| Larry Hosken 330 Parnassus Ave Apt 203 San Francisco, CA 94117 | Contact Info: Don't bother. I'm not looking for work
right now. Resume: http://lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us/self/resume/ References: upon request |
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Availability: I'm not looking for work right now. Objective: I'm not looking for work right now. Experience summary: ten+ years technical writing; three years industry programming, CS degree Programming skills: Python, Javascript (Closure Library), Scala (a little), C/C++ (reading it lately, writing it long ago), UnrealScript (long ago), OpenGL (a little), Java (a little), Perl (long ago), Lisp (long ago), SQL (long ago), x86 assembly (long ago) Engineering Group skills: Functional spec writing, code reviewing, mentoring, developer support Tool/Environment skills: git, gcc, MS Visual Studio (long ago), Perforce/p4, Swat (long ago), Unix (Linux, BSD), Emacs Tech writing skills: HTML, Python wrangling of HTML, FrameMaker (long ago), doxygen (a little), MS Word, Acrobat Distiller (a little), Robohelp (once), researching, writing, editing Work History | |
| Technical Writer Twitter Jul 2012 - current | I explain things. |
| Staff Technical Writer Google Jan 2005 - Jun 2012 |
Documented internal tools. Wrote concepts, reference,
and best practices for build/compile tools and source control.
(Many of these tools are described at a
blog post by Mike Bland.)
Wrote and edited documents about API design. Wrote and edited docs
for using
Sawzall,
an analysis tool for large data sets. (I didn't write that academic
paper.) Wrote and maintained document-generating tools.
Documented App Engine Worked with a team writing about parts of the Google App Engine PaaS, including the NDB storage API. Developed Internal Training Mentored writers. Developed and taught live classes, both working with instructional designers and on my own. Ate at 17 cafeterias in one day. |
| Senior Technical Writer & "App Dev Kit guy" Openwave Feb 2003-Nov 2004 |
Documented Mobile Device Software Platform: Wrote
how-to, conceptual, and API documentation for Openwave's then-new
software platform. Wrote sample code. Researched topics by reading
source code and interviewing engineers.
Supported Developers and Wrangled Development Kit: Release engineer for platform's software development kit. Helped visiting manufacturer engineers with technical questions and debugging. |
| Programmer Infinite Machine Nov 2000-Nov 2001 | Programmed on New Legends, an XBox 3-D Beat-em-up game: Set up scripted game events using UnrealScript (a game-engine-specific scripting language). Some AI programming, setting up strategy for computer-controlled critters. Wrote Perl script to extract information from Premiere files useful for creating cutscenes. |
| Software Engineer & Senior Technical Writer, Blue Mug Inc Oct 1999-Oct 2000 Project Engineer, (Blue Mug spun off from Geoworks to continue a project started there.) |
Programmed W-CDMA smartphone: UI programmer on OS for
Mitsubishi D2101v, a Japanese smartphone. Designed, specified API
for new UI features. (New features included a high-performance
scrolling area.) Used logic analyzer for performance testing. Wrote
implementation specs for application coders. Mentored Japanese
engineers.
Wrote WAP provisioning doc: Technical writing contract with Phone.com. Rewrote large part of chapter about over-the-air provisioning for device programmers porting Phone.com's browser to their phones. Drafted Palm platform overview doc: Technical writing contract with Palm. Wrote a system software overview for potential licensees of their OS, explaining how to tweak software to support hardware changes. Topics ranged from UI design to communications protocols to microcontroller support. |
| Senior Technical Writer, Geoworks 1990-1998 |
Doc Lead on Embedded OS: Worked with a group to write
online SDK docs for GEOS-SC, the OS on the Toshiba Genio, Toshiba
Dialo, and Mitsubishi Moem-D Japanese smartphones. (Excerpts at
http://lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us/manual/sc/en/)
Co-ordinated & scheduled three other writers. Wrote sample
applications for SDK. Coordinated with remote Japanese translation
contractors.
Documented Visual Basic-like tool: Documented visual builder tool and BASIC language for Japanese engineers of Genio smartphone. Wrote sample code. Documented Embedded OS: Worked with a group to write printed and online SDK docs for PC/GEOS, an OS which ran on Intel desktop machines and, later, on handheld devices and smartphones. (Excerpts at http://lahosken.san-francisco.ca.us/manual/geos/) Read x86 assembly language. Wrote sample code. Wrote about graphics, printing, BSD sockets, other topics. Created FrameMaker templates for multiple volumes of docs. Supported Developers: Provided developer support for application developers on PC/GEOS. Answered technical questions in forums and via email. Lectured visiting developers. Assisted in training labs. Documented Hypercontent Editing Tool: Wrote user-level documentation for a WYSIWYG editor of proprietary-format hyperlinked documents. |
| Summer QA, Ingres Summer 1990 |
Converted test scripts for use with new tool: Learned SQL. Learned VMS. |
Education | |
| BA Computer Science, UC Berkeley 1987-1991 | Studied: Learned about OS design, compiler design, digital circuit design, theory, and AI (including grad-level courses in vision and natural language processing). Helped students with homework as a lab assistant for introductory CS course. |