Resume

While I am currently not looking for a new position, I’m always interested in new opportunities. If what you see interests you, please do contact me. I’m even willing to relocate for the golden opportunity.

Cover Letter

Since 1997 I have worked for an international bank, beginning as a consultant and being hired full time in February 1999, specifically for the Y2K push. Since then I have had the opportunity to work on a myriad of other projects, and been able to advance my skills and talents with understanding code, by learning the underlying infrastructure and framework.

I am interested in moving beyond supporting code written by other companies, and would like to create. While I have copious support experience, I also have many times been asked to, and was capable of picking up new software tools and mastering them with a minimum of formal training. I can work as a technical writer, and I am skilled at explaining technical information to non-technical people. The majority of my work has been on Windows, however I am self-trained in Macintosh and Linux Red Hat, and fully capable of learning new operating systems. I can work both in the corporate world and a mom-and-pop shop with equal ease and enthusiasm.

I enjoy challenges and am looking for an environment that would both foster my creativity and expand my knowledge of the computing world. I am a dedicated and responsible worker, respectful of my employers, and reliable to come to work on-time. I can be trusted to work off-site and still get the job done on time, as well as be available via IM or phone during work hours. I have interests outside of work, which provide a healthy balance in my life, and I am conscientious of my coworkers and respectful of our differences.

Work History

Introduced to the computers in the days of dedicated terminals and Novation CAT modems, I have experienced the growth of the internet as a location for tools as well as information, and been a part of online communities where conversing with people across the world became the norm. Well aquatinted with web development, both professionally and personally, I have been designing webpages since the early 1990s, and am self trained in PHP, SQL, HTML, ASP. I have used Front Page, Adobe Photoshop, Final Cut Pro and other multimedia tools for Macintosh and Windows. I have installed and maintained many web-based community environments, such as PHPNuke, Drupal, MediaWiki, Invision Power Board, Simple Machines Forums, phpBB, Soho, Gallery, bbPress, Woopra, WordPress, BuddyPress, TinyMU, MUX, iWeb, and Movable Type. I have designed personal pages for sites such as LiveJournal and MySpace. I have also developed plugins for opensource projects, such as bbPress and WordPress, and integrated Gravatar with WordPress and bbPress to provide additional tracking information for Woopra, a third party application.

I have a solid knowledge of the issues with Windows desktops, as well as the general usage and support of Macintosh OS X and ‘Classic’ (8 and 9), and I have more than a passing familiarity with Unix/Linux command line interfaces. I have used a wide variety of scripting tools, including but not limited to VBS, InstallScript, Perl (CGI), and DOS. I have installed content management systems on web servers, as well as built and configured Red Hat Linux servers from the ground up via the command line. I am highly adaptable, I learn quickly, and I am open to new challenges. I have performed user support and know how to relate highly technical information to non-technical people, and have written articles for an inter-office email newsletter on technology as well as maintaining precise and up to date documentation of any project I work on.

Most recently I have worked for an international bank since April, 1997 as a software engineer and third level support technician, working to install, configure and test PCs for Y2K, disaster recovery and daily use. I have assisted in the creation of a standard workstation image for Windows NT, 2000 and XP, to facilitate deployment of these operating systems throughout the bank. I implemented a Citrix environment in the bank, specifically in configuring our existing applications to function correctly within Citrix, as well as providing second and third level support for our users. I returned to a former team to act as senior technician for the XP deployment strategy, certifying deployable MSI packages for XP, while supporting NT and 2000, as well as migrating installs to be used on XP, while supporting a testing lab, which includes Macintosh operating systems, and requires hardware upgrades. Most recently I have supported and led development of installing home-grown software onto application servers for in-house use as well as the partner front end. Through the use of project management tools such as PVCS and HP’s Project and Portfolio Manager, I automated much of our day to day work to allow us to support developers directly and address their needs within our environment.

Additional Information:

I’ve also worked for a family owned dance wear company doing inventory and stocks, a restaurant waitress and hostess, and I’ve even spent a few summers on a farm and doing home repair. I have performed voice over work and acted in plays as well as doing a small spot on a local PBS station. I have worked lighting coordination, costume design and set design for small theater productions. In 2008, I took a two week trip to Japan, where I walked to 23 temples in the Awa Prefecture, as part of the Shikoku Pilramage called O’Henro.

I firmly believe in supporting communities and strive to buy local, as well as give back to the on-line communities that have helped me develop my skills, by volunteering support in the WordPress forums, among other places. Currently, in my free time, I am learning French.