PERSONAL
I grew up in Ohio in the 50's and 60's, which for Ohio was still very much the 50's. After leaving school, I kept gravitating East. First to Pittsburgh. Then to NYC and eventually on to Boston, where I spent all of my twenties. I moved to Marin County in 1980 and spent the next couple of years on the coast, in Muir Beach and Bolinas. I moved to Mill Valley in 1982 and stayed for the next 22 years. I currently live in Sausalito.
Having worked as a mechanic with "Click and Clack" of PBS fame (mostly Clack) I spent my first dozen years here as an auto mechanic. After having the usual back problems that a mechanic does, I bought a computer and spent the next year and a half studying all things computer. After working for some local educators, I was hired as a computer instructor at the Northbay School in Sausalito.
To be completely honest, I was a little over my head when I was hired as a contractor to do Help Desk Support at Genentech Inc. But it soon turned out to be a wonderful relationship from which we both benefited greatly. I acquired many skills and created many policies and methods that are still in use. In 2002 I had to leave full-time employment because of persistent health concerns. Fortunately I learned that these were a direct result of full time employment and I am much healthier on disability. I am allowed to earn a certain amount of money on disability, so receipts and checks are not a problem.
PROFESSIONAL
I am first and foremost a tinkerer. I have the sort of mind that wraps around systems and their inter working components without any effort on my part. My life, since I was a child, has been fooling around with repairing bicycles, fixing TV sets, building my own Ham Radio gear, or playing with my chemistry set. The words "Geek" and "Nerd" weren't in fashion yet, but yes, I did belong to 'projection club'.
I grew up in Ohio in the early Sixties and the unwritten law was that you didn't grow pubic hair until you built your first hot rod. From the time I built that hot rod in 1963 through 1993 I spent the vast majority of the time as an auto mechanic. Despite a natural aptitude, I never particularly enjoyed it, so I often pursued other vocations.At various times I have done extensive work in building construction, maintenance and renovation. But i always seemed to come back to mechanics. Un fortunately, thirty years is about as long as the human body can support being a mechanic and with two young children, I needed a new skill quickly. That skill became computers.
Computers
My first computer job was with Promethean Industries, which at the time (1992), was located in Fairfax, CA. I used my electro-mechanical knowledge to assist the owner in the realization of 3D optical monitors, for which he now holds several patents. My primary job was to search the Internet for conflicting technology and patent infringement.
I worked at the Northbay School as a computer instructor beginning in 1994 and also was a substitute teacher at St. Marks school in San Rafael.
In 1995 I started as a contractor doing Help Desk Support for Genentech Inc. There I was doing everyday support for over three thousand computer users, using PC, Mac and Unix platforms, over a complex Windows NT network. Where as an educator I had used primarily Macs, this position was a crash course in multi-platform support.
I mastered all this and, in less than a year, my extraordinary customer service skills had me promoted to the Platinum Support Group, providing support for executive officers, not just by phone, but in a 'hands on' capacity.
While at Genetech I took advantage of the educational opportunities and took courses in Windows NT, Unix, operation of browsers, Introduction to Macintosh OSX (taught by Apple) and the Help Desk 2000 certification in both phone and desktop support. After just a couple of years, I was teaching courses in support of Windows 2000 for PC and OSX for Mac. I was on the committee overseeing the deployment of Win 2K to all PC users. Simultaneously I worked with Apple as the Lead Tech for the first deployment of OSX in a corporation, anywhere in the world. Beyond the technical expertise I acquired and applied, I also developed and taught a course for support technicians called, "The use of empathy as a support tool".
I left at a time when Genetech was preparing to move it's support facilities even further South making it an awkward commute from Marin. At the time I left, I was statistically number #1 (measured by call closure times and number taken) and recognized as the lead Desktop Support person at Genentech.
I have taken a variety of courses and been certified in every course I took, including:
Windows NT 4.0
Windows NT 5.0 (known to the public as Win2K and WinXP)
Unix administration
Macintosh System X
Certified Help Desk Professional
Certified Field Support Technician
Obviously I'm not the sort to allow Vista to come on the scene with checking it out. While no longer a full-time professional with reason to pursue certification, I do keep up with the latest technology.
So despite my 'aw garsh' presentation, I am a recognized computer support professional, tested and certified. See, you really can learn all about all this stuff and you don't have to talk "nerd" at all.