Peter Forth, Developer in Las Vegas, NV, United States
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Peter Forth

Verified Expert  in Engineering

Software Developer

Location
Las Vegas, NV, United States
Toptal Member Since
May 16, 2017

Peter is a full-stack senior software engineer and entrepreneur from Canada who is currently living in Las Vegas. He's worked for tiny and huge companies—even working for NASA's space program. He's brought multiple products to market all by himself, and he's even started and sold a dot-com to Yahoo.

Portfolio

Evite
Django ORM, Python 3, Node.js, React, Redux, Sass, Google App Engine, HTML5...
TaskAnyone
Python, HTML, CSS, jQuery, MySQL, Microsoft Visual C++, Node.js
Off-the-Strip LLC
Node.js, AngularJS, Vue, Python 2, Symfony, WordPress Plugins, Amazon EC2...

Experience

Availability

Part-time

Preferred Environment

Ubuntu, Node.js, Vue, MySQL, MongoDB

The most amazing...

...thing I've coded is a radius-based geographic search engine that could search ten million business via a keyword and longitude/latitude in milliseconds.

Work Experience

Senior Full-stack Developer

2021 - PRESENT
Evite
  • Built a new module integrated with a third-party service to allow our customers to send crypto gifts.
  • Rebuilt and centralized our referral link system to provide a consistent set of standardized affiliate link formats and tracking across our entire product.
  • Rebuilt one of our most heavily used Python API calls in very efficiently coded Node.js, achieving triple the response speed on 1/10th the VM instance requirements in App Engine.
  • Built several new product pages for evite's events, including "Ask a host" (which added several new pages on both mobile and desktop) as well as "Amazon product suggestions," which used the Amazon product API.
  • Integrated with 3rd-party gift card purchasing API.
Technologies: Django ORM, Python 3, Node.js, React, Redux, Sass, Google App Engine, HTML5, CSS5

CEO | Founder

2005 - 2024
TaskAnyone
  • Designed, built, maintained, and successfully marketed the TaskAnyone SaaS task management platform for nearly 20 years.
  • Raised an initial seed round financing of $250,000.
  • Maintained and supported service through many upgrades and new functionality additions.
  • Created an API server in Node.js to allow users and resellers direct access to our data.
Technologies: Python, HTML, CSS, jQuery, MySQL, Microsoft Visual C++, Node.js

CTO

2018 - 2021
Off-the-Strip LLC
  • Managed and coded with a small distributed team that built a local business and events directory called Offthestrip.com on Symfony PHP.
  • Built a high-performance search engine in Node.js with a powerful fuzzy matching technology to replace our usage of Elasticsearch.
  • Integrated with multiple APIs via Python and Node.js, including, but not limited to, AdWords, Bing, Google Analytics, Facebook, Stripe, Slack, and ActiveCampaign.
  • Built a set of data processing tools on Node.js, Vue, Bootstrap, and MySQL. These tools were required to create a very profitable internet search arbitrage business.
Technologies: Node.js, AngularJS, Vue, Python 2, Symfony, WordPress Plugins, Amazon EC2, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), MySQL

CTO | Founding Partner

2014 - 2018
MonkeyMedia Inc.
  • Built three internet content publishing sites that have received as many as three million unique visitors per month.
  • Created a reporting admin site that allows us to monitor our revenue vs spend in near real-time.
  • Built multiple plugins to accelerate the workflow in our publishing pipeline.
  • Developed a real-time session tracking system on a Node.js back end to track real-time traffic and its sources in our reporting pages.
  • Engineered a Python-based data acquisition system that uses a combination of APIs (AdSense, AdWords, DFP, and more) and website scraping to aggregate our spending and revenue across over 25 different ad partners.
Technologies: Google AdSense, ADX, Google AdWords, MySQL, PHP, WordPress, Python, Bootstrap 2, AngularJS, WordPress Plugins, Node.js

CEO | Founder

2008 - 2018
Stock Reflex
  • Designed, built, maintained, and marketed a Windows-desktop based stock market training simulator called StockReflex.
  • Created multiple custom stock indicators for third-party trading professionals to sell to his students.
  • Designed and built a powerful backtesting simulator that was used to test algorithmic trading models.
  • Developed a customized real-time stock/futures charting product called StockReflex RT.
  • Designed and created a genetic algorithm generator for stock trading; using the backtesting module to determine genetic fitness.
  • Integrated with NinjaTrader to create a retail level trading bot that would place real futures trades based on our algorithmic methodologies.
Technologies: CSS, HTML, Microsoft Visual C++, NinjaTrader

Senior Software Engineer

2013 - 2017
MGage/ColonyLogic Inc.
  • Built a B2B eCommerce website using a Django back-end.
  • Integrated our commerce system with third party APIs such as Salesforce.com and QuickBooks.
  • Converted a high throughput SMS back-end transaction processing engine from PL-SQL in Oracle to a scalable Java-based service.
  • Updated and maintained a high performance Java/JBoss front-end server that was used to process SMS messages. Integrated this server to use a new third party technology.
  • Built an Asterisk telephony system that was customized to our customer requirements.
Technologies: Salesforce API, Oracle, MongoDB, Jakarta EE, Java, Django, Python, PostgreSQL

Partner | Principle Software Engineer

2010 - 2011
Farami
  • Designed, built, and deployed a high-frequency trading application that traded spreads between futures instruments in under 2 minutes looking for arbitrage opportunities.
  • Deployed a server, co-located at the DAX stock exchange.
  • Monitored and analyzed trades and performance.
Technologies: X_Trader, C#

Senior Software Engineer & Consultant

2007 - 2009
STN Labs
  • Built and maintained multiple eCommerce sites.
  • Created the website: Flowersbysears.ca.
  • Developed the site Jackmans.com.
  • Built the website: Saffronrouge.com.
  • Integrated the front-end of SaffronRouge with the NetSuite eCommerce and inventory functionality.
Technologies: C#, MySQL, NetSuite, CSS, jQuery, ASP.NET

Director | Local Search Development

2002 - 2005
Yahoo!
  • Acted as the technology lead for the launch of Yahoo's LocalMatch CPC search product.
  • Integrated the geographic search and mapping technology that my previous company sold to Yahoo into their new LocalMatch.
  • Directly managed a team of four agile software developers.
  • Coordinated with 50 engineers across multiple engineering groups to launch the LocalMatch product.
  • Collaborated with the business and product teams to define the product requirements for LocalMatch.
  • Replaced a mod_perl language processor with a high throughput C++ mini-service. Handled Yahoo's entire search volume on just a single server.
Technologies: Mod_perl, Apache, Oracle, MySQL, HTML, JavaScript, Microsoft Visual C++

CTO | Founding Partner

1999 - 2002
Lasoo Inc.
  • Conceptualized, designed, and implemented the world’s first geographic search engine for the internet.
  • Raised $1.5 million in financing and managed a team of 15 remotely distributed engineers.
  • Personally-built many of the core components of Lasoo; including a world-wide map-generating engine and a radius-based geographic search engine.
  • Launched the product and negotiated its sale to Overture/Yahoo.
  • Was the only employee required to take a position at Overture/Yahoo as part of the terms of the sale.
Technologies: JavaScript, HTML, Microsoft Visual C++

Manager | Client Software Programming

1998 - 1999
X-Stream Technologies
  • Designed and implemented a multi-lingual content/ad delivery Internet client software browser toolbar that has been installed by over 500,000 people worldwide.
  • Designed and built a language resource tracking product that allowed us to manage the translations of the text in our toolbar program.
  • Created an ad viewing analysis tool that allowed the company to track and tune the banner advertising they were delivering.
  • Managed a team of three software engineers and one designer who helped to grow and scale the product after its initial launch.
Technologies: Microsoft Visual C++

Manager | Software Engineering

1997 - 1998
IQ-Media Holdings
  • Created the world’s fastest (at the time) PC-based flight simulator using Voxel Ray tracing technology.
  • Developed the Queen Charlotte Islands mariner multimedia/flight simulation package.
  • Assisted with the company's business plan development, wrote all technical business proposals, and participated in all company sales pitches.
  • Managed a single junior developer and helped him grow his technical and professional skills.
Technologies: Assembler x86, Microsoft Visual C++

Computer Software Engineer

1993 - 1997
SPAR Aerospace Ltd | NASA
  • Worked for NASA on a software simulation and charting system for Space Shuttle’s robotic Canadarm.
  • Designed and implemented a graphing package for simulation and flight-data analysis.
  • Won the Prior Data Sciences top annual award for engineering achievement for my work at SPAR.
  • Rebuilt a C++ unit-testing system called Testware.
Technologies: Microsoft Visual C++

TaskAnyone

http://www.taskanyone.com
TaskAnyone is a SaaS that makes tracking your day-to-day tasks simple. You can organize your tasks and subtasks into easy-to-use checklists. It allows you to track personal to-do lists, delegate to your team, and even send tasks to third parties.

I have been operating the TaskAnyone service for many years and have clients all around the world. Everything you see on TaskAnyone was built by me personally.

StockReflex

https://www.stockreflex.net
StockReflex is a Windows-desktop-based stock-trading simulator that lets you practice trading and stock chart analysis.

I have been selling this application since 2008.

Additional modules that were built include a genetic algorithm-based trading system and a future exchange back-testing module.

Collector's Oracle

https://www.collectorsoracle.com
A responsive website/web app for toy memorabilia collectors to inventory and track their collections. Initially focused on the Star Wars collectibles community, it can be extended to add new product lines in the future.

The project contains both a front end for collectors as well as a custom back-end CMS for managing the available products, categories, and images.

Destination Tips

https://www.destinationtips.com
DestinatinationTips is one of MonkeyMedia's three internet publishing sites. I built the monetization back-end, including session tracking, reporting, revenue and spend aggregation, and publishing workflow.

Wired News Interview

https://www.wired.com/2001/08/searching-for-googles-successor/
Quoted in Wired News as Lasoo's chief technology officer, bringing us to Overture/Yahoo's attention and enabling us to sell our company to them.

ChartChatter

http://chartchatter.com
The ChartChatter prototype is a financial community mashup between Twitter and a stock chart. When you have something to say about a stock/commodity or want to make a prediction, it plots it directly onto the chart—so you can see what you were saying in context with what actually happened.

Unfortunately funding fell through for this project, but I keep it online for personal use as a functional prototype.

SalesQED

SalesQED was a CRM loosely based off the TaskAnyone interface that was built as a joint venture in 2012, but the venture never reached the public launch and marketing stage.

SaffronRouge

SaffronRouge is a NetSuite integrated eCommerce site that I rebuilt using C#/ASP.NET.

Languages

JavaScript, Python 2, PHP, Python, Java, CSS, HTML, Assembler x86, J, Java 8, PHP 5, C#, Perl, Python 3, Sass, C++, HTML5

Frameworks

AngularJS, Sails.js, Django, Angular, Symfony, Bootstrap 2, Ionic 2, ASP.NET, React Native, Redux

Libraries/APIs

Node.js, jQuery, Mod_perl, Google AdWords, Vue 2, React, Google AdSense, Salesforce API, AdWords API, NetSuite API, QuickBooks API, Vue, Django ORM, jQuery UI

Tools

Microsoft Visual C++, Apache, NinjaTrader, Varnish, Amazon Elastic Container Service (Amazon ECS), Docker Compose, Exponent, Visual Studio 2010

Storage

MySQL, Memcached, MongoDB, PostgreSQL, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), Oracle RDBMS

Platforms

Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu, Jakarta EE, Oracle, Amazon EC2, Docker, WordPress, Google App Engine, Win32

Other

Client/Server Networking, TCP/IP, NetSuite, ADX, X_Trader, WordPress Plugins, Symphony, Search, CSS5, Bootstrap 4, Technical Analysis, Genetic Algorithms, Stock Trading, Futures & Options

Paradigms

Agile Software Development, Scrum

2000 - 2004

Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science with a Physics minor

York University - Toronto, Canada

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