About Rob

I started college at the impressionable age of 16, and continued to take classes in university up until Winter Semester 07/08. I loved the idea of being able to go to school for free, and as a dual enrollee I did just that… I graduated from High School with a whopping 16 credits of Calculus based mathematics.

I got quite a bit of the usual college grind down, and attended some of the most accredited learning institutions in the Detroit area. I saw how the classes could cost as much as a dang car.. Just for a class at Lawrence Technological University. I was amazed at the amount that one had to pay, after a free schooling option was available from the start…

After Graduating High School with honors from Advanced Technology Academy (Southfield), I was very interested in the engineering field, and eventually declared myself as a Civil Engineering major at Wayne State University. There, I spent most of my college career building on the math I had already earned, bulked up on very intense Physics, and Biology Courses… I think I took most of the Math/Science requirements, when I got itchy about the field I had picked to become part of.. There was something that just didn’t fit with me… I loved technology, and was burning to learn more about this illustrious IT Field….. I quit college after that year in hopes that some time off could help me pay back my owed student loans, and college related Fees. I think that is about the time that AOL had finally been left behind in the IT field.

I had realized how enormous the IT field was, and took classes toward IT security, LAN systems operation, and PC Repair from various “Community ” colleges. I felt as though a degree in IT was something that I would would have to work on. I didn’t want to do learn each technology throughout 4 years, cramming for finals, and then later loathing the job I only dreamed I could have. I saw the web, and unix servers to be massively complicated infostructures. Comprised of several services running silumtaneously, and all having different protocols. I was very discouraged once I finally understood what IT is. After I had a few years of building websites, and after having applied the theory numerous times it started to click. After I was familiar with html it was on to the next one. I then wanted to know ajax, and then css. Through implementation, and never giving up I now know over 18 different programming syntaxes. Markup languages, Meta languages, interpreted/compiled, cached, front-end, back-end technologies. There were so many things that became easier to pick up once I had started with one markup coding set of rules to achieve proficiency. Then after a base of 5-6(HTML, CSS, DOM, XML, JS, HTaccess, Perl, etc.) it was not hard at all. I was no longer having to rack my brain to get things ‘perfect’. There became 9 ways to skin a cat; and I could give clients options. I use at least a handful of programming languages everyday, and I have motivation to keep learning. There isn’t any cramming sessions, or nightmares about presentations in Speech Class. Although there is still stress with the hustle and flow of consulting as a freelancer I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else than juggling my client base.

I have continued to advance my academic career. With a growing amount of technologies being vastly expanded from an open-source community; it would be hard to actually get a degree for the skills that are required of me. It’s been code soup since the internet was 15 years old,and I had to jump right in it. Its getting even more complex at its year 25 for the net. It comes from the wealth of programming scraps, and passed down proprietary web pieces that come together beautifully. I love the ever changing concepts, and innovation. I don’t think that scholastica could stay 2 steps ahead, but in the IT field that is exactly what is expected of you.

Since 2004, I have been studying Web Server and Database logic. Early 2007 I got my first freelance contractual work with a non-profit organization from SE MI. which I developed a long-term work opportunity that enriched his skill set. Working freelance for a wide range of clients has provided him with numerous occasions for educational growth. I launched over 10 websites in the first two years doing business, and within that time I had also taken 2 Information Systems courses. It was a squeeze trying to juggle my course work with the business I had been building.

It was either take another break from school, or start turning down new projects. I had decided to take time off from school before, and I have never turned down work. I just didn’t think I could do that. So after Winter 08 I was able to develop more responsibility with my fiscal clients. I was promoted to Internal Service Manager for Michigan Consumer Evaluation Team. Things were going great with work, and I was becoming comfortable around launch days. Becoming very punctual, and developing more of a pattern for how the projects would fit into my schedule. I could essentially have too many things come up all at once, because I have really kept close relationships with those of whom I have done work for in the past.. By now I have finally attained confidence, clarity, and more steady work. I know now that the work I had to put into this ‘dream’ from 2004-2010 is starting to pay of, and it is a huge relief to be able to continue doing what I love to do. I was getting work through word of mouth and I have been steadily working on website projects, updates, overhauls, and servers ever since.

To this day I could say that I have a long way to go, to having everything at my Application-Building fingertips… I only say this because New Architectures like RSS Feeds, and Fully Extensible Meta Languages and their corresponding name spaces create quite a steep learning curve. Although, I may be easing my way into the graphic Art field at a very slow pace, but my web experience has produced many currently running and maintained Web Applications for my many satisfied clients.