Website Designer & Developer - and more...

Below you’ll find a few brief summaries of my experience before my actual resume. The first summary is my overall expereince, the second highlights my time in the U.S. Navy.

More than 40 years experience with computers & technology

Yes, 40 years. My kids tell me I’m getting old, I tell them I only feel as old as I let myself. My first computer arrived on my doorstep when I was twelve years old – a Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer. It’s specs included 64k (yes, k) of RAM, it could display up to eight colors at various resolutions – none very high, and initially loaded and saved programs from cassette tape. yes, the same type that now appear in technology museums.

Fast forward to 1986, and my family entered the PC era, with a Beltron PC clone, with a 10MHz 8088 CPU, 640k of RAM and EGA graphics. Using this machine, I taught myself AutoCAD from a book, and combined with my college classes, obtained a job as a tool & die design apprentice.

During my initial run in tool & die design, I learned mechanical design engineering while on the job. My first designs included special tools, jigs and fixtures for the automotive and robotics industries. Later, I designed special machines for GM, Ford and Chrysler. Some of my designs were implemented at the Dayton, Ohio S-10 assembly plant, the Ford Michigan and St. Louis assembly plants, and a Chrysler A/C parts manufacturing facility located in Dayton, Ohio.

And then, I went into the U.S. Navy.

After the Navy, I spent a lot of time in computers and networking as a hobby, and on the job – almost daily since 1995. In several of my jobs, I pulled double duty as IT and mechanical designer, before switching over to IT full time in 2004.

Serving my country, and back to mechanical design

When 1990 rolled around, numerous factors forced me to make a carrer change, so I joined the Navy. During my five years in the Navy, I was stationed in Orlando, FL, Waukeagan, IL, and Washington, D.C. An Electronics Technician, Third Class, my final duty station was at the Naval Media Center, on Anacosta Naval Station in Washington, D.C.

At Orlando and Waukegan, I attended the 18 months of basic, advanced and digital electronics training required to be an Electronics Technician. Additional schooled included surface search radio, and VLF radio and shore based communications. Upon completion of my training, I was stationed at the Naval Media Center.

I served as a Detatchment Representative for three AFRTS stations: Diego Garcia, Lisbon, Portugal, and Harold E. Holt in Austrailia. During my time with the Naval Media Center, I maintained a yearly budget, equipment repair and replacement requisitions, wrote maintenance policies and monitored staffing changes and needs. Additionally, I became the guardian of wayward computer equipment, as I was the person onsite with the most training; I was most qualified to determine functionality and provide disposition recommendations. Upon my medical retirement in 1995, I was awarded the Navy Achievement Medal for the performance levels I obtaioned while on station.

After retirement… it was back to design work. And more computers…

Since most prospective employers only require a 10 year history, below you’ll find that. This page would be unbearably long if I included my entire work and education history.

Network Consulting, website design and hosting

When notified of the impending contract termination, and realizing as one of the highest paid persons onsite that I would not be retained by EMMC, I started a business in 2019 called Central Maine TekWerx. Considering the population density of the area in which I live, I knew it would never amount to more than part time work – and that suspicion has held true for the most part. It’s tough to serve a local population – residential and business – with a population of roughly 35,000 within a 50 mile radiius.

However, I’ve been able to gain a few regular clients for IT services, and the website design and hosting side is growing as well. Slowly, but growing. Currently, I serve as the IT provider for two, very small, local town offices. Additionally, as the previous website pages demonstrate, I have garnered a few very satisfied website clients as well.

 I’ve developed relationships with several vendors, including Dell (computers, GSA for local town offices), Untangle (local and cloud unified threat management), and Avast! (real time cloud-based antivirus – residential and commercial).

System Administrator/Maintenance Manager

In 2017, I was offered a position with a Fortune 5 company – McKesson. Their High Volume Solutions (HVS) division was looking for a qualified person to act as a System Admin for the computers and networking equipment, as well as take on the maintenance and repair responsibilities for the production equipment, which included conveyor systems, manual counting, pharmacist approval and packing stations, and Parata and SynMed robot filling stations.

Additionally, I was the liason between HVS and the customer.

Learning new skills is something I’ve never shied away from, and learning about these robotic counting machines was a pleasure. Additionally, I learned MSSQL and SQL Reporting Services, and wrote several reports that were helpful in inventory tracking, prescription tracking, as well as up to the minute workload on the production line. I also created an MS Access Database for keeping track of all maintanence events.

Management Information Systems Director

Initially I was hired on as a Network Technician, a position I held for only one month before the then MIS Director resigned. Due to the demonstration of my skills and knowledge, I was promoted into the MIS Director position.

The network consisted of up to four physical locations (funding dependent), all connected by Cisco VPN equipment (PIX and ASA), up to 250 workstations (mixed Windows and Linux), and numerous multi-function printers – all on a Windows Server Domain architecture. Four dual CPU servers were upgraded to four multi-core (six cores to 48 cores) servers, with the 48 core running several virtual machines including a backup domain controller and Exchange box).

During my tenure there, I was responsible for the planning and budgeting of, and implementing the maintenance and upgrades of all workstations, networking equipment and operating systems and software upgrades. Each location contained a resource room consisting of Linux PC’s for job searches, unemployment claims, etc… and a classroom where basic Windows computer skills were taught.

Employee security awareness training was conducted regularly, including making use of resources like KnowB4. Internal system audits were conducted quarterly, using tools like Snort, NMAP and OpenVAS.

In 2007, I became responsible for the organization’s web presence as well. As a base, I started learning HTML/CSS, then moved to WordPress, then Joomla!, using the Gantry 5 Framework.

My Vision

My design vision is fairly simple – to provide my client with a clean website design, and work with them to determine the content they wish to present. Then provide them with the website they need, with the look they want.