We‘d like to welcome our newest delegate to the Tech Field Day community: Jay Stewart! Jay is a Network Engineer at Energy Sciences Network. He will be attending Networking Field Day: Service Provider 2 as a delegate and took a few minutes to tell us a little about himself.
Check out Jay on Twitter @Dreadders2 or on the Tech Field Day Website.
How did you get into Technology and IT?
Through the prism of MS-DOS video games and listening to too much music on Limewire/Kazaa.
What do you do now? Tell us a little about your current role.
I’m currently a Network Engineer at Energy Sciences Network. If the “Internet” is the information superhighway then we’re the high speed rail running next to it carrying scientific instrumentation data.
What are your biggest challenges?
Trying to follow the SSoT mantra for automation and crawl out from under the vendor “rock” by utilizing protocols that were developed…by vendors.
Where do you see IT going in the next 3-5 years?
Automation continues to beat it’s war drum and we all attempt to step to the beat.
What was your first computer? What was great about it? What is your go-to computer now?
Go-to now is my work laptop. First computer was my dad’s work machine that I could almost make BSOD on command.
How do you manage your work/life balance?
Having a kid helps to drag me away from my post-5PM life.
If you weren’t working in IT, what would you be doing instead?
Same thing I would do if I won the lottery; transforming cities/towns into carless avenues.
What do you do in your spare time? Do you have any hobbies?
Wrangling my backyard + cursing at lawn equipment. General parentage duties.
What are you most excited about seeing at the event?
Seeing what the Kentik chefs have cooked up.
What is the coolest thing you’re working on right now?
Bringing 400G to the National Lab complex
Who inspires you?
My dad 🙂
As a child, what did you want to do when you “grew up”?
Move to Australia. Now, I just want to move to New Zealand.
What super hero movie character would you like to be and why?
Iron Man because he worked for his powers.
What is your favorite thing about what you do?
Helping Scientific Instrumentation go brrrr
If you won the lottery and could retire, what would you do with your time?
Help transform small town America into car-hostile places. Thanks for sharing, Jay! Be sure to see Jay as a delegate at Networking Field Day: Service Provider 2, August 4th!
