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Firtina Ozbalikci, Software Developer in London, United Kingdom
Firtina Ozbalikci

Software Developer in London, United Kingdom

Member since June 14, 2022
Firtina is a full-stack software engineer and game developer. Coding since 1999, when he was only ten, and proficient in many languages and AWS solutions, he enjoys contributing to open source projects. Firtina has extensive experience setting up projects from scratch to deployment, maintaining them, and advising early-stage startups and game studios.
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Portfolio

  • Lyfta
    JavaScript, C#, Unity, Three.js, HTML, Styled-components, ESLint...
  • Synthesis AI, Inc
    Three.js, React, JavaScript, Integration, Software Architecture, Responsive...
  • Criterion Games
    C++, Game Development, APIs, Git, Software Development, User Experience (UX)...

Experience

Location

London, United Kingdom

Availability

Part-time

Preferred Environment

Windows, IntelliJ, Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code

The most amazing...

...things I have created are open source libraries that many thousands of people have used. One of them is the react-three-renderer.

Employment

  • Creative Technologist

    2021 - PRESENT
    Lyfta
    • Converted a big Unity project into React/React Three Fiber. It has been deployed successfully and customers are now happily using it and experiencing the speed benefits. The developers are happier working with JavaScript.
    • Developed multiple products, such as a 360 scene editor and a 360 scene player.
    • Created multiple AWS Lambda functions to process files and update state. These include video and image processing for compression and formatting.
    • Resolved many issues in the existing products and features.
    Technologies: JavaScript, C#, Unity, Three.js, HTML, Styled-components, ESLint, Amazon Web Services (AWS), AWS Lambda, Node.js, Async/Await, Webhook, Unity3D, APIs, CSS, Next.js, TypeScript, REST APIs, Full-stack, Serverless, IntelliJ, Web Development, Git, Visual Studio Code, Software Development, Android, iOS, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), Express.js, Docker, Architecture, Mobile, JSON, XML, Web Services, React Native, Integration, Testing, Heroku, Mobile Development, Software Architecture, Technical Leadership, Responsive, Front-end Development, Full-stack Development, Amazon S3 (AWS S3)

  • Three.js Developer

    2022 - 2023
    Synthesis AI, Inc
    • Developed an app using React and Three.js that helps users customize scenes in a virtual environment and allows them to draw regions and generate objects within a scene.
    • Worked with engineers, QAs, project managers, and other team members to ensure the functionality and performance were desirable and fruitful.
    • Used Jira, Git, TypeScript, and Slack for contributions and communication.
    Technologies: Three.js, React, JavaScript, Integration, Software Architecture, Responsive, Front-end Development

  • UI Engineer

    2020 - 2021
    Criterion Games
    • Used C++ and proprietary languages to work on a game developed by Criterion Games.
    • Worked close to the engine to enable functionality with other game systems.
    • Collaborated with other engineers, technical artists, designers, and producers.
    • Set up performance measurements and benchmarks for myself and others to assess how our contributions affected the game's performance.
    Technologies: C++, Game Development, APIs, Git, Software Development, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), Front-end Development

  • Software Engineer

    2020 - 2020
    Playdeo
    • Used C++, C# (Unity), and Java to develop a custom video player solution on the Android platform, with bespoke functionality and performance requirements.
    • Integrated the Android functionality onto a new game that the company is developing. The game was initially developed for iOS.
    • Worked with Google Play Services, Firebase, custom build systems, and so on. Enabled the developers to have the same experience they are used to with iOS.
    Technologies: C++, C#, Java, Unity, Unity3D, Unity3D Native Plugin Interface, IntelliJ, IntelliJ IDEA, Android, iOS, NDK, Android NDK, Google Play Console, Firebase, REST APIs, Full-stack, Google Cloud, Windows, Git, Jira, Software Development, User Interface (UI), Architecture, Mobile, JSON, XML, Web Services, Integration, Mobile Development, Software Architecture, Responsive

  • Entrepreneur

    2019 - 2020
    Antler
    • Participated with other entrepreneurs to form founding teams for companies.
    • Took business administration, marketing, design, and prototyping classes.
    • Brainstormed ideas and created a lot of prototypes and MVPs. Validated prototypes with customers and arranged interviews within various industries to discover potential needs and what may drive them to be customers.
    • Advised the peer companies in getting their tech started and running.
    Technologies: JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, Android, Node.js, APIs, CSS, MongoDB, REST APIs, Full-stack, Web Development, IntelliJ, HTML, ESLint, Git, Amazon EC2, Visual Studio Code, Software Development, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), API Integration, Express.js, Architecture, Mobile, JSON, XML, Web Services, Testing, Software Architecture, Front-end Development, Full-stack Development, SQL

  • Software Engineer

    2017 - 2019
    Improbable
    • Integrated Improbable SDK into the Unity, Unreal engines, and AAA studios' in-house engine technologies and tools. Mainly used C#, C++, and Lua.
    • Performed interviews for future employees, helped decide who to hire next, and mentored other developers about the industry.
    • Decided on and contributed to design choices for the company's future tech aspects.
    • Visited customers in various parts of the UK, Europe, and China, to see how they made their games and improve how Improbable's tech could aid them.
    Technologies: JavaScript, Go, Lua, C#, C++, Unity, Unreal Engine, Async/Await, Game Development, Unity3D, APIs, Visual Studio, Git, Jira, Visual Studio Code, Software Development, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), API Integration, JSON, Web Services, Integration, Testing, Software Architecture

  • Software Engineer

    2015 - 2017
    Unity
    • Improved the Unity engine's stability, which required a deep understanding of all parts of the product.
    • Used software engineering and programming best practices for C++ and C# to ensure the company's high quality of code.
    • Found the causes of the most challenging bugs and fixed them. The main areas of expertise were: core, physics, graphics, user experience, and code readability and maintainability.
    Technologies: C#, C++, Unity, ASM, Unity3D Native Plugin Interface, Webhook, Unity3D, APIs, Windows, Visual Studio, Git, Visual Studio Code, Software Development, Android, iOS, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), Mobile, JSON, XML, Testing

  • Software Engineer

    2014 - 2015
    SmartFocus
    • Created marketing games and 2D or 3D visualizations using Unity, C#, and D3.js.
    • Evolved in the company and became a consultant for other developers in the company.
    • Handled projects including an indoor positioning system using real-time sensor data through C++ and quick but functional prototypes of web applications using JavaScript ES6, mostly React on Node.js.
    Technologies: JavaScript, React, Three.js, D3.js, Android, C++, Java, Unity, C#, Node.js, Webhook, Unity3D, APIs, HTML, CSS, TypeScript, REST APIs, Full-stack, Web Development, IntelliJ, ESLint, Git, Software Development, iOS, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), Express.js, Architecture, Mobile, JSON, XML, Web Services, Mobile Development, Software Architecture, Front-end Development, Full-stack Development

  • Software Engineer

    2013 - 2014
    Billforward
    • Developed a couponing system for subscription billing, using PHP and Angular for the front end and Java for the back end. It was deployed to production and happily used by the customers.
    • Collaborated closely with the company's key customers to implement custom billing solutions for them. Used their preferred language, from JavaScript to Ruby on Rails to PHP.
    • Created a custom CMS solution for one of the customers. They transferred their old system to the one that we built.
    • Created custom charting solutions using D3.js. Used real-time data from customers to represent their billing statistics and metrics.
    • Set up AWS ECS deployments for the website of the company. It served all of the company's customers.
    • Created REST APIs and documentation for these APIs. They are still live today.
    Technologies: JavaScript, PHP, Node.js, Angular, AngularJS, Azure, Full-stack, Java, MySQL, Bower, RequireJS, D3.js, Ruby on Rails (RoR), Git, Jira, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon EC2, REST, APIs, REST APIs, IntelliJ, HTML, CSS, ESLint, Web Development, Software Development, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), API Integration, Express.js, Docker, Architecture, JSON, XML, Web Services, SOAP, Integration, Testing, Software Architecture, Technical Leadership, Responsive, Stripe, Front-end Development, Full-stack Development, Stripe API, SQL, Amazon S3 (AWS S3)

Experience

  • React Three Renderer
    https://github.com/toxicFork/react-three-renderer

    An open source Three.js renderer for React, which had thousands of users and 1,500 stars on GitHub. I developed and maintained it because I was not happy with the state of React 3D and wanted to contribute.

    This project required me to understand how React works internally to create a copy of their original DOM renderer.

  • Unity Plane Clipping
    https://github.com/toxicFork/Unity3D-Plane-Clipping

    Shaders and scripts to enable people to cut off parts of objects in the Unity game engine. This allows for functionality like disappearing objects, portals, object slicing, etc.

    I wrote a tutorial to accompany the project: www.toxicfork.com/194/per-object-clipping-planes-shader-in-unity3d-5

  • Unity 2D Joint Editors
    https://github.com/toxicFork/Unity-2D-Joint-Editors

    An extension for the Unity game engine: it improves the user interface of the game engine and makes it easier to use. The extension allows the user to visually control many aspects of 2D objects in the scene. I wrote a blog post to explain what was done and why: www.toxicfork.com/225/unity3d-extensions-and-developer-experience#more-225

  • Unity Texture Atlas Slicer
    https://github.com/toxicFork/Unity3D-TextureAtlasSlicer

    A Unity extension to allow creating and importing of 2D sprites more easily. It extends the user interface and allows for configuration. I made a blog post to explain how it was built and why: www.toxicfork.com/154/importing-xml-spritesheet-into-unity3d#more-154.

  • GPT-Shell/Erin
    https://github.com/firtoz/GPT-Shell

    A GPT-3 and ChatGPT-based AI chatbot for Discord.

    Open-source. Built using TypeScript, Node.js, MongoDB, Weaviate, Pinecone, Google Vision, and other AI technologies.

    The project is active and allows many conversations from Discord users.

    I have built a custom permanent memory system using vector embeddings and finding the most relevant messages for the user's input.

    This project taught me how to craft effective prompts for GPT and other LLMs.

    Another site for the project: www.erin.ac/?ref=toptal

Skills

  • Languages

    C++, HTML, JavaScript, C#, TypeScript, C, Java, CSS, XML, SQL, Python, PHP, Go, Lua

  • Frameworks

    Unity, Unity3D, Next.js, Express.js, React Native, ASM, Unreal Engine, Angular, AngularJS, Ruby on Rails (RoR)

  • Libraries/APIs

    Three.js, Node.js, React, REST APIs, Stripe, Stripe API, D3.js, NDK, RequireJS

  • Tools

    IntelliJ, Visual Studio, IntelliJ IDEA, Android NDK, Bower, Git, Jira

  • Paradigms

    Parallel Programming, Human-computer Interaction (HCI), Testing, Mobile Development, Responsive, REST

  • Platforms

    Android, Visual Studio Code, Amazon Web Services (AWS), AWS Lambda, iOS, Mobile, Windows, Firebase, Azure, Amazon EC2, Docker, Heroku

  • Storage

    JSON, MongoDB, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), Google Cloud, MySQL

  • Other

    Software Development, Async/Await, Game Development, Webhook, APIs, Full-stack, Web Development, API Integration, Web Services, Integration, ChatGPT, Software Architecture, Front-end Development, Full-stack Development, Architecture, Chatbots, Natural Language Processing (NLP), Styled-components, ESLint, Unity3D Native Plugin Interface, Google Play Console, Serverless, User Experience (UX), User Interface (UI), SOAP, OpenAI, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Search, Large Language Models (LLM), Technical Leadership

Education

  • Honors Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science
    2007 - 2013
    University of Bath - Bath, United Kingdom

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