Projects

Software Development:

redbackpack.ca

Redbackpack has been evolving for a long time, almost 2 years!

Above all else, redbackpack is the name for my homelab server. It's a big lenovo tower I bought for about $200, and its basically my own private data center that lives in my apartment.

I have learned so much setting this thing up, tearing it down, picking something new, and then starting fresh, so many times! The most recent iteration was a fairly serious level-up in terms of robustness, and I think I'll keep things the way they are for now.

Basically, I've setup a platform and workflow that enables me to very quickly create and publish websites and full-stack web applications, using just my home wifi and a big computer tower on my bookshelf.

^{A basic diagram of my home server}

The basic setup is this:

1. Bare Metal: The machine runs a lightweight hypervisor called Proxmox, which has a handy WebUI that lets me spin up Virtual Machines (VMs) or linux containers (LXCs) with the click of a button, while using minimal system resources. Proxmox acts as my layer between hardware and my actual running environments. It gives me peace of mind that I can manage the environments that manage my environments safely.
2. Debian Server: Proxmox runs an LXC of a basic Debian image. Within here, I install Docker and the first image I spin up is Portainer.
3. Now I open up the portainer WebUI and spin up the rest of my required services for my development pipeline such as:

• NGINX Reverse Proxy for routing web requests and generating SSL certs.
• Gitea for hosting my own private docker registry & enabling some really nice CI/CD stuff.
• Tailscale so I can connect to this network securely from remote locations.

Now I can spin up docker containers and expose them to the internet easily! Even my static sites, such as the one you're reading now, run in docker containers. For static stuff like this site, I use BusyBox because it lets me build ridiculously small images (< 1mb).

Vibecheck

A Social media for artists and underground events.

While still in pre-alpha, Vibecheck is a virtual community space for artists and patrons to congregate and exchange.

Currently vibecheck features user authentication, a public chat room, a list of upcoming events, and a magazine.

As a musician and community member, I felt that we had too much reliance on huge platforms like Instagram and Facebook to coordinate our events and artistic exhibitions. I thought, if everything we do is DIY, why not extend that to our digital experiences as well?

So I began building with Quasar Nuxt 3 (that was a close one!) and connected to a self hosted BaaS called Strapi.^†

^{screenshots of vibecheck v0.0.3}

I'm shipping it as a PWA and it will be able to send push notifications and geotag uploads (with user consent!) to hopefully provide added value to my users.

Development has gone on temporary pause while I put all of my resources into finding meaningful work writing code for money, but this will be my long-term side project for the forseeable future.

^{† I want to switch over to Directus soon.}

Design and Creative Management:

Distortion

distortion.crew

Distortion was a series of art exhibitions and musical performances which required immense amounts of planning and cross-domain expertise to execute properly. My role was very broad and involved making many impactful decisions, directly delegating tasks to staff and volunteers, maintaining accountability and integrity throughout.

All my creative assets are generated from scratch, either via drawing, lineart, or photography, and then composited in photoshop.

^{My final design for the Print Poster}

^{My Logo Design process (simplified)}

The events were very successful, largely due to our marketing strategy and branding plan.

For more information on Distortion, you can click here: distortion.crew

Drop a Line...

Dear reader,

if you like what you see on this page, and would like to chat about working together:

• Please visit the Profile page and get in touch.
• Consider making an Appointment with me
• Or forward this website along to someone who you think may be interested in working with me.

Thank you kindly for your time, and wishing you all the best!