about
$ whoami

About Me

Core Expertise

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I'm Shivam Karn, a student and self-taught MERN stack developer with a strong interest in backend development and system-level understanding. I work mostly with JavaScript, Node.js, Express, MongoDB, React, and Vite for building web apps.

Technical Foundation

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I've practiced real-world data structure problems like linked lists, stacks, and queues in JavaScript to improve my logic and performance. I've also explored C++ OOP concepts such as abstraction, polymorphism, and virtual functions with short, practical examples.

Backend Development

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On the backend, I use Node.js with Express.js, where I focus on building structured routes, clean controllers, and safe API handling. I know how to validate inputs using libraries like Zod or native destructuring, and I understand how authentication, middleware, and async error handling work.

DevOps & Tools

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For version control, I use Git and GitHub, including branch workflows for team collaboration. I've hosted projects on Vercel and linked them with custom domains. I also have basic experience with Linux systems like Mint and Arch, terminal usage, and performance tuning.

Continuous Learning

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I'm currently learning Neovim to improve coding speed and plan to master Vim motions for productivity. I'm also improving my typing speed toward a goal of 100+ WPM.

Design Philosophy

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I like creating interactive portfolio designs for example, terminal-style popups that respond to commands like whoami or shivamkarn. I focus on both functionality and small creative details that make user interaction fun.

GitHub Journey

Evolution of version control expertise and collaborative development

2023

Started using Git and GitHub

Initial exploration and setup

Git Basics
2023

Learned branching strategies

Understanding branch workflows

Git Flow
2024

Team collaboration workflows

Working with pull requests and code reviews

GitHub PR
2024

Published first project

Deployed production-ready application

Deployment
2024

Custom domain integration

DNS configuration and hosting

DNS & Hosting
2024

Vercel deployment pipeline

CI/CD automation setup

Vercel CI/CD
2024

Consistent commit practices

Semantic commits and documentation

Best Practices
2025

Advanced Git workflows

Rebasing, cherry-picking, and advanced operations

Advanced Git