                # Ruby dependencies
├── Gemfile.lock           # Locked Ruby versions
├── package.json           # Node.js dependencies
└── package-lock.json      # Locked Node versions

File Counts by Type

Python Scripts: 36 files
SASS Files: 11 files
JavaScript Modules: 8 files
HTML Includes: 7 files
Data Files: Multiple YAML files in _data/

17. External Integrations & APIs

Platform Integrations

GitHub: github.com/bjpl
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/brandonjplambert
Twitter: twitter.com/bjpl
Instagram/YouTube: Spanish learning accounts (data files)

No External APIs in Production

No third-party analytics
No payment processing
No external database connections
No cloud services (beyond GitHub Pages)

Architectural Decision: Minimal external dependencies reduce maintenance burden, improve reliability, and eliminate privacy concerns.

18. Content Management Architecture

Sveltia CMS Schema

Content Workflow

Edit: Via Sveltia CMS web interface
Commit: CMS commits to Git repository
Build: GitHub Pages rebuilds Jekyll site
Deploy: Automatic deployment to production

19. Design System & UI Architecture

Design Tokens (`_variables.scss`)

Color palette definitions
Typography scale
Spacing system
Breakpoint definitions

Component Library

Navigation: Responsive header with mobile menu
Gallery: Image grid with modal lightbox
Cards: Project and resource cards
Modals: Reusable dialog system
Forms: Contact form (static)
Typography: Heading hierarchy and text styles
Buttons: Primary, secondary, and link buttons
Tags: Technology tags with tooltips

Responsive Design

Design System File: design-system-pro.scss (15.5KB) provides a comprehensive professional design system.

20. Monitoring & Analytics

Current Status

No analytics configured (privacy-focused)
Placeholder: Google Analytics commented out
Alternative suggestion: Privacy-friendly analytics

Potential Monitoring (Not Implemented)

Google Analytics (traditional)
Plausible Analytics (privacy-friendly)
Fathom Analytics (privacy-friendly)
Simple Analytics (privacy-friendly)

Build Monitoring

GitHub Pages build status
Jekyll build logs (local development)

21. Documentation & Knowledge Management

Documentation Types

Knowledge Artifacts

Architecture Decision Records (implicit in code)
Configuration documentation (YAML comments)
Code comments (inline)
Template documentation (Liquid comments)

22. Third-Party Dependencies Summary

Ruby Gems (via Bundler)

Total: ~70 gems (via github-pages gem)
Primary: github-pages ~232 (includes Jekyll 3.10.0)
Plugins: Jekyll plugins (GitHub Pages whitelist)

Node.js Packages (via npm)

Total: ~700+ packages (including transitive dependencies)
Direct DevDependencies: 7 packages
Primary: Jest, ESLint, TypeScript, Prettier

Python Packages (via pip)

Total: 5 packages
Primary: aiohttp, pyyaml, pandas

Dependency Management:

Ruby: Gemfile.lock (locked versions)
Node.js: package-lock.json (locked versions)
Python: requirements.txt (minimum versions)

23. Architectural Patterns & Principles

Design Patterns

Clean Architecture Principles

Separation of Concerns: Content (YAML) vs. Presentation (HTML/CSS) vs. Behavior (JS)
Modularity: Component-based SASS and JavaScript
DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself): Reusable includes and layouts
Single Responsibility: Each file has a clear purpose
Open/Closed: Extensible through Jekyll plugins and includes

Development Methodology

SPARC: Specification, Pseudocode, Architecture, Refinement, Completion
TDD: Test-Driven Development (infrastructure ready)
AI-Assisted: Claude Code and MCP servers for orchestration
Swarm Intelligence: Multi-agent coordination for complex tasks

24. Performance Metrics & Benchmarks

Build Performance

Production Performance (Estimated)

Page Load Time: < 2 seconds (static HTML)
First Contentful Paint: < 1 second
Time to Interactive: < 2 seconds
Total Page Size: ~50-100KB (HTML + CSS + JS)
Image Optimization: Manual (no automatic optimization)

Performance Benefits:

Static HTML (pre-rendered)
No JavaScript framework overhead
Compressed CSS
CDN delivery (GitHub Pages)
Minimal HTTP requests

25. Scalability & Future-Proofing

Scalability Considerations

Technology Upgrade Path

Jekyll 4.x: Can upgrade with testing
Ruby 3.x: Already on Ruby 3.4.5
JavaScript Framework: Could add Svelte/Vue if needed
Build Tool: Could add Vite/Webpack if complexity grows
CMS Alternative: Sveltia CMS is modern, GitHub-based

Extensibility Points

Jekyll plugins (within GitHub Pages whitelist)
Custom JavaScript modules (already modular)
SASS component library (extensible)
Python utility scripts (easy to add)
MCP server integrations (AI capabilities)

26. Known Limitations & Constraints

GitHub Pages Constraints

Build Time: Limited to 10 minutes
Site Size: Soft limit of 1GB
Bandwidth: Soft limit of 100GB/month
Jekyll Plugins: Whitelist only (no custom plugins)
Ruby Version: Limited to GitHub Pages’ Ruby version

Technical Limitations

No Server-Side Logic: Static site only
No Real-Time Features: No WebSockets, no live updates
No User Authentication: Static site (except CMS admin)
No Forms Processing: Requires external service (Formspree, etc.)
No Database Queries: Build-time only

Development Constraints

Windows-Only Setup: Ruby/Jekyll on MSYS/MinGW
Python Scripts: Manual execution (not automated)
Testing: Infrastructure present but tests not written
CI/CD: Workflow disabled (manual deployment)

27. Recommendations & Next Steps

Immediate Improvements

Enable GitHub Actions: Activate the disabled Jekyll workflow
Write Tests: Implement Jest tests for JavaScript modules
Image Optimization: Add image compression pipeline
Form Backend: Integrate Formspree or similar for contact form
Analytics: Add privacy-friendly analytics (Plausible)

Technical Debt

TypeScript Migration: Gradual migration of JS to TS
Test Coverage: Achieve 80%+ code coverage
Documentation: Add JSDoc comments to JavaScript
Accessibility Audit: WCAG compliance review
Performance Audit: Lighthouse score optimization

Strategic Enhancements

Progressive Web App: Add service worker and manifest
Content API: Expose JSON API for headless use cases
Search Functionality: Add client-side search (lunr.js)
Multilingual: Expand beyond English/Spanish
Content Versioning: Add version history UI

28. Technology Decision Rationale

Why Jekyll?

GitHub Pages Native: Zero-configuration hosting
Ruby Ecosystem: Mature, stable, extensive plugin library
Liquid Templates: Powerful, secure templating
Academic/Portfolio Focus: Proven for this use case

Why No JavaScript Framework?

Performance: Vanilla JS is faster, smaller
Simplicity: No build complexity
Maintainability: Less framework churn
Learning: Pure JavaScript skills

Why Sveltia CMS?

GitHub-Based: Content in Git
Modern: Better UX than Netlify CMS
Open Source: Community-driven
No Backend: Static site compatible

Why Python Scripts?

Data Processing: Pandas/NumPy for analysis
Web Scraping: aiohttp for verification
Familiarity: Common in academic contexts
Ecosystem: Rich library support

29. Compliance & Standards

Web Standards Compliance

HTML5: Semantic, valid markup
CSS3: Modern CSS features
ECMAScript 6+: Modern JavaScript
WCAG 2.1: Accessibility (to be verified)
SEO Best Practices: Meta tags, sitemaps

Code Quality Standards

ESLint: JavaScript linting (configured)
Prettier: Code formatting (configured)
YAML Lint: (via editor plugins)
Markdown Lint: (via editor plugins)

Browser Support

Modern Browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge (latest versions)
Progressive Enhancement: Core functionality without JavaScript
Responsive Design: Mobile, tablet, desktop

30. Conclusion & Summary

Technology Stack Overview

The brandonjplambert project represents a modern, well-architected static site that balances simplicity with functionality. The technology choices reflect a pragmatic approach:

Static Site Generation (Jekyll): Leverages GitHub Pages for zero-cost hosting
Zero Framework Overhead: Vanilla JavaScript keeps bundle size minimal
Git-Based CMS: Sveltia CMS provides content management without databases
Python Utilities: Extensive scripting for data processing and verification
AI-Enhanced Development: MCP servers enable advanced AI-assisted workflows

Key Strengths

Performance: Static HTML with minimal JavaScript
Security: No server-side code, no database
Maintainability: Modular architecture, clear separation of concerns
Scalability: Static sites scale effortlessly
Cost: Free hosting via GitHub Pages
Developer Experience: Modern tooling with AI assistance

Technical Maturity

Production-Ready: Core site is stable and deployed
Testing Gap: Infrastructure present but tests needed
Documentation: Good component docs, could expand
CI/CD: Workflow disabled, needs activation
Monitoring: No analytics currently configured

Future-Proof Architecture

The technology choices position this project for long-term success:

Static site generation is a proven, stable approach
Vanilla JavaScript ages well (no framework dependencies)
Git-based content management provides flexibility
Jekyll’s maturity ensures stability
Modular architecture supports incremental improvements

Document Version: 1.0 Last Updated: 2025-10-12 Analyzed By: System Architecture Designer Total Technologies Documented: 50+ components across 30 categories

Appendix A: Quick Reference

Essential Commands

# Ruby/Jekyll
bundle install                  # Install Ruby dependencies
bundle exec jekyll serve       # Run local server
bundle exec jekyll build       # Build site

# Node.js
npm install                    # Install Node dependencies
npm test                       # Run tests
npm run lint                   # Lint JavaScript
npm run typecheck             # Type checking

# Python
pip install -r scripts/requirements.txt  # Install Python deps
python scripts/verification/complete_verification.py  # Run verification

# Claude Flow (SPARC)
npm run sparc:modes           # List SPARC modes
npm run swarm:init            # Initialize swarm

Key File Locations

Jekyll Config: _config.yml
CMS Config: admin/config.yml
MCP Config: .mcp.json
Ruby Deps: Gemfile, Gemfile.lock
Node Deps: package.json, package-lock.json
Python Deps: scripts/requirements.txt
SASS Entry: _sass/main.scss
JS Modules: assets/js/*.js

End of Technology Stack Analysis