Owen the Dev

I'm a Python Developer

Since 2016, I’ve been highly involved in Python development, and using it to make tools and back-ends for vertically integrated systems.

I’ve built many major projects in Python, including tools to check the weather via the Wunderground API, internal QA tools, fully-fledged APIs using Flask, and smaller projects using I2C, GPIO, IMAP, and SFTP.

Lately, I’ve been mostly using Python to code the back-end for projects using Flask. CenHud Outage Trends is my first project that fully runs via Flask. The Snow Day SMS Service required me to make the Snow Day API, which was my first API written with Flask that interfaced with Twilio & DynamoDB.

I’ve recently gotten into a new project that involves the use of socket.io for dynamic content – and Python’s easy extensibility has made it so that I can continue to use Flask for a web socket server.

I continue to expand my knowledge in Python, and I enjoy working with it, as it significantly reduces code complexity and coding time (even though there’s a performance hit).

I'm a Web developer

Since mid-2018, I’ve been highly involved in web development, using HTML, CSS and JavaScript, alongside the Bootstrap & jQuery frameworks. I’ve spent my time doing web development making web applications and static websites.

track.easterbunny.cc is my flagship project that got me into web development. For two years now, I’ve been able to provide a smooth and alternative Easter Bunny Tracker for tens of thousands around the world. I’ve been able to learn tons about web development, including the little nooks and crannies involved with making a good web app.

I’ve also focused a lot on making web apps that rely on backends that I code in Python with Flask. CenHud Outage Trends runs entirely on a Flask server, using Jinja templates for dynamic content without the need for calling an API. The Snow Day Dashboard was my first true web application that was powered entirely by an API.

I’m continuing to explore the world of web development – and hopefully I’ll begin to work my way into using more frameworks in the coming years.

And I do a lot of other stuff

In addition to Python & web development, I also do lots of niche projects not featured here. I’ve worked with doing system administration for about 6 years, making sure that my projects have the infrastructure needed to run, and setting up/upgrading servers for my own use.

I also have dabbled into networking using enterprise-grade equipment. My home network runs on Ubiquiti equipment, and I’m able to set up more complicated home networks with relative ease.

I also enjoy giving back to the world – so I invest a lot of time into making sure that the projects I make are open-source, so that others can look at the code I made and learn from what I’ve done. I’m committed to open-sourcing my newer projects by the end of 2020. I also do local volunteer work, teaching kids about coding & robotics, and being an IT admin for my local library’s makerspace.