My .nfo
When it comes to computers, I’m an old 1337 geek. Started with my black Apple ][+ in 1982. For Xmas of 82, I got my first of many a modem. A blazing 300 baud. I Became very active in the BBS scene, eventually ran my own BBS on Tele-cat ][, with my Novation Apple-Cat modem. Many modems later, I ran a BBS on Oblivion software. The BBS's were always called The Mars Hotel. Around the same time I got my first modem, I was the singer in a punk band. Couple years later, I got a Passport MIDI interface, while I still hand my Apple, and my fascination with computers and music was born.
After high school, I went to and graduated (at the top of my class) from Sound Masters Recording Engineering School. Funny, back then, we still used tape for recording and editing. The most advanced audio software was Sound Tools, the predecessor to Pro Tools, which was only 2 tracks and used for mastering.
To earn a living, I was doing IT work and audio work. The IT work always paid better, but working at clubs and recording studios was much more fun. Even though I wasn't making much, I worked on the TV show Quantum Leap for about a season and with Neil Young and Crazy Horse.
Then I met my wife. She was a band manager and started managing a friends band, who I was recording, at their home studio. She hired me to mix one of her other bands, at a club one night. I got a ride from her to that gig. It was a long ride and we had plenty of time to talk. We really hit it off. Neither of us wanted to. I had been single for 2 years and she had just got a divorce. But it happened in spite of what we thought we wanted. Both of us were burned out on the music scene, such as it was in the mid 90's. And she wanted to move away to the Eastern Sierra. So I grabbed some of my cloths and jumped in her van and we started a new life together.
I started working for a computer store and in a year I was the new manager and the head tech. After 6 years, I got tired of working all the free overtime and never getting a vacation or a raise and always hearing from the owner how broke we were. When I got the notice that we had lost our resale license because the taxes weren't paid. And the owner, who didn't even live locally anymore, wouldn't take care of it or anything else, I closed the store and went out on my own. After about a year of doing computer repair on my own, I found a job at a TV & Radio station. Been there for several years as the IT guy and main video editor. Sometimes I do voice overs for radio commercials and get to use some of my music on TV commercials or little features I make for the TV station.
For fun I play guitar and record my own music. All the audio engineering schooling wasn't for not. I also enjoy playing World of Warcraft and hanging out on efnet & undernet IRC. I also like to learn as much as I can about computer and network security. I drive Windows, OS X, and Linux, so there's no shortage of security exploits to learn about or software to play with.
-Chris R
