What About?

I guess there are a couple angles on what kind of "About" you might be after. Check them out:

About This Site

This site is served from a Linux machine inside my house, through a PFSense Firewall, out the cable internet connection, through Cloudflare's CDN service, and onward to you.

The server software is built on Next.js and extended with Markdoc support. I've built a set of components that are relevant to the kind of content I post. The software source code is available to anyone to copy and modify.

About Me

Zack at his music desk I'm a lifelong nerd, starting at age 7 in 1981 sitting for hours in awe of LOGO (Turtle Graphics) on an Apple ][, soon graduating to BASIC on a Commodore VIC-20 and then C64, and onward through the PC and Mac eras.

I started working in technology starting at age 17. I was lucky enough to hit the crest of the Internet revolution in the mid-late 1990s, being at the right place at the right time. My first "real" job out of school was at Yahoo!, then on to cofound a data visualization startup, then in various growing and pivoting companies in nearly every role and technical area possible.

I left my last job in May 2024, closing a 30-year chapter in technology. It was the right time. I now get to devote my energy to the things that matter most to me — my people, my open spaces, and the projects that let me contribute to my maximum ability.

I volunteer regularly with Santa Cruz County Parks and Santa Cruz Mountains Trail Stewardship, building and maintaining trails in the mountains around my home. Learning the art and science of trail making has given me a much deeper appreciation for every trail I walk or ride. It's hard, satisfying work with wonderful people.

I also build software for electronic musicians. I've released more than two dozen free and open source Max for Live devices, and most recently built Knobbler, a native iPad app for controlling Ableton Live. It continues to be the most joyful stretch of programming of my life.

I still make music too, and have a deep interest in the intersection of tactile interfaces and digital sound.

Have a look at my dad's website showcasing his history of creating, preserving, or resurrecting interesting vehicles of the past.

Let's chat!

GitHub
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram
[email protected]
https://steinkamp.us/
Scotts Valley, California