Coming to this About page, you most likely already know this site is about web technology and PHP. But I am not your typical tech professional.
My Story (Short Version)
- Worked as a portfolio manager during the financial crisis of 2007-2009.
- Left traditional finance to pursue a more quantitative and independent path.
- Learned Python and SQL to process and analyze financial data.
- Freelanced on financial models and data engineering projects.
- Built and still run a financial website selling trading calculators and tools -- see Macroption.
- Evolved from shared hosting and WordPress to self-managed Debian servers and my own PHP CMS, gradually picking up the deeper skills needed to design systems and keep them running reliably.
- Began offering my tech expertise as a freelancer outside finance.
In other words, this site is about the non-finance part of my work life. The finance part is at Macroption.
My Stack
- Debian for both desktop and servers (previously Ubuntu, before that Windows)
- Apache
- PHP for web development (sites, admin apps, services); I prefer plain PHP without frameworks, follow PSRs where it makes sense, and use Composer with some tweaks
- Python for data work, accounting, and automation
- MariaDb, though I increasingly use flat files where practical
- Git for almost everything; I run a self-hosted Gitea server
- OpenTofu and Ansible for infra and config automation
This is my preferred stack, but over the years I've also worked with common alternatives on various client projects: Nginx, PostgreSQL, Ruby, and more.
Solutions & Services
I help clients solve real-world PHP and web system challenges, whether by providing advice or implementing solutions myself.
- System Design & Architecture -- build maintainable, reliable systems that can grow and evolve
- Automation & Operations -- structured logging, session management, deployment, and workflow optimizations
- Custom Solutions -- tailored systems, CMSs, parsers, or backend tools that fit your exact needs
My solutions are tested in live production environments, including this very site. Full details are in the Solutions & Services section.
Blog
The Blog is where I record notes on projects, problems I solve, and interesting resources I come across -- mostly for my own reference, but some of it may be useful to others as well.
Contact
If you are interested in my work, have questions or feedback, or just want to say hello, please contact me.