Who Am I

When I was young, probably elementary school, I took apart a broken mechanical desk clock to see how the gears worked. I started taking screws out and popped the back off. Immediately, all the gears fell out and scattered across the floor, under the workbench. They were everywhere. I never got that clock put back together. I think I just had a pile of clock parts for a while, probably in a ziplock bag. Today, I still do the same thing, basically. I take things apart to understand them, build new things to see if they work. Sometimes they do. Sometimes I just end up with a pile of parts, just like that younger version of me.

For work, I build things for other people—usually with a map in it. I've loved maps since I was young, from orienteering as a Boy Scout to helping my dad navigate in his small plane. Knowing where I was and what was around me always mattered. Today that translates into applications and data systems at dymaptic. We create things that make a real difference, even if it's just for the 10 people in one city's GIS department.

When I'm not at work, I still build things, although perhaps a bit more dubious. This is my space to explore and see how technology can be used in strange ways. That might be a giant spider that vomits candy at trick-or-treaters, or a giant snake that's like a Pez dispenser, or the Anywharrow (a device that takes your utterance and physically points you in the right direction, like saying "the big green lady" and it points toward the Statue of Liberty).

I started this newsletter because AI is changing everything around us fast. And I kept seeing people talk about it who didn't really understand how it works. I figured I should share what I know before people get lost. I tested the idea by asking an audience at a conference if they'd subscribe. Almost everyone raised their hand. About 10 actually signed up. Good enough for me.

I also speak at conferences about AI, software, and occasionally my questionable side projects. If you want me at your event, get in touch.

If you want to see the weird stuff in action, I post builds on YouTube: TheMoreHavoc.