Bill Paetzke is a software developer, writer, and minimalist. In his free time, he enjoys reading and is always learning. He also likes to analyze stuff--from web app product usage to international costs of living and state taxes, to women on OKCupid.
Connect with me:StackOverflow
Here's some things you might not have known about me:
I got into computer programming at 14 by writing math programs on the TI-83 calculator. At 17, I published my programs online and over the next few years it got a lot of views and downloads. At 23, I linked to some popular games as well and put Google Ads on the site. Since then I've made a few thousand dollars off it. I haven't touched the site in over four years, and it still makes about $80/month. Not bad!
I got a little creative with video editing at 18. I mixed my love for the movie The Matrix with the Xbox video game Halo, and The Matrix - Halo Remix was born. It's a remake of the first six minutes of The Matrix--all acted out within the game Halo. It took about 40 hours and seven people to do this. For the best effect: watch the first six minutes of The Matrix and then watch this. Bonus: watch them side by side.
I traveled around Southeast Asia for four months when I was 25. I learned a lot about the world, other people, and myself. Took lots of photos. Got some interesting stories to tell. Great experience. I recommend everyone take a sabbatical abroad, if at all possible. Don't worry about your job. If you are valuable to your company, they will take you back. In fact, I returned to the same job afterward with a raise!
I made an engineering blog for Leads360 in August 2011. I did that to help Leads360 gain street cred in the tech community and make recruiting easier. Was it effective? Time will tell.