Zach DeCook

Programmer

About

PHP backend developer with experience in database design, open source development, frontend technology, and C++. Honest, hard-working, self-starter with a high sense of ownership and problem-solving ability.

GitHub
Thingiverse
sourcehut

Work Experience

Better Car People

Software Engineer / Database Design Owner
- Present

Debug and refactor older PHP code base, integrating with Laravel and modern libraries. Provide useful code review feedback to enrich coworkers and ensure quality code. Advise and ensure functional database design under PostgresSQL and MySQL. Maintain python chat bot annually facilitating millions of SMS messages with customers on behalf of hundreds of car dealers.

  • Upgraded rules-based conversation engine to speak and understand Spanish.
  • Launched LLM-based SMS-agent to improve experience of booking an appointment.

Christian Classics Ethereal Library

Web Programmer
-

Debug and refactor old code base and write efficient queries for large database. Improve internal search index. Manage and develop code for Drupal, Wordpress, and Laravel-based websites. Provide useful and informative feedback through code review. Recover and reconfigure servers. Contribute to external open-source projects.

  • Redesigned Hymnary.org to work on mobile devices without compromising functionality
  • Created new omni-search page to show results of multiple types on one page
  • Designed and implemented key features for My.Hymnary.org including 'FlexPresent', stanza-meter-music-matching, music notation 'fit on N pages' feature, etc.

Bangla Ministries Worldwide

Technology Consultant
- Present

Advise web hosting options for Wordpress site. Update server and maintain wordpress website, including patching old plugins. Debug issues in CiviCRM. Prepare data for migration to external CRM.

  • Moved off of vendor's hosting to self hosting to save non-profit hundreds per month, and thousands in consulting fees.

Shaping The Silence Music

Technical Director / Consultant
- Present

Program and debug microcontrollers in MIDI instruments. Develop, design, and maintain website. Maintain git repo, merging changes from collaborators. Write CI for automatically building firmware.

  • Convinced boss to add onboard speaker to the HexBoard MIDI Controller

Volunteer

Hyprland / Alpine Linux

Open Source Contributor / Distribution package maintainer
- Present

Implement features and fix bugs in C++ codebase related to mobile touchscreen usage. Maintain multiple dependencies and package for desktop environment. Upstream patches fixing bugs with musl-libc builds.

  • Packaged Hyprland for Alpine Linux in 2023, overcoming objections with previous dependency on wlroots-git
  • Adapted workspace swipe for touchscreen
  • Reimplemented grabbing title bar with touchscreen in official hyprbars plugin

Simple X Mobile

Open Source Contributor
-

Dogfood own code, using a PinePhone as primary mobile phone. Improve stability and performance in Shell Scripts. Develop input methods with Wayland in C. Improve application support and discovery

  • Created external tools to implement swipe-typing in virtual keyboard with a unix-like pipe design.
  • Improved proximity lock code to use events from instead of polling, upstreamed patch to linux-tools-iio to facilitate this.
  • Created plan to move depedency NerdFonts off of assigned unicode codepoints with minimal disruption.

Education

Calvin College
-

Skills

Software Programming
Master
  • C++
  • C
  • Python
  • Go
Web Development
Master
  • HTML
  • CSS
  • Javascript
  • PHP
Relational Database Planning
Master
  • MySQL
  • PostgreSQL
Server/Service Management
Master
  • Ansible
  • Docker
  • Logical Volume Manager (LVM)
  • Hypervisor VM management (XCP-ng, XOA)
  • Cloud VPS management
  • Cloud DNS record management
Electronics Hardware
Capable
  • Interfacing components with microcontroller

Languages

English
Native speaker.
Spanish
Often able to understand.
Bengali
Understand simple sentences, verbs.

Interests

3D Printing
  • CAD Modeling with OpenSCAD
Music
  • singing as part of choir
  • playing piano keyboard as volunteer on church worship team
  • ukulele, guitar - intermediate
  • drums - novice