How can I bridge linear algebra theory with practical software development?

[DavidS]

I'm a computer science student taking a required linear algebra course, and while I understand the mechanical steps for operations like matrix multiplication and finding determinants, I'm struggling to grasp the underlying geometric intuition and how these concepts translate to real-world applications in my field, like computer graphics or machine learning. The abstract proofs and notation feel disconnected from the programming problems I usually solve, making it difficult to stay motivated or see the relevance beyond passing the exam. For those who use linear algebra professionally, especially in software development, how did you build a stronger conceptual understanding of topics like vector spaces, eigenvalues, and transformations? What resources or project-based learning approaches helped you bridge the gap between the theoretical math and its practical implementation in algorithms or data analysis?