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About the Author | |
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Basics: Times keep changing. For some perspective on what I mean, read the previous About the Author. I'm an almost thirty year-old server and network geek and part-time college instructor in Connecticut. I'm married -- anniversary number three is in just a few weeks -- and I won't jinx myself by saying how I think things are going. But I think you can get my drift. :-) [9-9-01] Well, I'm now a thrity two year-old Network Architect, still with the Hartford Schools... Wedding aniversary #5 slipped by this summer. Time flies. We seem to have figured out this homeowner thing. Everything takes longer to get done than you think it should, but hey, that just seems to be the price of owning a house and having a life. At least the lawn gets mowed and the gardens look pretty good, even if we still haven't gotten to repainting the spare room. [9-9-01] You know, we still haven't painted the spare room. Though, we did replace the teddy-bear border with a floral one. The latest project is The Wall, which is a lot farther along now than these photos from May show. Photography is still a driving interest of mine, and has been for many years. Asha (a.k.a. Mrs. Shipman) and I recently completed a huge project -- documenting the dedication of a new Hindu temple in Middletown Connecticut. Some images from the Pranaprathistapana should be making their way onto the web shortly. [9-9-01] I've shifted over to a digital camera at this point. Though, I'm wondering about the long-term survivability of a digital-only image. Any way, I am still taking pictures, even though I haven't used our enlarger in two years. :-) My primary place of employment used to be Ensign-Bickford Industries, Inc. where I was the Network Operations Manager. I have since moved on to the Hartford Public Schools. My job there is direct server and network administration and design. It's not so much a greener pasture, but one with a lot less poison ivy and briars. Hartford is a fairly poor city, with a lot of problems -- not just with the school system. So, I'm excited to have the opportunity to do something with my work that can contribute to the greater good and not just a corporate bottom line. [9-9-01] Let us not be deluded -- Hartford has its share of briars and poison ivy. But, it is a good feeling knowing that one's work is enhancing the common good. I made the decision to get involved in my union's contract negotiations this year. Participating in the process has been enlightening. Most of the lessons have been negative, and the process is deeply frustrating. I wouldn't trade this experience, but if I'm still with the Board in three years there will be some real soul-searching on my part before I volunteer again. My moonlighting job is teaching an introductory networking class to students in the Computer Systems Technology program at Northwestern Connecticut Community Technical College. 1999 was my fourth year of teaching at NCCC. Last year (1998) I tried something new by posting class materials on the web. The experiment was a success. So, for this year I decided to get around my inability to find a level-appropriate text book for the clas by writing one: Mr. Shipman's Network Primer. [9-9-01] Alas, this is one thing that has fallen by the wayside. With my (work) move from Simsbury to Hartford, it became clear to me that commuting to Winstead to teach would be too much. I haven't gotten back in the classroom yet, and with each passing year my desire to resume teaching grow more acute. The wiring (and now, rewiring) of the house continues apace. We only have air conditioning in the master bedroom, and with the recent hot weather Asha suggested that I put a network drop in there. (I am a very lucky man!) So, a little while later we now have household network access from the living room, kitchen, office, and master bedroom. I still can't figure out an inobtrusive way to get into the spare room, but given engough time I'm sure I will. I'm working on re-homing all of the non-office drops to the basement (where the servers are located) to simplfy things in the office itself. A man's gotta have a hobby! [9-9-01] Still haven't gotten a drop into the spare room, but I have placed a double-drop in the kitchen. Having 7x24 Internet access makes the household LAN a lot more useful for all the residents. Additional information: So, from the above you might assume that I must have something like an MS in computer science, right? Well, no. I hold a BA in History from the University of Connecticut. It's a long story, but involves starting out at UConn as a CS major, flunking math 110 (Calculous I), a girl, and a few other things. The girl is long gone, my college years are a ways behind me, and I'm working in my intended field anyway. So, I guess that all-in-all things turned out pretty well. I'm hoping that this web site won't turn into another one of those semi-stagnant exercises in narcissism that are most personal home pages. Hence the statement of purpose, and the intent to focus on delivering useful, or at least entertaining and thought provoking, information. The last things you'll find here are pictures of my cats, my truck, my house, my wife, and all that other stuff. (You know what I mean.) So, I hope that what you find here proves useful, enjoyable, or enlightening. And, please pardon any typos. I'll fix them all eventually. [9-9-01] OK, I broke that rule. There are examples of all of those photos on the site. They are, however, all cordoned off in the Family Photo section.
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[ RESUME ]  1997-2001 Stephen
Shipman | Created 12-19-97 | Last updated: 9-9-01 |
