Saturday, November 15, 2008

Show And Tell (At the office)

Like RJ of Chookminder’s Quill, I’d also like to share with you something about me, what I do to be exact. I’m a computer programmer, and like some profession with broad field; I also have my line of expertise. Most programmers you probable know operate on numbers and databases, like those working in banks and business establishments. Others design web sites and web pages like the one you’re looking at now. Still others specialized on making games, animation and other graphics. Although I know a thing or two about the areas I mentioned, my specialization is programming the computer itself. While most deals with numeric numbers, I count hexadecimal or octal and binary digits. When most software extract, manipulates and then save files, mine “pokes” interrupts or hardware addresses.

My place around the corner

This is my office where I spend most of my 8 working hours. I got two computers, one for creating Windows application at the same time my means of connection to the outside world, the other for programming in DOS. Yes Watson, we still use that vintage operating system because we still have hardwares that only run in that environment.

My mini lab

Beside my cubicle is my “testing area”. This is where I diagnose programs for bugs. I got a small LAN (local area network) compose of a “server” sandwich between two “clients”. What I’m doing here is testing a program that allows the left client to talk to the right client, similar to “chatting” in the internet.

Using IP addresses, one can send a command from the left computer to tell the right computer to set-up those measuring instruments. This is how “zombies” work. And yes again, Watson, I have a few “incantations” hidden up my sleeve which are dangerous if in the hands of programmers who succumbed to the dark side of the force, our anti-thesis, the “hackers”.

There are two departments which use the system we develop, namely, Calibration Laboratory and the Monitoring Department.

Cal lab

This is where all our equipment under went inspection to guarantee it always gives the right reading. Our software helps determine if instruments’ tolerances are still within factory specification. Without it, what technicians could do in hours might take a day or two to finish.

Monitoring

This is the heart of the project. Its main job is to seek illegal or unlicensed users and regulate the air-waves. With the help of those huge, ugly antennas on the roof top, it can “eavesdrop” on any communication device that uses the atmosphere as signal conduit. Its antennas are very powerful that, on a clear day, it can receive radio signal from a passing ship in the Gulf, a distance of more than 600 km from us. With the help of our software, a push of a button and the computer will automatically conduct an orchestra of instruments to read, measure and report a target frequency.

Interesting or exciting perhaps? Not really, if you’ve been doing it for the last 18 years. How about you? What it’s like a day at your office?

17 comments:

  1. Nice! No dusts, unlike my workplace! o",)

    Sounds complicated, but surely not for a guy like you!

    Thanks for sharing it!

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  2. ay! sasakit at ang ulo ko sa ganyang trabaho..he he he.pero pards,yung dos,ganun din dito sa office,di parin nawawa yung dos kahit na hi tech na yung program dito sa office.di ko talaga alam yan..he he he.parang ang hirap.he he he.

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  3. a day in my office means reading workbooks and textbooks and looking for errors in all those manuscripts, boring eh? and half the day blogging, harharhar!

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  4. That looks interesting for me. But you're right. When one had mastered it and get used to it, it tends to look boring for him/her. Like in my case, it pretty technical for others. Sometimes it gets monotonous but most of the time it's challenging and makes me crazy, heehee.

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  5. AHA amazing!!!18 years uber!!!super linis work station mo.

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  6. That's a very impressive array of computing equipment you have out there. Correct me if I'm wrong but based on what you wrote, I think you deal a lot more with system programming than software application development. That's a very secure job.

    Congratulations and I wish you continued success in your career. :)

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  7. The first thing I noticed was how clean and orderly the whole place was!

    Your job sounds fascinating, although, as you said, it probably doesn't sound that way to you after doing it for 18 years. Now I know who to contact for any IT-related problems ;)

    No Linux in your company? I was shocked at your DOS revelation :P

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  8. sounds like a job fitted for those who are patient,smart and hard worker with that knowledge and skills you can cash in more if you move to the west...think about it.

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  9. wow! nice workplace. so organized and clean. you have a busy job.

    i actually admire people in this field.

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  10. RJ, with all these electronic equipment, its imperative to make the environment dust-free.

    ever, kanya-kanyang linya yan. Katulad sayo, maraming humahanga sa mga obra mo dahil hindi nila kayang gawin o mahirap para sa kanila ang pag-pinta.

    sheng, parang editor o proof-reader pala ang trabaho mo? Take care of those eyes.

    Ms.Jo, I'm also confused with the terms "debit" and "credit". Your terminologies are also as confusing as a contract written by lawyers. : )

    mightydacz, tanda ko na sa Saudi ano?

    panaderos, ahh, it takes a programmer to know my exact designation. But my "sys-prog" days stops at the 486x series. I can't get my hands on the architecture information of latter models of Intel CPUs. Besides that, MS is stingy when it comes to dissemination of its OS technical info.

    Mimi, I specialize only on certain fields. I'm not a consultant but I'll try to help if you got problems. As for OS, we got Unix in our mini-mainframe upstair.

    ed v., I know I'll earn more if I go somewhere but that would be like up-rooting my family and start all over again. Besides the whole world is in recession right now. Nobody's hiring. ; )

    donG, thanks, I also wish I could just travel to places and take pictures, like you do.

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  11. First time here. I got here thru Panaderos.

    Interesting job. Looks like you're working for a government agency with the likes of the CIA :)

    I know of wireless products that act as "air defense" and protects a company from external wifi router intrusion. I guess there's too much in the air these days that warrants out attention :)

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  12. ang linis ng desk! nahiya ako bigla. he he. nway, you must really be intellectually-gifted to be able to be a master at what you do. galing! sa itsura pa lang ng mga machines, natakot na ko. :-)

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  13. bw, although their are military intel working in our building, we don't "snoop" or plan invasion. I know what you mean with this "air defense" product. It's called a jammer. The most common are GSM signal suppressor installed in sensitive buildings to curtail celphone signals. BTW, thanks for dropping by. : )

    R-yo, don't tell me meron kang "technophobia" dahil meron ka nga'ng bagong digital camera at bagong-bagong laptop. : )

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  14. I think I got not too bad a deal when I was still working - three weeks in the field, a week in the office and a week or two time off, depending on how much comp time I earn.

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  15. wow, ang linis ng office nyo! hahahah! ours always looks like a bomb exploded in our midst ... full of itsy-bitsy pieces of windows, columns, and what have you. thanks for sharing!

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  16. bertN, that's a nice deal you got for field and office work. Is that one day vacation for every 6hours of overtime? BTW, thanks for dropping by.

    caryn, ganun din ang desk ko if I'm doing some research work, clutter of books here and there. But now a days I got it in CD, madaling mag hanap ng topic because of indexing and subjects linked to one another.

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  17. interesting. thanks for sharing this. parang ang genius tuloy ng tingin ko sa yo he he

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