About
"A human being should be
able to change a diaper, plan an invasion,
butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance
accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders,
give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new
problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight
efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." - Robert
Heinlein
Extroverted (E)
65.71% Introverted (I) 34.29%
Intuitive (N)
67.65% Sensing (S) 32.35%
Thinking (T)
75% Feeling (F) 25%
Perceiving (P)
53.85% Judging (J) 46.15%
ENTP type
| ENTP - "Inventor". Enthusiastic interest in everything
and always
sensitive to possibilities. Non-conformist and innovative. 3.2% of the
total population. |
risk taker, easy going, outgoing, social, open, rule
breaker, thrill
seeker, life of the party, comfortable in unfamiliar situations,
appreciates strangeness, disorganized, adventurous, talented at
presentation, aggressive, attention seeking, experience junkie,
insensitive, adaptable, not easily offended, messy, carefree,
dangerous, fearless, careless, emotionally stable, spontaneous,
improviser, always joking, player, wild and crazy, dominant, acts
without thinking, not into organized religion, pro-weed legalization
|
Favored careers
(I've marked in red
my actual achievements) :-)
| dictator, computer
consultant , international spy, TV
producer,
philosopher
, comedian, music performer, IT
consultant , pilot
,
politician, diplomat, entertainer, game designer, bar owner ,
freelance
writer, creative director, strategist
, news anchor, professional
skateboarder, airline pilot, comic book artist, college professor,
private detective, mechanical
engineer, lecturer,
ambassador,
astronomer, research
scientist, judge, web
developer , scholar, FBI
agent, CIA agent, electrical engineer, assassin |
I am
a polymath, a
polyglot, an engineer, an entrepreneur, a pilot, and
sailing yacht skipper.
Since I remember I have always been interested in everything technology
and everything electronics in particular. In my entire life, if you had
to use one word to describe me, that would be "technology". That's me!
Lately (last 10 years) I have found myself being fascinated with human
sciences - arts, philosophy,
politics, and economics.
Looking back at my life, I can see few distinct phases being formed -
not that I started and stopped what I was doing - but just the
circumstances allowed me to focus and enjoy certain things over other.
I have been very lucky, I must say..!
Early
phase - Radio and Micro-electronics (and finding time to go out
courting girls and partying with my friends.)
In the late 70's and early 80's, while making my first steps in the
world of microelectronics, I became intrigued by the newly invented
concurrent computing microprocessor called Transputer.
I spend many
days (and nights!) writing code for and wiring circuits around the new
microprocessor architecture, which ultimately gave me an edge when the
early microprocessors, like the MOS 6502 (in the Commodore computer) or
the Motorola 68xxx series (Apples, Elisa and Mackintoshes), became more
popular in building mainstream Personal Computers. In late 1982, I've
build my own design PC (around MOS 6502), on which I executed my own
written code.
In the university, I programmed mainly on a 32-bit VAX computer -
Fortran IV and 77. I also programmed on the Apple II (a locally made
clone actually, Pravetz 82) computers, on Applesoft Basic interpreter
of course, where I had fun wiring these small computer into very crude
local area network (LAN) around a single non-dedicated server that I
wrote, sharing the single 5MB hard drive (!) that some of them had with
15-20 workstations. In late 80's I started developing mainly on
industrial computers (Z-80 Assembler language) and later on I shifted
my interests into helping the traditionally paper based financial
departments of the SME businesses adopting early (very unreliable)
models of the computer systems and implementing them in their business.
Those were the days of Lotus 1-2-3 and Abacus 2000 (and Prince of
Persia of course.). Great fun and paying very well - especially the
maintenance of the industrial computers.
Settling
phase - Microelectronics, Computer Networking (LAN and WAN)
and Digital video processing (no time for partying, but setting-up a
home and living in it comfortably with my small family.)
Just a after I emigrated to South Africa (back in April 1992), I joined
this OEM manufacturer of corporate workstations and LAN/WAN components.
Great opportunity for me to use my skills and knowledge. That was the
time when all microelectronics designers have comfortably settled on
using the Intel x86 (up to i386) architecture, and I boldly went on to
the next gen, i486 and the i960 families (I will come to that later!)
I started specialising in digital video processing - that just happened
to be at a time when digital processing required one to have extremely
complex and expensive equipment in order to achieve any results one
could be proud of. The normal CPUs and MPUs just did not have enough
processing power to manage the software analogue-to-digital processing.
I did this "digitalisation" differently. I used a simple 16-bit PC
equipment and cheap grabber cards while others used millions of dollars
worth of equipment. I am smiling when I tell the nice story - back in
1992 I demoed real time video stream digitisation with latency (stream
delay) of only 220ms, this on a 16MHz IBM PC. The secret was called
RISK processor - something not a lot of people knew about at the time..
Today not many would be impressed by my achievement, but I still keep
one of my real-time video encoders, outputting into Ethernet
(10/100Mbps) and ATM 25Mbps (does anyone remember that standard..?) as
a nice reminiscence of the time gone by..
Entrepreneurial
(flying high) phase - Information, Communications and
Technology (ICT), Telecommunications and Commercialisation of
Technology (also flying with my aircraft to as many places possible in
the shortest time..)
Although initially I focused on few technology areas only, over the
years it became apparent that my interests in technology have always
been rather multifaceted. Over the years I added more and more to my
knowledge and experience, but the main trend remained - to identify
most interesting concepts within the broader technology domain at a
particular time point, develop expertise and build hands on experience
of those technologies, never stop the knowledge gathering process. ever.
My main focus was to discover all new technology trends early in their
development cycle, introduce them to the South African ICT market and
re-model the way the IT is seen by the Corporate's - from a simple cost
center (mostly burdening the rest of the operations) to the
dramatically opposite position - a business enabler, competitive
differentiator and operations cost optimiser. Those were the early days
when the Internet revolution painfully slowly (and suspiciously)
started to be adopted by the Corporate.
I've headed number of small and large ICT engineering divisions to
local and multinational companies. It was fun. I've discovered and
signed up to value-added-resell some small unknown companies products
(small then, like Microsoft, Cisco..) to the local corporate market.
That was even more fun. And I eventually joined a private equity
investment firm (I did not know what the term private equity means
then) and invested large amounts of capital in some really exciting
small technology companies. That was the most fun ever!
In retrospect, it is interesting to see how my focus shifted but kept
following the general technology trends at the time. In the period of
1998-2006 - 6 years - I had been exposed to so many diverse
technologies and companies that I can only say that I was privileged to
found myself at the right time and place and being able to add value to
other people's businesses
Over this period I constantly added to my interests - that's how I
became a pilot, an little bit late, when I bought my first aircraft - a
Rockwell Commander - I entered the world of aircraft ownership (and the
pain of it..).
Descending
(and soft landing) phase - Sharing my expertise, high-end
consultancy, closing down all businesses that are not annuity revenue
generating stars (and intending to retire, sail the seven seas,
live-aboard and experience the world in all it's diversity of
cultures..!)
Now, I am just entering this phase. While I am mostly busy with
providing consultancy services to a small number of companies I have
build relations with in the past, I am also trying to find time to
finish the timing models for the troposcatter TDMA setup.
I've also re-structured my businesses to the effect of closing all
businesses that were dominating my time and leaving only the ones that
were operating without the need of me. I also formed two new ventures
that I would like to think will nicely support my future life-style
while running ashore.
My immediate target is to build enough momentum (read convert all of my
assets into cash) so I can start building my cruising catamaran yacht
(read more about that under the Nautical section to the left). I am
currently planning to start the 9-12 month project sometime in the
middle of 2009 and finish it in by the mid 2010.
So as I said, I am just entering this phase, I am extremely excited and
anxious to see it trough and I cannot wait to board my world cruising
sailing yacht and sail into the sunset.
Note and disclaimer:
This is
not
a CV, if you want to see my CV, make
sure you can comprehend it, prepare your reasons for asking to see it
and I will send you my current CV. But you have been warned - that is
not going to be a CV that you see every day :-)
1980 - I've got my first recognition, a golden medal at the local
technical fair (TNTM) - design of a fully automated alarm system (one
that phones the Fire Brigade, speaks to a person in a synthesized voice
and tells the human in plain language what the emergency is about..)
1982 - Electronics, radio voice and data communication technologies,
early electronic human interfaces, anything electronics, also a radio
ham out of LZ2KSU (Gen. Toshevo rulez!)
1983 - Internetworking - early Internet like global data networking -
FIDO NET - modems and data compression, bulletin boards..
1985 - Personal Computers (Apple IIC, Commodore 64, IBM PC) and Basic
language - I still have a 5MB hard drive in my personal museum..
1989 - Integration of PC and Mainframe technologies, use of large data
storage areas
1989 - The first of my two inventions - energy efficient (low
harmonics) three phase digital sinusoid synthesizing
1989 - My second invention - information flowing in the opposite
direction of the flow of energy (now pause for a second and try to
comprehend that..)
1990 - Everything for an electronic office - PC hardware, peripherals,
Business software, communications, registering my first company -
repair and maintenance of industrial computers, implementation and use
of PC in the financial departments of companies
1992 - Electronics and PC manufacturing - surface mount, automated PC
board testing, efficient design/manufacturing protocols
1992 - LANs and WANs, Novell, Microsoft Windows into the corporate
world, Internet connectivity, converging technologies - voice, data,
multimedia
1993 - Can a leading software house build an expertise in Networking
from zero - I successfully proved it can by setting-up a specialist
computer networking division within the traditionally software services
company..
1994 - Can a leading retail hardware manufacturer do the same - oops..
I did it again! - the best achievement and recognition was to land with
the largest WAN order in the country.
1995 - E-commerce, Multimedia, VoIP (check the year, do you think there
were many VoIP specialists in the country at that time..?)
1996 - Wireless LANs and WANs - proprietary 2.4 GHz based -
demonstrated 2Mbps connectivity using 20dbm (100mW) EIRP over 60 km
range (Yes, 60km!) - Note for the ones in the know - the Fresnel zone
was over 30m thick in the middle, calculated loss was over 30% because
I could not raise the antennas high enough!
1997 - Software development - structuring of efficient software
development house, functional point system of valuing IP.
1998 - Corporate IT systems - use of technology as a strategic business
enabler - IT deployed not as a cost center, not as a business support,
but as a core business enabler and key differentiator.
1999 - Develop business exploiting the brand value in consumer
acquisition - free Internet model introduced into South Africa
2000 - Commercial aspects of technology - I've joined a leading private
equity business as a partner and helped raising their first
(and only)
Technology Fund.
2001 - Investigating global satellite messaging communication systems
2002 - Investigating scientific laser manufacturing (CO2 based), Si28
isotope enrichment using unique centrifuges (hmm..), Biotech data
mining (this one I did research thoroughly, but I have to admit - I did
not like it very mulch..)
2003 - Investigating multimedia pre- and post-processing, investing
into efficient software manufacturing, Web portals into corporate
environment.
2003 - Investing into business providing data services to the mobile
network operators
2004 - Investing into business of revolutionary nuclear power
generation (Pebble Bed Modular Reactor) and optical sighting and
ballistic systems (don't ask, for me to become involved with that kind
of businesses I must have been smoking something cheap and nasty at the
time..)
2005 - Investigating international voice operator into Africa,
commercial VoIP, satellite data, international voice clearing houses
2005 - 3G ambitions of a MNO - consulting to a GSM MNO to get them
beyond the 3G stage, R&D into 3G , Wireless broadband, P2MP
Microwave, early Wi-MAX use modeling
2006 - On-line corporate training and education systems - launch of
three on-line education businesses
2006 - Wireless Broadband Access Networks in urban and semi-urban areas
- creating feasible business models that target separately the consumer
and the business markets
2007 - Going back to my investment roots - raising capital for one of
my new technology start-up
- interesting, challenging and fun, really.
2007 - Satellite data communications and Internet access - IP-Sys - SES
New Skies and iDirect solution, tailor made for the African continent -
also used by one of my new businesses
2007 - Designing and experimenting with extremely low cost
Video-On-Demand systems. Example: A Wi-Fi based VOD, including the
storage for 2,000 hrs of HD content; wireless distribution system to
stream HD to 15 users concurrently or to 50 users concurrently if
streaming SD, users living in an area of 1 sq km, excluding the STB,
total system cost is under US$ 3,000. Each STB is around US$300. What
do you say..?
2007 - Establishing Wi-Fi
Mesh - state of the art wireless broadband
network operation, building wireless mesh network at a fraction of the
traditional network costs (really, 150 times lower cost if compared to
the traditional methods of covering urban areas with wireless data
networks)
2007 - Launching the WAVE - the first product to run on the Wi-Fi Mesh
Broadband Wireless Network
2007 - Solar Photovoltaic (PV) - I've spend most of the year
researching, experimenting with and building empirical knowledge about
this most fascinating area of energy generation. Thin-film and
polycrystalline manufacturing processes and components. Some key words
for you to Google - insolation,
DSC,
CIGS,
grid-tie
2008 - Prime Movers - Hmm.. something very unusual, even for me - I
spend a time in R&D around two areas - the Diesel cycle engine
(I am in a process of patenting unique engine configuration that uses
the Diesel cycle) and the Gas Turbine engine.
2008 - Data publishing and operating a Web portal - setting up easy to
manage web portal is definitely not an easy task.. It requires
dedication and understanding the fundamentals of data publishing and
interfacing the mixture of dynamic and static data sources to a level
that I never have bothered to go before to (hugely challenging but
satisfying..!)
2008 - Consulting services provided to number of large
telecommunications and media companies (very, very diverse and
interesting I must say..!)
2008 - Researching into cruising catamarans, fiber-glass sandwich
technologies, epoxy, paints, sailing rigs, self-sufficent energy and
life-support plants, UV and salt-water resistant surfaces.
2008 - Designing and experimenting with a Small Gyro-Stabilised VSAT
platforms suitable for small sailing yachts, also modeling a TDMA over
troposcatter to potentially cover the satellite gaps of coverage in the
oceans
I am a polyglot.
Currently I am fully fluent in Bulgarian, Russian and the English
languages.
I used to be fully fluent in Turkish and German as well, but after
spending 16 years in Africa and having no way to practice the two
languages, I have slowly forgotten them. I know, with little practice
they may come back to me easily, but for now I cannot claim that I am
fully fluent or even fluent at all when it comes to the latter two
languages
What I find interesting is to develop my linguistics to a level of
hyper polyglot - which means that I have to be fluent in 6 or more
languages. That ambition of mine may well become useful to me in my
next phase in life - sailing in the world oceans and meeting different
cultures all the time.
If I brush off my German and Turkish and find a way to practice -
either join a group or something locally and find access to a German
and Turkish TV channels - I can go back to the level of mastering 5
languages like I used to have.
Then, I need to add one more. Most suitable to me is the Mandarin
language as spoken by most in mainland China and written using the
simplified form. I have been starting and stopping my Mandarin studies
for some time now, so it would not be that difficult to force myself to
do the last little step and just finish it. Currently, I am quite
advanced in speaking and listening and my vocabulary is quite extensive
as well, but I cannot say that I am fluent.
One particularly interesting way I can accelerate my studying of the
Mandarin language is if I visit and live in China for a year or two. I
found a very interesting option to attend a linguistic course in one of
the leading Chinese universities where the programme allows that one
lives among the locals and in addition to learning the language, also
acquires knowledge about the culture and the history of the Chinese. If
I find myself not being that busy, I can quickly give myself that gift!
When I conquer that, I can then proudly call myself a hyper polyglot!
I am very well traveled.
Since 1971, when I visited Russia (it was known as CCCP back then),
I've managed to visit 39 more countries (17% of all countries on the
planet). In some I lived longer than 3 months, some I visited for a
week or so only. I do not count the countries that I've past in
transit, only the countries I lived for more than a week count.
Notably, I have never visited the continents of South America, Asia
Australia and Oceania as of yet..
It looks like the 83% of the planet is waiting to be explored. I am so
happy that my next phase in life will allow me to achieve this. You may
say that I am the luckiest person on the planet..!
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