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Rodney Gitonga
Rodney Gitonga

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New Year, New You Portfolio Challenge

#devchallenge #googleaichallenge #portfolio #gemini

New Year, New You Portfolio Challenge Submission

This is a submission for the New Year, New You Portfolio Challenge Presented by Google AI(https://dev.to/challenges/new-year-new-you-google-ai-2025-12-31)

About Me
I am an Engineer, Analyst, and Builder working at the intersection of analytical rigor and creative engineering.

My philosophy is simple: "Data is the question. Code is the answer."

I don't just write scripts, I architect clarity. In a world drowning in noise, I build systems that filter, process, and visualize the signal. I built this portfolio to move beyond a generic resume and create a digital identity that truly reflects my "T-shaped" skillset—deep in Data/backend, but capable of beautiful, interactive Frontend work.

Portfolio

How I Built It
I wanted a site that felt fast, premium, and "alive," so I avoided heavy frameworks and stuck to high-performance Vanilla HTML/CSS/JS with a "Neo-Dark" aesthetic.

Tech Stack:

  • Frontend: HTML5, CSS3 (Glassmorphism), JavaScript (ES6+).

  • Visualization: Custom HTML5 Canvas for the hero animation and Chart.js for the skills radar.

  • Infrastructure: Dockerized Nginx server.

  • Deployment: Google Cloud Run via Cloud Build.
    The Google AI Workflow: I used Gemini as my pair programmer throughout this process. It was instrumental in:

  • Design System: Helping me define the "Neo-Dark" color palette and glassmorphism tokens.

  • Complex Logic: Writing the initial math for the "Data Constellation" particle system in the hero section.

  • Cloud Deployment: Debugging tricky IAM permission errors (roles/cloudbuild.builds.builder) during the Google Cloud Run deployment, turning hours of troubleshooting into a 5-minute fix.
    What I'm Most Proud Of:

  • The "Data Constellation" Hero: Instead of a static image, I built an interactive network of connecting nodes that reacts to the mouse. It perfectly symbolizes my work—connecting data points to create meaning.

  • The Skills Radar: I ditched the boring list of bullet points for a dynamic, data-driven Radar Chart that visualizes my balance between "Analytics," "DevOps," and "Programming."

  • Containerized Deployment: This isn't just a static bucket upload; it's a fully containerized Nginx application running on Google Cloud Run. It scales automatically and loads instantly.

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