Technical

• Over twenty years of experience as a software technical lead and project manager.
• Author of QED, the Quadcap Embeddable Database, a pure Java implementation of a SQL92 RDBMS and JDBC driver.
• World class Java development skills; considerable experience using Java for development of client-server applications.
• Significant experience with Internet standard application level protocols, including development of servers and/or clients for HTTP, SMTP, POP3, NNTP, IMAP4, LDAP, and ACAP.
• Extensive experience with software revision control systems: Perforce, SourceSafe, CVS, ClearCase, NSE, CMVC, sccs, and rcs.
• Considerable C++ development experience, using C++ in heterogeneous networked environments including HP, SGI, Sun, and IBM workstations, PCs under Windows NT, Windows 2000, and Linux, and IBM mainframes running AIX, VM, and MVS.
• Strong skills with Perl, Tcl/Tk, Javascript, PHP, and other 'tool integration' languages.

Leadership

• Exceptional leadership skills. Respected for achievements, fairness, and integrity.
• Excellent writing and presentation skills.
• Experienced in all aspects of the team software development process, including:
  • Functional specifications and design specifications.
  • Code reviews and walk-throughs.
  • Scheduling and project planning.
  • Software test techniques and other aspects of quality assurance.

Quality

• Consistently ranked first in my organization for superior achievement.
• Always the most productive developer, in terms of debugged lines of code delivered.

Areas of Interest

• Languages, language design and implementation. tiny languages.
• Distributed systems, peer-to-peer systems, protocols.
• Agents, active datastores.
• Formal verification and symbolic model checking.
• Natural language, conceptual modelling, knowledge representation.
• Games of chance. Games. Simulation.

Quadcap Software

1996 - present

San Jose, California President and CEO of Quadcap Software, a privately held corporation specializing in Java and Web-based application technology.

As the single developer and chief bottle washer at Quadcap, I have developed a suite of Web application development tools that include: QED, a pure-Java SQL92 RDBMS embedded within a standard JDBC driver. QED has been deployed by customers such as IBM Tivoli, Together Teamlösungen, Nebraska State Department of Roads, and others, and continues to attract interest as a lightweight, but fully capable SQL engine with excellent performance, available with commercial support for a reasonable price. I'm proud of this accomplishment, and of the reputation for excellent support which I have developed. QWS, a pure-Java servlet container and JSP engine. A suite of web applications built using servlets and JSP pages: A web-based bug-tracking application. A simple browser-based image database. A SQL console for managing QED backups, performing database queries, and other administrative functions. QMS, the Quadcap Mail Server (unpublished), used internally for handling email for quadcap.com, bailes.org, and balletgems.com domains. JPP, a Java pre-processor which adds support for compile-time code generation and selection. QXP, a novel dynamic-code generation application which generates SAX parsers/transformers using a simple template mechanism and Java actions. Quadcap VSETs: a relational-style tuple based API and implementation intended for knowledge representation structures such as KIF (Knowledge Interchange Format) and CGIF. I'm using VSETs together with QXP as a web application platform for real-world applications such as the backend support for my online webstore at balletgems.com, including the product catalog, order database, customer and contact database, and more. Other applications developed using this platform include an MP3-streaming application which dynamically adjusts to the listener's preferences to deliver a customized playlist based on user feedback. QAP, the Quadcap Anonymous Peer: a prototype peer-to-peer network using strong cryptography, intended to support anonymous browsing, email, and file sharing. Various programming support tools, including tools to analyze Java 'hprof' files and generate HTML pages containing Java source code annotated with profiling information, tools to facilitate mass search and replace operations on an entire source tree, etc. Much more. Quadcap has been an incubator for new ideas and novel technological approaches, some of which are still in the early stages.

Ballet Gems

2003 - present

San Jose, California Ballet Gems produces and markets Ballerina Paper Dolls and note cards based on original watercolor art by Mary Ellen Moylan Hanks

As the owner of Ballet Gems, I've been responsible for all aspects of business development, including the following: Designed and produced a line of note cards based on Mary Ellen's original watercolors. Designed and developed the Ballet Gems website, using PHP/MySQL on the site, together with a customized back-office system based on Quadcap technology. Produced flyers, cards, and other marketing collateral to promote Ballet Gems products in dance apparel stores and card shops. Developed SVG-based tools for print layout, using Quadcap QXP technology and the open-source Batik SVG rasterizer toolkit. Pushed browser technology to (beyond, actually ;-) its limits, using HTML + CSS to do print layout for the second run of notecards.

Liberate Technologies

1997 - 2002

San Carlos, California Liberate Technologies is a startup company developing Internet-based technology for the interactive television market

Developed TVInfo (aka EPG) server application using Java servlets and JDBC. Application reads listing data in various formats, provides schema-based verification and translation of this data and generates DVB-SI format data for digital TV head-end insertion. Developed Liberate's first TVChat prototype application -- a full end-to-end server and client architecture. Designed a two-way persistent HTTP-like protocol, MHTTP, and implemented a scalable server architecture for MHTTP-based messaging. Implemented an engineering mockup of the client UI using Javascript/HTML. Played an architectural and performance tuning role in other Java-based application servers: TVMail and TVChat. Developed the HTTP server used by the Liberate TVMail gateway. These servers are in production in several European deployments, with an excellent performance and stability record. Performed engineering support functions during deployment at customer sites in Europe, at UPC (Vienna and Amsterdam), and CWC (London). Interfaced with on-site customer engineers and developers to solve several critical deployment "blockers". Developed DTV client Javascript plugin to access MPEG SI data. Profiled and optimized Javascript interpreter implementation. Invented and implemented XDB, a small-footprint, compressed datastore to support EPG applications on low-end STBs; XDB features excellent compression characteristics, dynamically extensible XML-based schemas, and a novel approach to MPEG SI stream parsing and compression, using a tiny (Forth-inspired) micro interpreter to permit easy implementation of "unforeseen" application upgrades, even after deployment.

Visto

1996 - 1997

Mountain View, California Visto is a startup company developing Web-based applications for roaming users.

Prototyped Web-based email application, using SMTP and HTTP protocols. Developed final application as a Web interface to an IMAP4 mail server using Java servlets. Researched client-preference data storage mechanisms, including ACAP and LDAP. Prototyped both ACAP and LDAP servers in Java. Designed and implemented a directory API for use by Visto directory-enabled applications. Developed Tcl-based scripted tests of the Visto Web applications. Designed and implemented much of the Java-based Visto Web server infrastructure.

Envive

1996

Los Altos, California Envive was a startup company developing high-availability solutions for distributed systems. (Envive was purchased by Keynote Systems in 2002.)

Designed and implemented the Envive Application Framework, a set of distributed communication C++ classes used by all monitor and diagnostic agents in the Envive HA system. Features of the Application Framework include: portability across NT and Unix, RPC functionality, Publish/Subscribe based event management, timers, SNMP compatibility, etc. Provided technical leadership. As an example, I initiated and led code reviews of the entire project during a two week period in July. This uncovered numerous problems and contributed directly to our ability to deliver a quality first release of the HA product. Miscellaneous: Provided tools and tool support. Installed g++, Perl, Tcl/Tk, innd, strn, ghostview and others. Developed cross-platform build strategy. Performed final integration of the 1.0 release. Developed Tk-based GUI for monitoring the Envive HA system.

Parallel

1994-1995

Parallel Cupertino California || Parallel || was a start-up company creating advanced distributed computing technology.

Led the implementation of Summon, an advanced system for building distributed enterprise data models and other groupware applications: Designed an object-oriented, Forth-derived language, Mystical, and implemented the Summon runtime, a multi- threaded interpreter with TCP/IP networking and DDE support. Also implemented the .XLS ==> Mystical translator/compiler.

Silicon Graphics

1993-1996

Mountain View, California Silicon Graphics is the industry leader in high performance graphic workstations

Developed formal verification methodology for verification of SGI's Origin 2000 distributed shared memory multiprocessor system. Created a tool set that supports symbolic model checking and symbolic trajectory evaluation techniques as well as logic synthesis and high speed simulation for Verilog HDL- based designs. Provided hardware emulation for design verification of a new SGI workstation. Developed emulation model-build procedures and worked with the logic designers on prototype debugging under emulation.

SuperComputer Systems, Inc.

1989-1993

SuperComputer Systems, Inc. Eau Claire, Wisconsin SSI was engaged in a project to build the world's fastest supercomputer

Architected and led the implementation of the SS-1 Maintenance Software System, MSS. This system provided a unified tool set for chip, board, and system-level test. This software was delivered on-time, with a high quality level -- all system diagnostic tests, and UNIX boot, were accomplished within nine days of prototype power-on. Identified a series of problems with the chip release to manufacturing process. I took the initiative to design and implement a hardware-design release and archival system, substantially improving the data integrity and reproducibility of the process. I worked with the engineering and manufacturing release groups to get them to buy in to the new methodology. Developed a library and set of applications to integrate VM and MVS-based applications into the UNIX/C++ environment, using Sunlink 3270 and TCP/IP.

Burroughs / Unisys

1982-1989

Tredyffrin, PA Unisys is an industry leader in many segments of the commercial data processing market. Tredyffrin is the home of the A-series mainframe product line.

Designed the architecture and led the implementation of the maintenance software system for the A12, A15, A16, A17, and A19 mainframe computers. Supported this system for engineering, manufacturing, and field sites, with a high quality level, and on-time delivery of key components. Developed a compiler for the internal diagnostic language IDA that generated code for the on-board scan control microprocessor in the A12/A17 mainframes. This compiled approach to diagnostic functions reduced diagnostic run-time by ten times or more. Directed the effort to retarget this compiler for the A16/A19 project.

I've developed a fair amount of software in this category, including:

• A blackjack simulator, written in C++, designed to experiment with different playing strategies, and to use Monte Carlo methods to determine optimal count-based playing and betting strategies for blackjack variants and blackjack-like games.
• A shuffle tracking visualizer, written in Tcl/Tk, which takes a formal description of a shuffle algorithm and renders a post-shuffle view of the cards in the shoe, along with the correlation between the ace-ten density of the pre and post-shuffle regions.
• A Texas Holdem poker-playing simulation framework, with interactive and algorithmic components; useful as a beginner's practice trainer. Notable for the high-speed hand evaluator; faster than any published code at the time it was developed (1996).
• A generic flashcard-like training program, used originally to help memorize blackjack strategies; this software ultimately morphed into a JSP page to help my home-schooled kids learn their multiplication tables.

Rochester Institute of Technology

Graduated 1982

Rochester, NY Degree: B. Tech

Major: Computer Science, GPA: 3.9/4.0 Awards: Outstanding Undergraduate Scholar Favorite project: the Pascal Interactive Student Simulator, a Pascal interpreter combined with an editor, written in C using the venerable lex and yacc; used at RIT by subsequent generations of CS students. Challenged (i.e., credit-by-exam) numerous classes while at RIT, including the dreaded "Sorting and Searching" class. I already had Knuth volume 3 under my belt before I arrived at RIT...