• Tag Archives submarines

  • How To Be An Undercover Geek

    Posted on by Tim

    As a kid growing up in rural, central California, my Dad took me to the International Farm Equipment Show. It was a highlight for me because I spent the entire day with my Dad. As well, it was the first place where totally “geeked out!” I also discovered the I’m an undercover geek.

    Yeah, I know, this reads a bit silly, and I’m OK with that.

    Let me break down what, for me, being an undercover geek is about. Firstly, it’s about seeing new technology on display, before it hits the market. Secondly, it’s about getting beta or preview access to new software. Finally, it’s about (or used to be about) getting the hottest, newest tech before anyone else.

    Most important, its about NOT shouting about all this new stuff from the roof tops!

    I can’t emphasize this point enough. DO NOT TELL ANYONE you have access to new tech or go to events where new tech is on display!

    Crew standing topside on the USS WYOMING (SSBN 742)
    Commissioning crew photo from the USS WYOMING (SSBN 742)

    For me, being a geek was not what I wanted as an identity when I was younger. Now, I’m mostly OK with the label. Please don’t ask me to come over and fix your computer at home!

    Back then, I was embarrassed about how my peers would see me. It was not cool to be a geek where I grew up. Times are different now.

    I choose to geek differently as an adult than when I was a kid and teenager. I had a beta GMail account, before it went mainstream. I’m blogging on a laptop with a preview release of Windows 11.

    I still struggle with the stigma of being an undercover geek. It’s not easy to outgrow the pain that came with the label. Although, I’m on complaining about the pay days as an adult!

    Find your undercover geek and be OK

    I want to encourage you. It’s OK to be an undercover geek. Don’t worry about what people might say if they found out that you have a passion for technology.

    From a fellow undercover geek, I have your back. I figured out a way to make being an undercover geek pay off. Believe me, I never would have imagined that I could be part of a nuclear submarine crew when I was five!

    Be cool, stay calm, and geek on!


    📂This entry was posted in Personal 📎and tagged

  • I Was Blinded By Sound Then Technology Took Hold

    Posted on by Tim

    I was blinded by sound then technology took hold. Not literally blinded, but in the sense because sonar systems on submarines fascinated me and the sound was on full volume, wow! I must admit, the technology bug bit me when I was still in elementary school. How that happened is a post for another time.

    The official phrase is “acoustic analysis” for what I did as a sonar operator in the Navy onboard submarines. I stood sonar watch on the USS ARCHERFISH (SSN 678) and the USS WYOMING (SSBN 742). I might have stood the watch onboard the USS OHIO (SSBN 726), my memory is fuzzy on that one.

    USS ARCHERFHISH 1992
    The USS ARCHERFISH (SSN 678) in Groton, Connecticut, US

    Anyway . . .

    The technology used at the time was fascinating. In a sense, I was blinded by sound then the technology took hold because the sonar array took analogue noise and converted it into a digital signal. I could look at the noise on a display and “see” if it was harmless or a threat.

    This analogue to digital conversion was all it took to pull me into the information technology career field. I was completely unprepared for how fascinating the world of sonar and ACINT (acoustic intelligence) would be. The tech bug bit me harder and has never let go since then!

    For me, this was and still is, the intersection I can point to that set me on the path to find a solid career. My interests continue to orbit around technology, but with a twist. Now those interests consider the human factors involved in building technology.

    With that in mind, I’ll share more of my military technology experience in future posts. Hold on tight as this is just the beginning! You will be in for quite a ride!


    📂This entry was posted in Agile Technology 📎and tagged