But always open to discussing an opportunity to contribute to a great organization.
I manage application software development (Information Technology or IT) projects across the entire system development life cycle (SDLC). More than just code and unit test, the application has solve real business problems and provide real business value to end users. The application myst work within the environment, it has to be deployable and it must be operable / maintainable in production.
Experienced consultant: Big 8 (Peat Marwick --> KPMG), Verizon New Service Initiatives, Open Source, Bearing Point, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, Boeing.
I've worked on projects all over the US and a project in the Caribbean and one in the Middle East.
I've lead teams that brought two enterprise class systems live (and a host of smaller systems).
PMP certified.
MBA with a dual major in Computers/Information Sciences and in Operations Research. Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering.
My current resume.
Places I've spent extended periods of time: Northern NJ; Chicago; County of San Diego; Washington State Capitol region; Highland Village, TX
Computer Geek - I have Microsoft Windows 10 and 11, Arch Linux, VMware ESXi and Android devices to occupy my time. I've done a little work with Docker containers and MySQL / MariaDB. My personal source files are at GitLabs, but I've worked on projects that use GitHub.
I run a split network at home (regular and IoT sides) and use Dnsmasq and OpenDNS. I can't recommend either of them highly enough.
I've been involved with an Open Source project, digiCamControl, which is a Graphical and Command line tool for taking photographs through a tethered DSLR camera using .Net Framework 4.6 and C#.
For several years in the mid 2000s I was the Release Manager and a contributor to nTop, a network analysis and monitoring tool. After a long (15 year) run, nTop was retired in May 2013 in favor of ntopng.
I am a life member of ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, whose goal is to advance Computing as a Science & Profession.
I am a Numismatist and a Coin Collector. A life member of the American Numismatic Association (ANA). I am also active on several coin boards. My interests are the history of the coin slab (holder), Sample coin slabs, the United States three cent silver coins and coins that were in circulation as of 8am 11 February 1861.
Allow me to recommend several great coin collectors message boards:
You will find me as 'BStrauss3' on all four, I love to chat about coins and also sometimes dish a little snark: "What can you tell me about this" with a small blurry picture usually gets a response like "I think it might be a coin".
For several years I was a proud member of the Olympia Coin Club in Washington state. If you are in town on the 1st Thursday, attend the club meetings and tell them "Tex" sent you.
Currently, my local clubs are the Fort Worth Coin Club (FtWCC) and the Northeast Tarrant County Coin Club (NETCC).
I am a small contributor to David Schwager's fabulous book "Sample Slabs - Including Sample, Promotional, Club, Show, Luncheon, Novelty, and Young Numismatist Coin and Currency Holders" (the 2015 and 2016 2nd Edition). I'm working with David to bring all of the 2nd edition into a database, and being able to generate 'the book' from the database. I've started adding new finds to the database for an eventual 3rd edition.
At present, I am owned by four cats. Dogs have owners, Cats have staff...
If you don't believe that, adopt a cat.
Adopt one anyway, there are always many that need good homes.
Cats are incredibly funny and have NO SENSE OF HUMOR about themselves. Do not laugh at a cat or else. Cats carry grudges for a very long time and turn revenge to a fine art.
Madame Jillian D'Calico
Beethoven is just keeping her company. Sure he is. BRAT!
Adopted from Operation Kindness at the same time as Anna Belle.
Jill is a dilute Calico. (after Delilah, when we brought Jill in for her first vet check, Dr. C looked at us and exclaimed: "Don't you know dilute Calico's have a double helping" (of cat-ittude)? Jill does...) Most cats have cat-ittude: "My way or the highway", but Calicos can provide detailed driving directions and alternate routes...
Beethoven Mahler Strauss 5
Adopted from Main Street Veterinary Hospital in Flower Mound, TX. You know how vet's have a cage of adoptable kittens in the waiting room, waiting for some sucker to come along? Yup. House Lion #5...
How was I to know he was being sweet only to me and beating up all the smaller kittens in the cage with him?
The brat, a/k/a Y. Pestis (Why Pestis? Because he is...a pest). Moose, because when he wants your attention, he wants ALL of your attention. Beethoven is a long haired Grey with white markings and very short legs. Not all of which he remembers to fire when jumping. No short term memory - every 90 seconds, he meets somebody new, even if he just ran out of the room and back in. Let's just leave it that when they were passing out brains he said "Don't need any, I'm cute".
Adopted from the Humane Society of North Texas. What can you say when they bring the animals to the office and your significant other texts you with a photo and "can I"? Yup. House Lion #6...
The ninja. Cannot count the times I've woken up with a cat snuggled into my shoulder that I never sensed arriving.
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton Strauss 7 CVO OBE FRGS MOUSER
Adopted from Operation Kindness on October 27, 2016.
eCat, Jumper (from his habit of jumping off the bed and landing with a big THUMP)
circa March 2005 - October 7, 2016
On Friday, October 7th, at around 5:10 PM, Anna Belle lost her year long battle with cancer.
Adopted from Operation Kindness a fabulous no-kill shelter in Carollton, TX.
She was a blue/white - medium length fur - very proper and insisted the house be run HER way.
We were formerly owned by Pixel and Delilah
Delilah was a four color calico with spots and a ring tail. Sadly, she lost a brief bout with cancer and passed away 27 August 2006. She will always be with us in our hearts...
Pixel, a domestic short hair cat from the Chicago Anti Cruelty Society. All black, 14 lbs of couch potato. The Kitty rocket scientist... who died after a long illness on 10 June 2010. When he was diagnosed with Kidney problems, the vets told us that he might last a month or two if we were willing to provide weekly (and then daily) fluid injections. We had three more wonderful years with my silly black cat. I miss him. Every day.
Technically, Pixel belonged to me and Delilah was his (faithless feline) companion. However, Delilah mostly liked my wife, Jane. I was tolerated only if she was away. Delilah was - unfortunately - psychotic (diagnosed by the Kitty Vet as PTSD). So - if the drugs weren't working - she spent her days in her private retreat and was known through out the neighborhood as the cat in the window.
How do you keep 'free' feeding multiple cats, one of whom is on a special diet, one who needs to lose weight, and one who's consumption needs to be monitored? SureFlap's SureFeed. It reads the microchip (or a collar tag) and only lets the programmed pet(s) into the specific feeder.
Now hope does spring eternal and the cats will often try each other's feeder, professing astonishment that it won't open for them. And truth be told, Beethoven did once manage to somehow have Anna Belle's dish programmed with his chip too. "That's not your dish, it won't recognize you" was answered with a very smug cat grin when it did. However, having thumbs, I was able to reprogram the dish in half a minute.