Steve Donie

DrillingInfo is a subscription based provider of information to the oil and gas industry. They have a web-based application that allows customers to search for various types of information regarding wells, leases, completions, production, and many others. We get a lot of the raw data from various state agencies using a variety of methods. As manager for the Data Integration Group, I am introducing agile development techniques in both project management and technical areas.

Development in C# and ASP.NET on a web-based system for electronic invoicing. For more information, see the DataCert website. All development done using Test Driven Development and an Agile development process. Software was been delivered very quickly, even in the face of very new business processes and vague requirements, with very high quality.

• As part of a two person team, implemented a rules engine in C# that replaced a badly-written version that was done in VB.
• Implemented a feature to allow electronic invoices to be digitally signed by a third party, using SOAP web services. Business process submitted for a patent.
• Helped design and implement a system for receiving invoices by fax, using secure SOAP web services to send the invoices to a outsourced data entry company in India, and validate invoices against client rules.

Landmark Graphics produces complex software for interpreting subsurface geology. Their customers include nearly all the major oil and gas companies in the world. Over a 6 year period, I progressed from Senior Software Developer to Manager of the Configuration Management group.

Software Engineer on three projects - starting with a COM based software framework for component based applications known as AppWorks. The core design of AppWorks has carried over into the other projects I have worked on. Beginning in 2000, we ported AppWorks to Java, and I did UI development and configuration management for the team. That project was picked up as part of a larger company initiative, which led to a 2 year, 60 person project to develop a prototype for client side technical software in Java. That then led to the development of the DecisionSpace infrastructure and a growing family of applications based on that framework.

Development and Configuration Management lead for DecisionSpace, a software infrastructure forming the base of Landmark's new family of software. Helped DecisionSpace transition from an internal-only devkit to a solid foundation for a growing family of commercial applications.

Manager for a team of 13, responsible for CM duties across the company, supporting nearly 400 developers with primary development locations in Austin, Houston, and Denver. During that time the group was instrumental in shipping at least one product every month. Members of the team were previously assigned to different product groups, but I formed the group into a cohesive team, helped them share best practices, improve consistency across various product lines, and improve communication. Through weekly conference calls, mailing lists, and a wiki-web that I set up and maintained, the team collaborated to document many previously undocumented procedures, centralize build reporting information, and improve the ability of the team to handle multiple projects.

• First person to use Ant for Java builds at Landmark, and defined best practices for other projects.
• Implemented Continuous Integration build system for DecisionSpace infrastructure and then other DecisionSpace projects.
• Awarded "Top Gun" award for best software developer at Landmark's 2002 Worldwide Software Developer Conference, based on my achievements in creating a complex automated build system.
• Nominated for "Employee of the Year" award, 2001.
• Gave presentations on speech recognition, Java performance tools, and Continuous Integration at the annual Landmark Worldwide Software Developer Conference in 1999, 2000, and 2001, respectively.
• Oversaw work of 9 developers in the Austin office, as well as leading a 4 person CM team with members in Austin, Houston, and Denver.
• Participated in architecture group that designed DecisionSpace infrastructure, a three-tier application framework that uses patterns similar to those used in J2EE.
• Represented development and CM in cross-project meetings, planning, and decisions, working closely with developers, program managers, and testers to communicate decisions made in those areas to other functional groups.
• Shipped DecisionSpace infrastructure development kit to internal clients October 2001, November 2001, April 2002, and October 2002.
• Shipped DecisionSpace family of applications April 2003, October 2003, June 2004, and December 2004 (approximately every 6 months).
• Implemented a CruiseControl generation and monitoring system to maintain builds for 35 software modules, on 2 branches and 3 operating systems.
• Managed a budget of $1.2M.
• Implemented a Common Installation initiative, to reduce the number of installers used across the company.
• Provided for cross group communication, including setting up wikis for DecisionSpace and the CM group.
• Prioritized tasks for the CM group, balancing the needs of more than 80 different projects in 4 different product families.

Designed, wrote and debugged Microsoft products and technologies for the disabled. Actively worked with four other members of design team to determine features and meet shipping deadlines. Consulted with developers to design and implement accessibility features in major Microsoft products such as Office and Internet Explorer. Provided developer support to third party accessibility aid vendors. Attended major trade shows and presented Microsoft products and technologies to vendors and consumers. Debugged complex interactions between applications, accessibility aids, and the Windows operating system.

• Sole developer of Active Accessibility, an extension to the Windows 95, 98 and NT operating systems that provides a standard interface between accessibility programs, applications, and the operating system. Version 1.0 shipped May 1997, patent pending. Version 1.2 shipped with Windows 98 and Windows 2000.
• Received Microsoft Patent Award for Active Accessibility.
• Wrote Microsoft Magnifier, a standard system accessory in all versions of Windows since Windows 98.
• Gained extensive knowledge of kernel and user mode debugging, COM, OLE Automation, and Windows 95, 98, and NT.
• Conducted accessibility programming training for 100 Microsoft developers at "Accessibility Day".

Designed, developed and debugged Windows City, a program to allow blind people to use Windows 3.1. As a member of a three person team, developed SmarTalk, an inexpensive hardware speech synthesizer. Designed alternative user interfaces. Performed system and application level programming. Performed market research to determine needs of people with disabilities and specify product features. Co-wrote research grant applications.

• Managed entire production of SmarTalk including the research of production costs, prototype assembly, writing and editing the user manual, writing installation programs, hardware and software testing, and the design of the marketing materials. Shipped in August 1995.
• Created portable computer system for the instruction and evaluation of children with visual impairments. System used by the itinerant vision teacher in the Fairfax County School District.
• Received over $500,000 in grant funding from various sources including the National Science Foundation and the US Department of Education for Windows City and SmarTalk.

Developed and shipped five innovative multimedia training programs combining PC's, touchscreens, and video discs. Member of design team which specified program content, flow, and user interface design.

• "Addiction and It's Processes" training program was awarded Best of Show by New Media magazine in 1993.
• Created, programmed and tested custom programs to track student progress, drive VCRs, and control animation systems.