Use Github Pages To Generate Blog

I. Introduction

Github is a code repository powerd by Git, we can put our project on Github. Github also provides us Github-Pages to generate personal blog. We can put our articles on it.

There is some advantages of Github Pages:

simple to deploy
Non-server requirement
Use Markup Language: Markdown
Can blind your domain name

And also some drawback with Pages:

Use Jekyll system , like static pages
No comment, no search function, but there will be some ways to figure it out
Based on Git, you need some background about this

II. Use Github to get your Github-Pages

Note that this tutorial based on Linux ubuntu distribution, other OS is similar.

1. Preparing work

You need some environment on your OS and some basic background as following:

Git
A Github account
Know how to connect to Github with a terminal

2. New a Github-Pages repository

Login your account on Github and click + new repository Remember the projectName!
Create a local folder on your disk, it’s better that the folder’s name is same as your repository
Open Terminal:
- change directory to your folder
```
cd /path/directory
```
- init the the git repository
```
git init
```
- create your site by using jekyll
Organize your site structure
- _includes: the folder consists the contents which the model can reference
- _layouts: the folder consists the common pages
- _posts: the folder consists the articles of blog
- _config.yml: the configuration of Jekyll model
- index.html: the default page
- You can follow my site structure on my Github: blog
Return your terminal
- save the modified in your local repository
```
 git add .
```
- commit your modified
```
 git commit -m " first post"
```
- Add a reference of remote repository to local repository
```
 git remote add orgin https://github.com/username/projectName.git
```
- push your commit, after it will let you input Username and password
```
 git push origin master
```
- After push, open a browser, and type the URL as follow:
```
 http://username.github.io
```
  you will see your blog in the website

III. Bind a domain name

First your should have a domain name, I would recommand to register one in Godaddy. Let’s suppose that you have example.org

Go to your DNS Manager or DNS provider, we need to set the A record and CName here. As to what is A record and what is CName, please google it. My DNS manager is provided by Linode, So here I will use Linode DNS manager as example.

Go to Linode DNS manager, first your should create a domain zone with example.org
Edit your domain done, in A/AAAA Records section, add the following ip addresses by add new A record:

192.30.252.153
192.30.252.154

Then go to CNAME Records section, Add new CNAME record:

Hostname: blog
Aliases to: username.github.io
TTL: Default

Save the changes in your domain zone, now we need to check your domain name by using

dig username.github.io +nostats +nocomments +nocmd
dig blog.example.org +nostats +nocomments +nocmd

if you see something like

➜  ~ dig zhengshuaipeng.github.io +nostats +nocomments +nocmd

; <<>> DiG 9.10.4-P1 <<>> zhengshuaipeng.github.io +nostats +nocomments +nocmd
;; global options: +cmd
;zhengshuaipeng.github.io.	IN	A
zhengshuaipeng.github.io. 2610	IN	CNAME	github.map.fastly.net.
github.map.fastly.net.	15	IN	A	185.31.19.133
➜  ~ dig blog.lovian.org +nostats +nocomments +nocmd

; <<>> DiG 9.10.4-P1 <<>> blog.lovian.org +nostats +nocomments +nocmd
;; global options: +cmd
;blog.lovian.org.		IN	A
blog.lovian.org.	21599	IN	CNAME	zhengshuaipeng.github.io.
zhengshuaipeng.github.io. 2583	IN	CNAME	github.map.fastly.net.
github.map.fastly.net.	5	IN	A	185.31.18.133

your setting should be okay.

now blog.example.org should be binded to usernamae.github.io. Next we need to go to your site folder, create a new file CNAME, add blog.example.org
In your _config.ymlfile, you should add following code:

url: blog.example.org
domain: example.org

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Zhengshuai PENG

Use Github Pages To Build a Personal Blog