This is Day 3 of 30 (in 30 days of Geek)…
What does your day job involve?
At the moment, I am working on a Java software application, which is used by researchers tracking wild animals.
This tool is used to download and configure GPS data from tracking collars (via USB Serial connections), and also aquires location data from the Argos satellite network. Once data is gathered, the software application stores it in a centralised database allowing the researcher to view and export data for external procesing, or save data for Google Earth.
In addition to Java development, I frequently dig into
- SQL (MYSQL, SQLServer and Apache Derby) for application development and reporting
- PHP (for our internal intranet)
- and even have to deal with embedded C (which runs on our tracking hardware)
I also administer our
- version control system (Subversion)
- documentation system (mediawiki)
- intranet website (joomla)
- issue tracking system (mantis)
To keep things interesting, I also am working on
- software test plans
- end user documentation
- database administration
- IT support
- customer (end user) support for software problems
We have some really cool applications, there is a never ending amt of work to do, and there is a pretty good variety of activities, so the work is never boring.
