Update on my job

I've been working at Analyzer for over two months now so I have a routine going and a small understanding of how it functions. One of the things I am beginning to appreciate more and more is the freedom in this job. Although we are encouraged to show initiative, we don't get pressured to be constantly busy. I have also been putting my efforts into an inventory program that I mentioned before.

This inventory program has been a bulk of what I have done at Analyzer. It's an simple inventory program now that we are using to keep in check the equipment that we maintain for our clients. While simple, the program has a great potential for being a tool that will enhance our performance in the field. It's not just a inventory control system. It's an interface that can keep us informed anywhere.

I have used open source tools to create this web application. It will provide its services over the web for browsers and mobile devices. That is where my efforts are. I have learned a lot because of this. I am mostly working by myself on this program. My colleagues are acting as concurrent developers or giving input. Learning how to format and populate a mobile web page is one of many things I had to figure out how to do for this application. It's been a very rounded work experience.

LAMP Web Application

I've found employment at a small IT firm in Waikiki that services businesses as their own IT department. It's been a different experience compared to programming. My employers do value my programming background though. They've started to discuss what they would want to build in terms of software tools for the company and also for their clients. One of these projects is a web application that would require a web server and code to drive the service.

I have never worked with servers before. LAMP (Linux, Apache, Mysql, PHP) was unfamiliar to me. I had used PHP, Sql server and Apache before, but never a Linux server. It's been a very interesting experience for me. On one side, I want to dive into the project. But I also need to look at this as a project manager. My co-worker has a more firm mind when it comes to project management. She reminded me that we should look at all the alternatives for the type of server OS to use, as well as the programming language. One of the most promising and cheaper choices, Ubuntu, jumped out at me immediately. I decided to follow my co-workers prudence in researching further to determine the correct tools for this project. Nevertheless, we found some information that confirmed our assumption in using Ubuntu to create a LAMP type of setup.

LAMP is used by many companies to host content and it is also the most widely used open source setup for developers. An even more inviting detail is that Ubuntu bundles all the packages needed to get a LAMP setup going very quickly.

As of today September 18, 2011, we are at a preliminary stage of development. My co-worker and I have both setup stations to work on a LAMP Ubuntu server. Everything is ready for us to start developing.

Since this is my first time in creating an application on this framework, I am still learning the nuances of Linux and also for Mysql. At the same time I am very excited, because this was what I was working toward in college. It feels good to know that despite my overall duties at Analyzer-USA, I am also putting my programming background to use.

image from techtickle.com

New Blog: Computer User Essentials

Since my last blog posting, I've been trying to create an Android app game. I've learned a lot from just the development process. A lot of things still haven't been done. The content development process is the most strenuous it seems. Creating art for the game is quite challenging. I've done coding before, but creating something that is fun and good to look at to compliment the game is quite a feat. I think this project will have to be an ongoing process.

Meanwhile, I've started a blog. Unlike this one, I've decided to take a try at creating a website that people would actually would want to visit. This site called Computer User Essentials is hosted by blogger, so technically it's a blog within a site. I've been trying to generate some promotion and connections to this site by pitching solutions to different forums and submitting the blog to different blog directories. The content that I provide is for people who want to learn the basics of the internet and also how to use it effectively. Some of the articles I've written so far are solutions to problems people regularly have. Although some of the answers not entirely original, I've been able to link my articles in forums in order give solutions to those who are asking for them. I think that will be a great benefit to everyone.

I plan on continuing to write this blog for quite awhile in order to learn about internet marketing and generating content. Even now at the beginning, I already see that it's a big undertaking and that people who write blogs for a living certainly have to be quite dedicated.