Hi and welcome!

I am a computer enthusiast looking to expand my knowledge of IT, networking, cyber security, and, eventually, switch my career to that field. I recently got my CompTIA A+ (July 2024) and Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (August 2024) certifications. I have over 14 years of operations, product development, and product management experience in automotive, industrial, and manufacturing environments. I also have a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, and an MBA.

I started learning and troubleshooting computer systems back in the Windows 98SE days, when I had to recover a system after a failed driver update. Then while earning my bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, I was introduced to the basics of computer programming in C and writing firmware for embedded microcontroller systems. Working as a Mechanical Engineer, I designed equipment and mechanical fuel oil systems supporting backup power generation needs for mission critical facilities such as Tier 3 and Tier 4 data centers. I worked with the data center personnel and their contractors selecting our equipment and then supported them integrating it into their systems. But my fascination with computer networking infrastructure really kicked into high gear in early 2020 when I rolled out a Pi-hole DNS based ad blocker. Then I built a network closet with rack mounted equipment and installed network cable infrastructure using Cat 6A cabling. I installed PoE wireless access points, managed switches, and created a cluster of virtualization server running Proxmox Virtual Environment. With that in place, I implemented DHCP, DNS, VLANs, and storage servers. Most of the skill and knowledge in networking infrastructure I gained on my own. To expand it, I am currently taking classes at a local community college and exploring cloud certifications. I’ve already completed some courses and will continue my study in Fall, including starting a cyber security bootcamp. I would prefer not to reveal my name in public, but please feel free to reach out to me using the contact form. I am open to remote part time (or, maybe, full time) opportunities, contract work, short term gigs, or just chatting. Anyways, I hope you find information in this blog useful. But as with most (any?) open source project, the information on this website is provided “as-is”, without warranty of any kind, expressed, or implied. Please read the statement at the bottom of the page. And remember, it’s free, at least.