…me

A Dutch male going by the name of ‘Stefan’. Born in 1980, making him 28 (note to self: update this next May). I could stop there, of course, but there may be a bit more to tell about me.

My working life is one of a programmer. I make computer software, or more precise, Windows software for use with industrial networks (or fieldbuses), mainly the interfacing-it-to-the-computer part of that. Implementing protocols (like TCP/IP is a protocol over ethernet), software for configuring the devices made by the company I work with, all that good stuff. C, C++, Visual Basic (blegh) and LabVIEW are the things I work with. I never finished school, but I got this job because a friend knew someone who knew someone who… And since I knew my way with programming, I got a job there. It’s been eight years already — update this next year too — and I learned a lot.

In my personal life, there’s a lot of computer-related stuff too. I like to play PHP, trying to make a mess of my blog, making tiny plugins for personal use and whatnot. Other interests — web-wise — lie in the areas of web design and web standards like CSS, HTML and XHTML.
And of course, a lot of my online time goes into chatting with the loveliest girl there is.

There are times when I get away from the computer, though, and those are mainly spent reading, making music with friends and hanging out with those same friends. I love the books by Harry Mulisch, Cees Nooteboom (both Dutch writers), Gabriel García Márquez, Michel Houellebecq and Michel Tournier for the ‘literature’, but I like some fantasy by Terry Pratchett, R.A. Salvatore and Raymond E. Feist too. It’s been ages since I read Stephen King, but I used to read his books as well.
Making music is another big thing. I’m the singer in a band that makes music that has been called ‘intellectual arpeggio metal’ once. And that would mean? No clue.

Oh, and “Steeffie”? It’s an apocopation, as it’s officially called. Steef is short for Stefan in Dutch. Just like Steve is short for Steven or Stephen in English. Steeffie is something like “little Steef”.