If you’re looking to associate a name to me, either you already know it, or we’ll need to operate on a pseudonymous basis with each other until we know each other better.

I’m llmII, an all around enjoyer of computing, technology (opinionated). Technology is also the field in which I am occupied.

• Interesting Fact:

  I’m colorblind.

  To be more clinical, color deficient. If you’re looking for the type it’d be deuteranopia.

I work in technology, officially titled Network Administrator. My tasks are quite various and involve way more than the title typically entails. I delve in things from systems management, backups, deployment, storage, virtualization, databases, programming, and clustering, all the way to switching, routing, wireless and firewalling. By no means is this a conclusive list of the things I do or have done.

I enjoy doing several different things provided there is time for them.

• Fishing

  This is always fun, regardless of if catching anything. Sometimes the peace and quiet of fishing in a serene location all by myself is just what the doctor ordered.

• Painting

  I’m still working towards becoming a better artist, but along the journey I sometimes yield artistic results that are admirable after a fashion. It’s a soothing endeavor but within a deep concentration, almost meditative.

• Eating

  Because who doesn’t love good food. Yes, some meals are simply to keep me alive and provide me some energy, but those amazing ones I make that I truly enjoy are what make taste a worthwhile sense. Sometimes I fail spectacularly in making an enjoyable meal, but I do learn and improve and press forward to mouthwatering results in the end. Besides, it’s hard to know just how good a meal is or can be, without having experienced abominations of your own contraptions.

• Traveling

  2020 did throw this for a loop, but seeing new sights is always enjoyable.

• Programming

  Yes, I do this both professionally and as a hobby. I enjoy working on my side projects, be they personal or available to public under the very same pseudonym. Solving problems creatively and learning something new is always a worthwhile endeavor.

  Current interests in this realm are:

  • Networking

    I don’t mean HTTP, but getting 2 different programs to talk to each other, be they written by myself both, or just one part of the whole, can be interesting, especially when developing the intercommunication protocol.

  • Meta-programming

    This generally involves code that modifies code in some fashion. It can be as simple as functions that wrap each other in manners that could yield results such as asynchronizing synchronous code whilst maintaining the synchronous flow on an as needed basis, to macros in languages that trend towards homoiconicity.

  • Asynchrony

    Code that flows in an unordered manner yet remains seemingly ordered in execution is fun, always. Debugging it might not be.

• Networking

  I enjoy maintaining my own network at home just about as much as I do enjoy doing so at my day job. Wireless, Routing, Switching, and Protocols (like OSPF and BGP) are just plain interesting. Maybe one day I’ll share the network setup I have at home!

• Security

  Securing my own systems is both a hobby and an exercise in what some might view as taking things too far. Back when I started doing things this way, it was less common to do things like such, but now there are others taking similar approaches, albeit typically with less manual control and arguably wrong (opinionated) default (such as default allow all out firewalling).

  In general, I’ve observed most people’s philosophy regarding security is preventing incursions.

  My philosophy builds on that and extends into preventing lateral momentum, be it within my own networks or to internet addressable hosts.

• Gaming

  In general, if the game can not be emulated… I likely am uninterested, when it comes to video games. I don’t like the pay to play systems that I see haunt anything I might would enjoy otherwise.

  I also enjoy chess (although I’m not very good at it).

• Reading

  Books are good. I enjoy documentation as well a fiction. Maybe some day I’ll list some of my favorites here.

• Licensing

  I prefer copyfree licensing. Anything I release is likely to be under a license that is copyfree.

  I also prefer to use software that is licensed the same. Even so, there are just some things that are not available under a license I prefer and until a copyfree replacement exists I will continue using them out of necessity. It might be argued that with effort I could adapt to different workflows that results in my usage of software remaining strictly that which is copyfree licensed but I only have so much time in my life and if it’s a step backwards from the usability I gain with non-copyfree licensed software it is sadly a no go to change up workflows. Aside from work, I do try to keep my usage of software limited to open source.

• Operating Systems

  FreeBSD. Enough said.

  Ok, I guess you want to know more. I do use Linux in some scenarios (OpenWRT Access Points) but for the most part, aside from prepackaged systems like what comes on a phone, I use FreeBSD for both desktop and server computing, as well as networking.

  At work, I use Windows (desktop and server), Linux (servers), and various uses of FreeBSD in that context as well.

  I’m also interested in DragonflyBSD.

• Phones

  I prefer Android. Might be an unpopular opinion, but in general, I’ve found that where Apple can’t (which usually resolves to won’t), Android can. I have actual use cases for my phone that an Apple device remains incapable of fulfilling. I also don’t like walled gardens.

• Things in the Cloud

  Nope, as much as possible nope. The only exception to my “nope” stance is when I own the cloud in question. I self host NextCloud (that’s Google Drive, Calendar, Contacts, and probably more solved). I run my own email services. I absolutely hate being reliant on the good will of a third party that may or may not be known to have security issues and/or issues with booting users for any old reason. If where I host my personal cloud tells me to go away, I can pack it up and move it elsewhere, or home need be. If I were to subscribe to using Google for everything, then the moment I run afoul of their services, be it due to myself, my incompetence, or otherwise, I’m all of a sudden out in the boat without oars. It is inherently dumb to trust others to store things of import to yourself as your primary and only storage mechanism. In some cases it’s also dumb to trust they won’t do things with your data that you would be apprehensive to if you knew up front they would do such.

  In general, I encourage all who can, to run their own things, and those who do, to be willing to offer the usage of those things where reasonable to others. This is the only way to move forward towards a more decentralized future with integration along standardized protocols rather than being held at mercy by large corporations.

• Programming

  I endure almost anything if the pay is right, but when I come home and get to spend time with my pet projects, I prefer they be in one of the following:

  • Any Lisp (currently Janet’s my favorite)
  • C (because systems level programming isn’t fun without an adequate amount of rope)
  • Go

  Don’t let the short list fool you, I can probably touch anything that’s in a C derived language, and easily catch on to others. I can’t say I can do Haskell, but this is mainly due to a current lack of interest and not incapability to learn if it were necessary.

• Painting

  I enjoy watercolors.

This site is basically built by an Operating System disguised as a text editor with a usable text editor installed as a plugin. If that description isn’t clear enough, I’m using Emacs with Evil Mode, and Org Mode to convert Org Mode documents into html to publish to a site. Maybe one day there will be a write up about how exactly I do this.

If you’re more interested about the content this site might host, I plan to write about technology and my paintings. I’m sure the scope will expand beyond, but those are the two things I already know I will write about.

I’ll be posting articles regarding the above on the blog section of this website. Just look up, and click the link, it’ll take you there!