My Experience
I built my first website in 1999 using PHP 3.0 and HTML / CSS, and yes we used tables to layout the entire site. It was awful, and I can remember it taking a very long time. That was the start to my interest in building websites / apps.
I attended Oregon Institute of Technology for two years where I studied Software Engineering. I really loved the school and the teachers but didn’t care much for the area. I decided to transfer to Southern Oregon University and finish my degree. In my studies I learned Java, C, C++, PHP, HTML / CSS, VB, SQL. I spent a year abroad in Thailand, learning the language and traveling.
After I finished my degree I worked a freelancer, I built anything from websites to web apps for various clients. I built and founded my first agency and ran that for a few years, selling my ownership and moving onto working with helping Buzzwoo Asia create an office in Thailand. I worked with them for the next few years and then moved back the the US, freelancing until joining Zeal as a partner. I spent the next 5 years building this company from barely 10k in revenue to 7 figures over that time with three other partners.
My Core Values
- Agile principles
- Contribute to open source whenever possible
- Get better everyday, yesterdays code is already
Craftsmanship
A huge part of my time has been spent honing my craft in software development, I’ve taken that approach with everything I do now.
Apprenticeship program
I spearheaded the apprenticeship program at Zeal, we succesfully took recent graduates and rapidly leveled them up to be effective on our teams.
Mentoring & giving opportunities
I believe that as we gain more knowledge that we should also share the knowledge we have with those who are still learning.
The more you know, the more you know you don’t know. Artistotle (384 - 322 BC)
I have gotten here from all the generosity of all the people who shared tutorials, lessons, tips, tricks, and learnings online. I’m an avid self learner. I’m also here because of all the people who have contributed to open source efforts. I know I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for all the hard working developers contributing to OSS.
Technologies
These are just a few of the languages I know very well. I’ve dabbled in other languages but wouldn’t want to give the impression I’m competetant in them.
Programming Languages
- Ruby
- Javascript (Node, ES6/7)
- CSS / HTML / SCSS / Mustache
- PHP
- Elixir
- C# (Unity)
Frameworks
- Ruby on Rails
- Phoenix
- Laravel
- React
- React Native
- Express
- Svelte
- Next.js
- CSS frameworks (Bootstrap, Tailwindcss, etc)
Databases
- Postgresql
- Mysql
- MongoDB
Tools
- Git
- Zsh
- Linters
- Code quality tools
Dev ops
- Heroku
- CI builds
- Amazon Services
- Digital Ocean
- VPS custom deployments