LearnLog - Django Blog Platform

A full-featured blog website built with Django 5.2.4, featuring user authentication, blog management, comments, tags, categories, and social features like following other users.

Features

User Management

• Custom User Model with profile pictures
• User registration and authentication
• Profile management (update info, change password, profile picture)
• Follow/Unfollow system
• User information pages showing posts and followers

Blog Features

• Rich Text Editor integration with CKEditor
• Create, read, update, and delete blog posts
• Blog banners/images
• Categories and tags system
• Search functionality (by title, category, author, tags)
• Comment system with nested replies
• Like system for posts
• Pagination for blog listings
• Related posts suggestions

Navigation & Organization

• Home page with featured blog carousel
• Blog listing page with pagination
• Category-based filtering
• Tag-based filtering
• Search functionality
• Sidebar with recent posts, categories, and tag clouds

Technology Stack

• Backend: Django 5.2.4
• Database: SQLite3 (development)
• Rich Text Editor: django-ckeditor 6.7.3
• Image Processing: Pillow 11.3.0
• Frontend: Bootstrap, jQuery, Owl Carousel
• Authentication: Django built-in auth system

Installation

1. Clone the repository

git clone <your-repo-url>
cd blog_website

2. Create a virtual environment

python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

3. Install dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

4. Run migrations

python manage.py migrate

5. Create a superuser

python manage.py createsuperuser

6. Collect static files

python manage.py collectstatic

7. Run the development server

python manage.py runserver

8. Visit http://127.0.0.1:8000/ in your browser

Project Structure

blog_website/
├── blog_website/          # Project settings
│   ├── settings.py
│   ├── urls.py
│   └── wsgi.py
├── blogs/                 # Blog app
│   ├── models.py         # Blog, Category, Tags, Comment, Reply models
│   ├── views.py          # Blog views
│   ├── forms.py          # Blog forms
│   └── urls.py
├── user_profile/         # User management app
│   ├── models.py         # Custom User and Follow models
│   ├── views.py          # Auth and profile views
│   ├── forms.py          # User forms
│   └── managers.py       # Custom user manager
├── templates/            # HTML templates
├── assets/              # Static files (CSS, JS, images)
└── media/               # User uploaded files

Key Models

User

• Extended from Django's AbstractUser
• Additional fields: profile_image, followers
• Custom manager for user creation

Blog

• Fields: title, slug, banner, description, category, tags, user, like
• Auto-generates slug from title
• Rich text description using CKEditor

Category

• Simple categorization for blogs
• Auto-generates slug

Tags

• Many-to-many relationship with blogs
• Auto-generates slug

Comment & Reply

• Hierarchical comment system
• Comments on blogs, replies on comments

Follow

• User following system
• Track followers and following relationships

Configuration

Debug Mode

Currently set to DEBUG = False for production. For development, change in settings.py:

DEBUG = True

Allowed Hosts

ALLOWED_HOSTS = ["localhost", "127.0.0.1", "learnlog.pythonanywhere.com"]

Media Files

• Media files are stored in media/ directory
• Profile images: media/profile_images/
• Blog banners: media/blog_banners/

Admin Panel

Access the admin panel at /admin/ with your superuser credentials to:

• Manage users
• Create/edit categories and tags
• Moderate blogs and comments
• View follow relationships

URL Routes

Main Routes

• / - Home page
• /blogs/ - All blogs with pagination
• /blog_details/<slug>/ - Individual blog post
• /search_blogs/ - Search results
• /category_blogs/<slug>/ - Category-filtered blogs
• /tag_blogs/<slug>/ - Tag-filtered blogs

User Routes

• /login/ - User login
• /register/ - User registration
• /logout/ - User logout
• /profile/ - User profile management
• /my_blogs/ - User's own blogs
• /add_blog/ - Create new blog
• /update_blog/<slug>/ - Edit blog
• /view_user_information/<username>/ - Public user profile

Usage

Creating a Blog Post

1. Login to your account
2. Navigate to "Add Blog" from your profile
3. Fill in the blog details:
   • Title
   • Category
   • Description (with rich text formatting)
   • Banner image
   • Tags (comma-separated)
4. Click "Add" to publish

Managing Your Blogs

1. Go to "My Blogs" from your profile
2. View all your published blogs
3. Edit or delete any blog post
4. Track comments and engagement

Following Users

1. Visit any user's profile by clicking their username
2. Click "Follow" to follow them
3. View their posts and updates
4. Unfollow anytime from their profile

Deployment Notes

The project is configured for deployment on PythonAnywhere:

• Static files served from /static/
• Media files served from /media/
• SECRET_KEY should be moved to environment variables for production
• Database should be upgraded to PostgreSQL for production

Security Considerations

⚠️ Important: Before deploying to production:

1. Change the SECRET_KEY in settings.py
2. Set DEBUG = False
3. Configure proper ALLOWED_HOSTS
4. Use environment variables for sensitive data
5. Set up HTTPS
6. Configure proper CSRF settings

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: Static files not loading

python manage.py collectstatic --clear

Issue: Database errors

python manage.py migrate --run-syncdb

Issue: CKEditor not appearing

• Ensure {{form.media}} is in your template
• Check that static files are properly configured

Future Enhancements

• Email notifications for comments
• Blog post drafts
• Social media sharing
• Blog post scheduling
• Advanced analytics
• Multiple image uploads per blog
• Video embedding support
• Export blogs to PDF

Contributing

Feel free to submit issues and enhancement requests!

License

Copyright 2025 - All rights reserved

Contact

• Facebook: mdnaimurrahman36
• LinkedIn: mdnaimurrahman36

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Built with ❤️ using Django