The Truth
What I do goes by many names. Web designer, web programmer, software programmer, computer programmer. Adviser, consultant, friend, partner. Cheerleader. Boutique shop. Other.
What I really do is help you build your micro-startup by providing the most excellent and skilled business, technical, and design service you can buy. I'm a business guy and a programmer rolled into one. I've seen more crach'n'burns and more launches than anyone else you will meet. I have real experience, real stories, and a real desire to work with your new idea.
I run a team. I believe in close, collaborative relationships and no layers. If that sounds good to you, then you will like it here. You get the security of overlap, continuity, and multiple brains without the overhead and layers of a company. My programmers and project coordinators that share a common philosophy with me. I trust them with your project, and you should too.
My days are spent steering this boat. I make sure my ideas and the things I do have integrity. How exactly that is accomplished each day is always a new adventure for me, but I'm sure our paths will cross. I like to at least meet everyone for project kickoffs so that I can be thinking about your situation as I go through my day.
I'm just like you. I don't believe in huge budgets for my ideas, I don't have institutional or venture capital funding. I've been to the Valley. Talked to VC's. Presented at trade shows. Presented at developer conferences. Christened product launches. The truth? Total turn-off. It's a version of Hollywood. Fake and temporary. The money circulates among the people who already have it. The hopefuls literally flock to and crowd around the rich guys, hoping for a handout. If you think that is the way, you are lost.
Here is what I do instead: I tell you what I think, and I give you the same high quality software those guys would get. But I do it using a model of shared incremental success. Pay-as-you go pricing, experience, and open communication make your chances at success exceptional.
Management Services
- Application architecture
- Needs assessment
- Software infrastructure design
- Startup company core technology
Technical Services
- iPhone apps, widgets, and geocoding
- Widgets and embedding (mySpace, Facebook, SalesForce)
- Open Source web application design (RoR, PHP, Perl, Python)
- Microsoft application design (ASP.NET, C#, VB.NET)
- Rich Internet Applications (Flash, Flex, Silverlight)
- Maintenance, Triage and Emergency Engineering Assistance
- Server and database programming ("back-end programming")
Hot Trends
- iPhone
- Geocoding
- Ruby on Rails
- Facebook Applications
- Web 2.0 Widgets (OS X and Windows)
- Web-scale computing (Amazon EC2)
- Flash/database integration for interactive media applications
- E-commerce systems
- Survey and Market Research web applications
- Social networking systems
- ASP.NET component design
- Journaling database architectures
- Mobile web applications
- Microsoft Office Add-Ins
- XML web services
Technologies
I do not decline projects on the basis of technology alone. Here are some example technologies used on recent projects:- Operating System Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Microsoft DOS, Sun Solaris, Apple MacOS, OS X, iPhone OS, Newton, Linux kernel, Atari TOS/GEM, Java, Windows CE, PalmOS
- Database Platforms: Microsoft SQL Server 7, 2000+, Oracle 10G+, MySQL 3+, SQL Lite, XML data stores, YAML data stores
- Web 2.0 APIs: google, Facebook, Amazon AWS, mySpace, Flickr, eBay, Buy.com, and more
- Web services: SOAP, XML-RPC, COM
- Application Platforms: Ruby on Rails, cakePHP, Symphony, Akilos, ASP/ASP.NET/IIS, Mobile devices / WAP, Windows Forms (.NET), PHP/Zend, Python/Zope, Perl/Apache, Java, J2EE, J2ME
- Content Management System (CMS) frameworks: DotNetNuke, php-nuke, PostNuke, Drupal, Joomla, WordPress, more
- Languages: C, C++, C#, Objective C, BASIC, QBASIC, Visual Basic 4, 5, 6, Visual Basic .NET, Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), Embedded BASIC, Assembly (8080, i960, x86/Pentium, 68K, PPC, MIPS, Java Virtual Machine), PHP, Python, Perl, Ruby, Perl, Shell and batch languages, Java, JavaScript/JScript, Modula-2, Fortran, Common Lisp, Clarion, Flash ActionScript, whitespace, more