2022 was a really big year for me. I got a new job, did more open source development this year than I have have in my life and made some great friends on the way.
New job
In July, I started at IBM. I mainly work on Merlin (a new product specific to the IBM i market) but also get to have interest and touch many different things. In my entire time contracting, I avoided touching Java because I haven't enjoyed writing the language too much in the past. I've worked on a couple of open source projects since i started at IBM which are written in Java and it has been fun.
Prior to starting my new job, I was contracting for 6 years. I think I worked with around 30 or so different businesses in that time period, writing everything from C to RPGLE and COBOL, all the way to TypeScript and JavaScript. What fun that was.
Open source
The open source stuff I've done this year is some of the best time and work I've done in my life time so far. Not only have I had to chance to speak about open source software that i have contributed to, but I've also been able to build up a community around that software too.
I am very grateful for the people I have gotten to work with on Code for IBM i in 2022. This is the best thing I've probably ever worked on in my life. Luckily, it's also the most fun thing too.
There are two technical areas I am glad to see Code for IBM i thrive in this year:
Workspace support for RPGLE and COBOL; the ability to write these languages in a local or remote workspace and then have the code build on the remote server. Seems very basic, but not easily done before with a good user experience. When source code is in the local workspace, it means we have access to a much better development experience.
RPGLE inside of VS Code; writing RPGLE and COBOL has been completely normalized with the use of modern language tools inside of the IDE. I am talking about functionality like 'go to definition' and 'peek references'. Years ago it seemed like a dream to me, but in 2023 we have access to that at no cost.
I am entering 2023 with too many ideas on how we can further improve the VS Code and IBM i experience. There is so much I am looking forward to. I will start off my 2023 with PR reviews!
Life
Above all else, I got married this year. I am not one to share much about my personal life online, but this is a magnificent event and love to share it. I have never been in a better place in my life. I write some cool code and have my favorite person by my side.
2022 was a really big year for me. I got a new job, did more open source development this year than I have have in my life and made some great friends on the way.
New job
In July, I started at IBM. I mainly work on Merlin (a new product specific to the IBM i market) but also get to have interest and touch many different things. In my entire time contracting, I avoided touching Java because I haven't enjoyed writing the language too much in the past. I've worked on a couple of open source projects since i started at IBM which are written in Java and it has been fun.
Prior to starting my new job, I was contracting for 6 years. I think I worked with around 30 or so different businesses in that time period, writing everything from C to RPGLE and COBOL, all the way to TypeScript and JavaScript. What fun that was.
Open source
The open source stuff I've done this year is some of the best time and work I've done in my life time so far. Not only have I had to chance to speak about open source software that i have contributed to, but I've also been able to build up a community around that software too.
I am very grateful for the people I have gotten to work with on Code for IBM i in 2022. This is the best thing I've probably ever worked on in my life. Luckily, it's also the most fun thing too.
There are two technical areas I am glad to see Code for IBM i thrive in this year:
I am entering 2023 with too many ideas on how we can further improve the VS Code and IBM i experience. There is so much I am looking forward to. I will start off my 2023 with PR reviews!
Life
Above all else, I got married this year. I am not one to share much about my personal life online, but this is a magnificent event and love to share it. I have never been in a better place in my life. I write some cool code and have my favorite person by my side.