Mostly-retired Emmy Award-winning technology executive and high-performance software developer. 30+ years building graphics, visual effects, and scientific visualization tools. Since retirement, I'm busier than ever, creating open source tools and projects, and leading Long Now Boston.
I still take on some VFX, graphics and fractional-CTO consulting through Dark Star Systems.
Previously CTO of GenArts (acquired by Boris FX), where I led 20+ years of visual-effects software development.
I write at Morning Coffee — musings on technology, science, music, art, and life. Recent posts on AI collaboration, the path to superintelligence, climate visualization, and more.
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Since "retirement" I've been working through my life-long backlog of "wouldn't it be great if someone wrote..." projects, most with some AI collaboration. See my blog for my conflicted feelings about what the oncoming AI freight train will do for or to humanity. Here are some projects I've done recently and am still working on:
- pcons — modern Python-based software construction tool; inspired by SCons and CMake.
- deep-time-timeline — log-scaled visualization of world events, to help us situate our own short lives in the continuous stream of deep time. Live: deep-timeline.org
- pelorus-nav — open-source web-based marine chartplotter. Try it at pelorus-nav
- jazz-calendar — every jazz show in Greater Boston, in one place: bostonjazzcalendar.com
- packzen — packing list app for travelers (packzen.org)
- featherstat — fast, small, self-hosted multi-site web analytics
- gco-llm-pkm — LLM-based personal knowledge management system
- sea-surface-temp-viz — daily sea-surface-temperature anomaly visualization, with 3d globe
- emacs-config — my Emacs config, refined over decades
- Academy Software Foundation OpenFX Project, open visual-effects plugin standard — Chair of the Technical Steering Committee (2022–present)
- SCons — co-manager 2000–2017
- Emmy Award (2019) for Outstanding Achievement in Engineering Development, for Sapphire Plug-ins
- President, Long Now Boston (2022–present)
- Patents and full history: see my CV
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