Web Developer | Data Engineer | Cloud Specialist

WHAT
I
DO

A demo
of some of
my dev skills

I've been refreshing some of my old projects. This time taking new approaches to highlight important dev considerations.

Database Design Fundamentals in a NoSQL DB?

MongoDB was the first DB language/framework that I learned, and although it was easier, learning it first may have been a disservice to my ability to understand it, or NoSql databases intuitively.

Loose Coupling in a React App

In this project refresh I wanted to focus on coupling. This is something that is important in an Object-Oriented context so I wanted to explore the significance of that in the web-development framework (technically a library) I originally wrote this in. React.

Cloud Dev Demo

Sorry, this one is still being worked on. Last Updated 8/12/23.

A Little
About Me

A Little Bit
Behind
This Developer.

"Tell me about something that you've built that you are proud of."

Last year, in 2022, my team- the Capability Team- decided to bring in the new year with gusto. "Let's create a web app for the team at large!" Meaning all of the couple hundred people working on this project and not just our sub-team. The team at large was contracted for a 2-year Cloud-Migration project and I was the only one on my sub-team with Web experience. Therefore, I was the primary developer minus some assistance we'd rope in from time to time.

I was required to build a small end-to-end app (SQL, React, Express, Microsoft Azure, with user Auth) to aid in the Ingestion pipelines- it would only be used internally for about ~100 users but should be able to support more if needed. React was my library of choice as I had only ever used React for building front-ends. After successfully completing the web app and having had the most enjoybable experience on the project thus far I was requested to *re-build* it again in 2 months- but this time, do it in Angular. And we'll also still need you to perform your regular Data Engineer duties as well.

Terror.

Worry.

Nonetheless, we perservere.

The reasons they provided me for this stack change were limited, but I understood it to be due to security needs and better integration with the existing architecture within the company. I never used Angular or built anything in C# or .Net and I had the same time frame alotted to me as when I was developing with a web stack I already knew. In spite of the odds, I managed to build a full app, with DRYer code and greater security then the first version (by virtue of built-in Angular auth) in TWO languages/frameworks that I had never ever used before. It was an exhausting and a very rewarding experience. I used to be the biggest fangirl of React, but I was so impressed by structure and cohesion of Angular after that experience that my allegiance may have shifted.

In spite of accomplishing something I was afraid I wouldn't be able to, the biggest lesson that I learned from that experience was not the technical skill that I gained. The biggest lesson that I learned was the importance of communicating to my superior and working with them to set realistic goals. I may have completed the app but it certainly was not my best work. It was rushed and hacked together. The code ended up DRYer because of the conventions of the language, not because I took the time to implement it in such a manner. I did not work iteratively. I spent about 12 hours every day and many weekend hours chugging away. I barely got it to work in time. What could've been an excellent opportunity for me to develop a more intuitive understanding of 2 new languages (Typescript and C#) was an exhaustive battle for completion. Had I overcome my worry of disappointing my superior(s) it would have been a better exp for EVERYONE.
This is more of a 2-for-1 response: a description of something I built that I am proud of and a pivotal lesson in my growth as an adult.