I was a professional software engineer. My career lasted approximately fifteen years. I did real-time embedded pacemaker support-computer software, UNIX tools, PC tools, various forms of documentation, and pill-packaging machine robotics real-time embedded software. My work was regulated by the FDA and required a high degree of documentation, reliability, testing, and quality. Professionally I wrote software primarily in the languages of various assembly, C, C++, EMACS Lisp, UNIX script, and HTML.

My professional career ended in 1999 with the onset of mental illness. However, my condition is treatable by medication, and I am now quite functional. However I cannot readily rejoin the professional community in the bio-medical field due to my diagnosis of mental illness.

I have a Bachelors of Science degree in Electronic Engineering Technology from DeVry Institute of Technology (1985).

I tried to get into the professional gaming industry as a contracting "game modder" (3D modeling with a copy of 3D Studio Max I bought, and game editing) but this has largely failed, as the game I primarily modify for has refused to provide a new 3D model importer or exporter plug-in of any kind (making my copy of 3DSMAX useless, and making me unable to add any new models such as creatures, items, or terrain to the game). Therefore I have pretty much given up on doing professional game modification.

I am now considering doing professional TCL/TK programming, if that is possible, from my home in Hawaii. At least with TCL/TK all the tools are readily available.

I would *love* to work on a professional project in TCL/TK.

I've written quite a bit of TCL/TK stuff, but I am largely self-taught. I started programming TCL/TK in 2002. My completed TCL/TK projects: Mechwarrior4 Merc Modeler (an info utility for a commercial game), TESFILES (a tool for doing game modification of Morrowind, a commercial game), TESRESPEC (a different tool also for the above), MWSwitcher (a small utility to aid game modification of Morrowind), Gladiator Board Game (an Internet multi-player and solo play board game), and Piechart Disk (a utility to show disk usage in an interactive pie chart form).

My nickname is MentalElf. Well, there were a couple reasons I chose MentalElf, the first was that I assumed it was OK to be nuts in the gaming industry. Secondly, I believe that the stigma associated with being "mental" is generally inappropriate, and is more of a mistaken confusion of mental illness and mental retardation. Mental illness is treatable through medication, retardation is not. I hope to widen people's horizons... taking a moment to correct anyone I can.

My site is: http://mentalelfz.com

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