Hello,

My name is Jared and this is my website. I’m a software developer living and working in Chicago, IL. I gave up the good life of sunshine and beaches in California 5 years ago for the freakishly indecisive and extreme weather of Chicago. However, Chicago is by far one of the greatest cities in the world, so I guess I can live with that. I’m a software engineer living and working in San Francisco, CA. I moved here after spending a few years working as a consultant in Chicago, IL. I currently work at a start-up called Dynamic Signal.

The site serves two purposes for me.

1. I believe in giving back to the software community. I cannot count the number of people who have helped me along in my career. A few of them were incredibly smart and giving business people and developers that mentored me and helped me grow professionally. But most of them were just anonymous bloggers and coders offering some token of life-saving advice, or a free tool that solved an issue or dazzled the client. These organic, symbiotic relationships are what make the world of computer science awesome and help us all grow into better developers. I’d like to start being part of it.
2. Secondly, I’d like to help bridge the gap between techies and normal people. I believe information technology is a lot like math for most people – we hope that it works, get pissed when it doesn’t comply with us, and fear ever having to tinker with it ourselves. But like math, if you understand some basics, your life will be easier and more importantly you will make a bigger impact. Technology is everywhere, you’d be stupid to ignore it. Don’t get excited – I’m not expecting to work miracles here, but I would like people more informed.

Now for the disclaimer: It should be known that my code and advice are not guaranteed to be perfect nor are they applicable to all situations. They are based on my own experiences. It should also be known that unless I site someone in my post, my writings reflect my own thoughts and opinions. They do not represent my employer.

That being said, I hope you enjoy my site. Thanks for reading.

Jared