MIT HCI Website

This is the Jekyll-powered website for the Human-Computer Interaction group at MIT CSAIL.

Development Setup

Prerequisites

Important: This project uses rbenv for Ruby version management to ensure all developers use the same Ruby version and avoid dependency conflicts.

1. Install rbenv (official instructions)

   # On macOS with Homebrew:
   brew install rbenv ruby-build
   
   # Add rbenv to your shell profile (.bashrc, .zshrc, etc.)
   echo 'export PATH="$HOME/.rbenv/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc
   echo 'eval "$(rbenv init -)"' >> ~/.zshrc
   
   # Restart your terminal or reload your profile
   source ~/.zshrc

2. Install the correct Ruby version

   # The .ruby-version file specifies Ruby 3.3.6
   rbenv install 3.3.6
   rbenv global 3.3.6  # or just cd into this directory

3. Install dependencies

   bundle install

Running the Development Server

# Serve with live reload (recommended for development)
bundle exec jekyll serve --livereload

# Or serve on all interfaces (useful for testing on other devices)
bundle exec jekyll serve --livereload --host 0.0.0.0

The site will be available at http://localhost:4000 with automatic browser refresh when you make changes.

Building for Production

bundle exec jekyll build

Content Management

This website uses Jekyll with data files for easy content management:

Adding Faculty or PhD Students

Edit the YAML files in _data/:

• _data/faculty.yml - Faculty and PI information
• _data/phds.yml - PhD students and PostDocs
• _data/groups.yml - Research group information

Adding Research Projects

Edit _data/research.yml to add new research projects with descriptions and example project links.

Adding Classes

Edit _data/classes.yml to add course information.

Adding Alumni

Edit _data/alumni.yml - organized by graduation year.

Site Structure

• Layouts: _layouts/ - Page templates
• Includes: _includes/ - Reusable components
• Data: _data/ - All content in YAML format
• Assets: assets/ - Images, CSS, and other static files

Why rbenv?

Ruby version management is crucial for Jekyll projects because:

• Different Ruby versions can cause gem compatibility issues
• Team members need consistent environments
• Deployment environments should match development
• The .ruby-version file ensures everyone uses Ruby 3.3.6

Troubleshooting

If you get Ruby version errors:

1. Check you have rbenv installed: which rbenv
2. Check Ruby version: ruby --version (should show 3.3.6)
3. Reinstall gems: bundle install

If Jekyll won't start:

1. Try bundle update
2. Make sure you're using bundle exec jekyll serve
3. Check for port conflicts (default port 4000)

Contributing

1. Make sure you're on the jekyll branch
2. Follow the rbenv setup above
3. Make your changes
4. Test locally with bundle exec jekyll serve --livereload
5. Commit and push your changes