On this page I would like to talk about a few of the skills that I have that I think would benefit a business or organization. I’ve narrowed it down to just a few items to keep the page shorter. If you would like to get a better insight to my skills then I would encourage you to take a look at my tech blog.

Blogging

Blogging is one of the best ways that a business or organization can interact with their audience. If you currently have a static website and you add a blog to it and update it regularly, the people who would normally only visit your website for contact or product information may want to visit your site on a regular basis. Not only do I understand the benefits of blogging, I know how to set up a blog using WordPress, Nucleus CMS or Drupal.

Web Design

For the past several years I have been designing and developing many websites. I have taken entire projects on my own, designed, developed and implemented them. A client usually comes to me with the need for a website, they tell me the required functionality for their website and I begin working on the project immediately. Once I have got the project to a point where I feel comfortable showing it to a client, I will show it to them and get their approval to continue. Once the website is completed I am usually also responsible for publishing it and maintaining it.

I have been using HTML and CSS to design and develop the majority of my projects. Recently I have been using more advanced technologies such as PHP and MySQL in conjunction with content management systems such as WordPress, Nucleus CMS and Drupal.

My tools of the trade include, but are not limited to: Adobe (formerly Macromedia) Dreamweaver for coding websites and Adobe Fireworks for graphics for website projects. I am familiar with several free and open source web design tools, however the Adobe products remain to be my favorite for getting the job done.

I have received certification as a Master CIW Designer and I also received a diploma from TTCH with the title of Master Site Designer.

WordPress

WordPress is one of the best content management systems (CMS) I have ever had the privilege of using. It’s quick and easy to set up but more importantly, it’s easy for the user. Using WordPress, anyone can have a website very quickly. I have set up several websites using the WordPress CMS. The type of sites I have used WordPress for include: podcasts, blogs and static websites. I know how to install the software, I know how to keep it secure from hackers as well as how to keep it backed up. I can also create custom designed themes.

Linux

For the past several years I have been using Linux. I have used many different distributions that were based on Debian, Slackware and RedHat Linux. My Linux distribution of choice is Fedora Core. I prefer Fedora due to the fact that it is a RedHat based distribution and I am more comfortable with that environment. I can use the command line to install RPM packages or to install software from the YUM repositories. Using Linux I have set up a XAMPP Server, LTSP server and file server.

Podcasting

I know how to edit audio using Audacity and convert the audio to an appropriate format for publication. I also know how to create an RSS feed and use services such as FeedBurner, iTunes and other syndication services.

Video Blogging

I know how to take video content and get it published onto the web. I know how to take a video that is in one format and convert it to another. I know how to publish that video onto the web in a variety of formats and in different feeds so that a user can subscribe to a feed that has the content in their preferred file format. I also know how to publish that video onto a blog so that viewers can leave their comments.

Virtualization

I use virtualization for a variety of tasks. I have a virtual machine set up that has a web server running on it. I also have a virtual machine that is running the Linux Terminal Server Project so that two old client machines can connect to the virtual machine and get their desktop. These two virtual machines are usually always running in the background of my main desktop machine. I use VMware Server to accomplish this. I like using VMware Server because I can also connect to the virtual machines from another computer using the VMware Server Console. I can also have those two virtual machines start up when the host operating system starts up

I also use virtualization to test out different distributions of Linux. Instead of installing them onto the hard drive and potentially have to re-format my hard drive, I like to use virtualization as a sandbox.