About Me

At the age of seven, my dad helped me set up an old 8088 computer with QBasic, and a few old Apogee games that it could handle. I created many small programs with just IF, INPUT, PRINT, and LPRINT. I was extremely pleased that I could develop my own applications, and went on to work on various programs in QBasic. I developed a game very similar to Scott Miller's Kroz, but enhanced it with a map editor, and multiplayer using a null modem cable across multiple computers. I also recreated Sim City, however that application was only ASCII based. It also allowed you to sell cities to other "Mayors" via a null modem cable. I developed subroutienes that handled custom fonts, allowed you to use a joystick as a mouse, and applied these to the beginning of a DOS-based GUI application.

Fast-forward 17 years, I am now 25 years old, and have taken on a whole new respect for programming. I still use Microsoft's Visual Basic to develop applications for Windows (check a few out), however I also expanded my skills to include xHTML, CSS, PHP, and SQL. I believe that following the W3C's standards for a reliable web page is critical to success, and have an utmost respect for internet security. I am in the process of building all the sites in my portfolio, and I attempt to spread security awareness through my security articles (1, 2, 3, and 4), as well as through my blog.

I currently hold certification from ExpertRating.com in XHTML 1.0, CSS, and PHP5, with expert-level distinction in XHTML. I am also attending night classes at Joliet Junior College for Web Design and Administration, and hold a GPA of 4.0. My future plans are to obtain my bachleors in computer science from Illinois State University, and possibly return to the Joliet area to work as a daytime developer, night time teacher.