Who am I?
Well name's Marc or @deathbypenguin and I'm from the UK... I came up with the username when I was 12 (now early 20s), and I've been using it since - I have no idea where my head was at the time
How Did I become a Web Developer?
Honestly? I had never intended to be a Web Developer. At age 13 I dropped out of school due to personal problems. Which is probably one of the best things to ever happened to me. It enabled me to do what I wanted to do. Not what the system and decided what I should do. Perhaps the dream situation for anyone is to be able to do what you want, when you want. That's what I had. And I chose to spend my time (or at least part of it) to be productive.
It was actually an older family member that showed me some really basic HTML and CSS. I loved being able to create things. I think of it, I work on it, and I see the result. It was rewarding and challenging. The perfect mix of creativity and problem-solving. What drove me to learn more wasn't "I gotta get rich quick" - There was no desire to make money. It was - and still is - a passion for creating new things and new experiences. A passion for something better. Admittedly, my ideas and projects were way beyond my skill level, but that's what kept me learning. I was a kid. I just wanted to do something fun.
Fastfoward to 19, I had spent 3 years in college doing a really basic IT course that was unhelpful and unenjoyable (met some great friends, tho!) and Electrical Installation. I came out of College and still had no idea what I wanted to do. What I did know was that bills needed to be paid. I needed a job. So I spent all of the cash I had on clothes for interviews and even borrowed money from my brother so I could travel into London for interviews. And without any experience or any good qualifications, somebody took a chance on me and gave me a job and a foot in the door.
TL;DR
Self-taught since 13. High-school dropout. Focused on just doing what I enjoyed, which is programming. Now working full-time in London.
My Projects
Well over the years I've had many different ideas and projects that haven't gone very far and I've done freelance work for small clients.
In order of most recent
1. @privex
What I feel is my most notable achievement is my most current project @privex. Being in full-time employment made me reluctant to, but I have joined the company in its early stages. It's a server-hosting company that aims to protect customer data and offer as much privacy to our customers as possible.
I am working with the CEO @someguy123 on a client panel and the billing system.
(confirmation from @someguy123 in the comments)
We've been friends for many years. This is one of many projects I have joined him on. He's a great guy, an idea machine and an excellent friend I've always looked up to. If you don't know him, you definitely should check him out.
2. Litevault (https://litevault.net)
This is the trustless online wallet for Litecoin. A project started by @someguy123. The logo was contributed for free by someone in the Litecoin community. The logic was made by @someguy123. I don't rate myself highly on designing, but he needed something half-decent and asked me to give him a hand, which I did. So the web design and front-end (visual/layout) was done by myself.
3. RSPA
This is an animal charity based in the UK. Many years ago I did work on a website for a small branch of the RSPCA in my local area. They had no website, and around 7 years ago, I built them a bespoke website and management system for them.
My Aim
As you can tell, I've been in the background for a long time. My name hasn't been on Litevault or any other projects done by @someguy123. I guess a good way of putting it is I enjoy being behind the camera. But now, I think it's time to come to the front of the stage.
I'm sure I'll be making my own personal posts on various topics, some development posts, and of course I work at Privex Inc, which I may write about and comment on from time-to-time.
Shoutout
I'd like to shoutout @someguy123 and @MaliceRed for me getting onboard here and for all the work they've done and we've done together. They're my most loyal of friends. @someguy123
Thank you for taking the time to read and I look forward to posting and reading more!