iSick Bay started because friends of mine whose computers I had been fixing for the past 20 years started handing me their iPods and asking me to fix them. There are many similarities and because of my deep knowledge of computers and mechanical things I was able to put my mind around what I was seeing in an iPod immediately.
After fixing six iPods as favors in a single week, two friends suggested I start a business to earn "mad scientist" money. You know, money to buy new servers and personal enrichment/knowledge project money.
There are links about other things I'm interested in on the left. I'm an award wining wine maker, award winning photographer, a film/screenplay buff among other things.
Now let me give you something on my work background.
Specific Skills
PERL, Python, Java, Javascript and SQL Programmer
Write programs for data extraction and
presentation in the UNIX environment. Write and modify Shopping cart
programs to present and accept specific information to create a
personalized shopping experience.
LAN/WAN manager
using TCP/IP, DECNET, DEC Pathworks, Appletalk/Localtalk, EtherTalk,
T-1 and T-3 circuits,
I have also worked with Internet work hubs, routers and terminal servers
System administrator for a pile of different computers operating systems now and in the past, including
DEC VAX/OpenVMS 6.1~6.2 & 7.1~7.2, Silicon Graphics Irix
5.3, 6.2 & 6.5 UNIX, Hewllet Packard HP-UX, IBM AIX
Microsoft Windows XP (soon Vista, but since the SP1 release was so lame I'm not sure if I want to support it), Microsoft Server environment, and Macintosh 9.x and OSX environments providing
advanced level of support to end users. Maintained the hardware and
software of these systems.
Web Server Installation and System administration
have installed and maintained
Apache server on HP-UX 10.20 and on SGI IRIX 6.5, Also Apache on Suse Linux 10 and Microsoft IIS on Windows Servers
Hosted multiple domains
on Silicon Graphics IRIX/UNIX and Hewlett Packard HP-UNIX based
Internet servers. Wrote CGI/PERL and
JAVA scripts to enhance its appearance and usefulness.
email System administrator
using Sendmail, postfix, dovecot on UNIX servers and Post.Office on Windows Servers
Ardent user of Adobe programs
..including Photoshop, Illustrator, Pagemaker and Dimensions used for
both
Web and print media publishing. For web publishing I also have used GoLive, Cold Fusion
Program and administrate phone systems
from Toshiba, NEC, Panasonic, Seimens/Rolm and Harris. I have been the
system administrator
for Octel VPC100/Aspen & Toshiba Strategy DK voicemail systems.
Designed bar code Point of Sale systems
using Zebra, Metrologic and Symbol Technology hardware which was
interfaced with the larger ERP system.
Maintain and can fix most computer hardware
down to board level parts replacements, including cpu's, dot matrix
line printers,
laser printers, bar code printers, cash drawer terminals, bar code
scanners, and keyboards of all types.
This iPod repair thing I do
Starting around 2003 friends of mine began handing me their broken iPods to fix. Among my friends I am considered the fellow that can fix
anything except a rainy day. From childhood I have always studied how things work and it's lead me to be quite skillful at figuring out
what is wrong with something and how to fix it.
In 2004, in a single week, six friends dropped off their iPods with different problems, in each case I was able to correct the
problem and hand back to them their working iPod again with all of their music files intact. The last two were a doctor and lawyer friend
of mine who commented that the Apple response to their problem was a $210 out-of-warranty repair or Apple wanted them to trade in iPod and
buy a new one for $250 less a $25 trade-in. Both of these friends commented that "there seems to be an opportunity here".
So I did a soft launch of an iPod repair business to test the waters and it was well received.
While the 'contract technical problem solver' part of me is gratified by coming up with solutions to complex problems... almost all of that
work is performed under a non-disclosure agreement and I never get to discuss the tools and methods I use even among colleagues. So those
projects are not something I get accolades from.
On the other hand this iPod work fits well into my computer skills and people adore me for being able to get their iPod running again.
If you're someone that has dropped your iPod in... water, the toilet, a pot of soup, a hot tub for half and hour, saltwater in the Sea of
Cortez, water bottle exploding in your gym bag, sink full of water while drunk in a bar bathroom... I'm you're best salvation and I have
people send me their iPods from as far away as Korea, Scotland, Brazil, France, England, all over Canada and all over the US to solve
liquid immersion problems.
~ frank
