Hey there,
my name is Riccardo De Agostini; I usually go by Ric (in person) or @rdeago (online). I've been programming computers since the early '80s and, though I may have a trick or three up my sleeve, I'm still learning something new every day.
I never got around to graduating at a university, but I was one of the first students in Italy to get a high school diploma in automation and robotics, way back in 1989. I learned precisely nothing about IT at school, but it gave me at least two important lessons nonetheless:
- first, you don't have to know everything but you have to cultivate your search-fu;
- second, if you put a 1 or a 0 in the wrong place you might start or stop the wrong motor and someone might get hurt.
For more than twenty years I had a whole lot of fun writing automation software: from user interfaces to low-level motor control, and quite a few things in between. In 2015 I started my own business, where I can work on my own terms: keep technical debt at a minimum, open-source everything but the most critical projects, and Always. Be. Learning.
I like anything that can be broken down and explained. I like books and hate video courses. I like pizza, rock music, math, pizza, languages, sci-fi... did I mention pizza?
I have opinions: pretty strong ones, at times. And now I have a blog. 😁
Welcome to my world.