Dan P.

My name is Dan Pratt (dpratt@innov8d.com). I consider myself a Full-stack Developer and DevOp. I know those are pretty heady buzzwords to hit you with right out of the gate, but I’m being genuine.

I am truly Full-stack. I have routinely worked front-to-back (HTML/CSS to JS to Backend to DB) on projects, and at points of my career have worked full projects solo because it was the most cost-effective way to get something done. My current preferred stack is React/Reduct, Python/Flask, and Postgres. In the past it was Ruby on Rails, Knockout, Postgres. Before that it was .NET MVC, jQuery, and Microsoft SQL. Before that it was PHP and jQuery and MySQL. So yeah, lots of stacks, lots of change over time.
 

I am really just learning how to effectively use React and Redux together, but I am a strong advocate for their use. I find that in every project where we’ve used React, we’ve had more flexibility in the front-end and much easier time refactoring for improvements or due to changing requirements. I would call myself a strong beginner with React/Redux, but I have a very strong background in complex client-side applications and am transitioning comfortably to React/Redux.

I started my career in IT, managing servers and networks. I focused on performance and security. As I’ve transitioned into application development role I find that these skills are more often than not a strong differentiator for me. I truly understand how to full tech-stack works. I’ve been very pleased with the DevOps movement, along with Continuous Deployment, Continuous Integration and the related technologies.

Mostly I’m a giant nerd. I like building things. Web apps are what I know how to build. I’d be lost trying to sculpt or build a house or fix a car, but I can build killer web apps. I like to read, I like how it introduces us to some many different possibilities, so many different universes. My partner and I run a book review website called Afterwords (www.afterwords.io) where we write about books. I’m nerdy enough that I have a full-sleeve tattoo comprised of various fantasy characters and elements: A hobbit house, Aslan, The Last Unicorn and the Red Bull, The Eye of Sauron, Smaug, a Wizard, Vampire, and Werewolf, and even a couple of dementors for good measure.

I’m different. It’s not something I was comfortable with when I was younger, but I view it as my core strength now. I see the world differently.

If you’d like to see some technical writing that I’ve done, check out:

The Case for Constant Progress
aka Building the Right Thing at the Right Time is Right, Right?
[https://medium.com/@innov8d/the-case-for-constant-progress-b427286983e7]

Deployment Automation FTW!
Around these parts we love automation. That’s not just because automating things is fun (it totally is — anything else is fighting words)…
[https://medium.com/@innov8d/deployment-automation-ftw-acf904b5789]

Horror Stories from the Development Trenches
Why Multiple Developer Workflow is Important
[https://medium.com/@innov8d/horror-stories-from-the-development-trenches-728160999eb8]