I have been designing web sites since 2001; I started after taking a basic HTML class in middle school. I quickly developed an interest for it, and began furthering my knowledge by mastering HTML and teaching myself JavaScript on a “need to know” basis. Most of my designs were created for small businesses in Casper, WY. I started designing web sites for The Car Shop, and they are still using my services for their web site. Since that time I have learned CSS, XHTML, and PHP to further improve my skills. I have an extensive knowledge of Adobe Photoshop which I use to create my web site designs.
I started programming while I was in high school for a computer science course I elected to take. The class taught Visual Basic and it gave me a firm foundation for learning other programming languages. Since then I have taken Program Design in C courses, as well as several advanced Java classes, including Data Structure and Algorithm courses at MSU-Bozeman.
I have really enjoyed skinning an application called Steam; it is a digital distribution system created by VALVe for computer video games. Skinning Steam allows for a great deal of freedom while restricting me to just changing the interface without any programming necessary. Some examples of my work can by found in the Steam Skins section of my Portfolio. My Left 4 Dead skin was recently recognized by Valve and featured in a News Announcement; this announcement was distributed to all Steam users.
I am currently working as an intern at RightNow Technologies in Bozeman, MT. I am a quality assurance technician, which gives me many opportunities to work with developers and customers on a daily basis. It is also paving the way for me to become a full time developer, as I am often examining, modifying, and testing code for customizations and enhancements to the software. RightNow’s product is a CRM tool which is used by many companies around the world as the backbone of their Customer Service departments. The product is twofold; part of it is a customer support console that runs on the computers of Customer Service employees, and the other part is a website for customers to find information and interact with Customer Services employees via chat and email. Due to the nature of RightNow’s product, I am constantly learning new techniques and practices for working with large, database driven websites.
I spend much of my personal time working right here on Ryno Studios. I often try new ideas and techniques on my site, which allows me to better myself as a developer and showcase my abilities. I also create new designs for both The Car Shop and Lord of Lords about once a year. This enables me to track my progress as a web developer, while offering websites that keep pace with the latest web design trends and my clients’ needs. I have also started creating templates that I do not code; I try to create one or two of these templates per month. Creating these templates has been great practice for me, as I am expanding the creative aspect of my web development. Once I finish the designs, I showcase them both here and on my deviantART profile to get some feedback, as well as to advertise them for companies/individuals looking for a design that they intend to code themselves.
