Robert Taylor
Software Developer
Location
Wooster, OH, United States
Toptal Member Since
February 9, 2016
Robert is a freelance software engineer (full-stack) specializing in Python, Django, SQL, and Linux, with nine years of programming experience. He offers a wide array of programming and consulting services to those with technical research or business needs, and he particularly enjoys projects with a strong scientific spin.
Robert is available for hire
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Prentke Romich Company
Django, Python
Texas A&M
Python
Prentke Romich Company
CSS, CoffeeScript, JavaScript, HTML, Python, MySQL, PHP
Experience
Linux - 8 yearsHTML - 7 yearsGit - 7 yearsMySQL - 7 yearsPython - 5 yearsjQuery - 4 yearsDjango - 3 yearsCoffeeScript - 2 yearsLocation
Availability
Part-time
Preferred Environment
Ubuntu, Linux
The most amazing...
...web application I've developed is a multi-widget dashboard providing extensive data analysis and visualization of users' daily word usage and verbal patterns.
Work Experience
2016 - PRESENT
Independent Contractor
Prentke Romich Company
- Helped PRC's engineering department modernize their flagship AAC software suite.
- Re-developed product features in Python originally written in C/C++.
- Provided support for multiple platforms, including Windows and Android.
- Wrote and submitted numerous design proposals to be approved by PRC prior to development.
- Worked closely with the PRC software team to integrate new features.
- Designed and developed several highly complex features, including a word/spelling prediction algorithm and a content translation utility.
- Wrote extensive unit testing and documentation for each module submitted.
Technologies: Django, Python
2014 - 2014
Independent Contractor
Texas A&M
- Worked closely with the researchers at Blackland Research and Extension Center to produce a practical and scientifically accurate tool to delineate watersheds.
- Learned how to read topographical GIS data as input and output vector graphs and images representative of the stream network existing within the local area.
- Wrote complete documentation of the tool and the underlying API. Published the documentation in both PDF and HTML format.
- Developed a robust error catching library to handle troublesome input data.
- Wrote extensive unit tests.
Technologies: Python
2013 - 2014
Independent Contractor
Prentke Romich Company
- Developed a custom web application that analyzes and graphs the speech patterns of PRC's clientele (https://realizelanguage.com/info/).
- Gained experience with the development, testing, and release process of a for-profit web application.
- Learned and mastered the Yii PHP web framework.
- Leveraged many languages, libraries, and technologies to provide a robust final product.
- Integrated multiple back-end and front-end processes to produce a seamless, feature-filled user experience.
Technologies: CSS, CoffeeScript, JavaScript, HTML, Python, MySQL, PHP
2011 - 2012
Software Engineer
Prentke Romich Company
- Developed and supported the company's flagship AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) software suite, written in C/C++.
- Developed and supported "eye tracking" technology capable of tracking what/where a user's eyes are looking at on a tablet screen.
- Investigated and explored the latest offerings in cutting edge software technology and how it might be leveraged in the company's future products.
- Pioneered a first-pass prototype of (what would become) the company's next generation of software.
- Authored and maintained numerous functional and technical specification.
Technologies: SQL, Python, C++
2011 - 2011
Research Assistent
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
- Developed an open-source optic modeling tool written in Python: github.com/foxsi/foxsi-optics-sim.
- Created a model of an X-ray grazing optic module (the FOXSI telescope) that simulates how rays enter and leave the module.
- Made extensive use of Numpy/SciPy science packages.
- Made extensive use of mathematical and scientific computing background.
- Included complete documentation of code and background science.
Technologies: Python
2010 - 2010
Research Assistent
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
- Researched how artificial neural networks might be best used to predict certain physical properties in tires given different rubber formulations.
- Produced a MATLAB-powered tool capable of performing the property prediction, which Goodyear later incorporated into its rubber simulations.
- Gained extensive experience with MATLAB and general model building strategies.
- Gave multiple presentations and demos of the tool.
- Wrote a complete report on project and its results for Goodyear's internal use.
Technologies: MATLAB
Experience
Ticka (Python Script)
The file "tickutil.py" is a Python script that is part of a personal research project of mine. Its purpose is simple: automate the lengthy ZIP extraction, CSV parsing, and HDF5 archiving of foreign exchange market data found publicly at http://truefx.com/. The submission contains a brief readme that lists dependencies and how to run the parser.
Trip Manager (Web Application)
Follow the link to see a live demo of my final project submission for the Toptal interview process. The web application is built on a Python/Apache/MySQL/Linux stack with front-end support written in HTML/CoffeeScript/SASS.
Features:
* Django-powered back-end
* Registration/Login/User Permissions
* AJAX-powered forms and tables
* Advanced data search and filtering
* RESTful API
Features:
* Django-powered back-end
* Registration/Login/User Permissions
* AJAX-powered forms and tables
* Advanced data search and filtering
* RESTful API
PyLBFGS
https://bitbucket.org/rtaylor/pylbfgsPyLBFGS is a Python 3 wrapper of the libLBFGS library -- a C port (written by Naoaki Okazaki) of the Limited-memory Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno (L-BFGS) algorithm (written in Fortran by Jorge Nocedal).
Skills
Languages
Markdown, Sass, Python, CoffeeScript, C, PHP, SQL, CSS, HTML, JavaScript, C++, Java
Frameworks
Django, Django REST Framework, Yii 2, OAuth 2, Qt
Tools
Git, Terminal, Sublime Text, LaTeX, Apache, MATLAB, Adobe Photoshop
Platforms
Linux, Ubuntu, Windows, MacOS
Storage
SQLite, MySQL
Libraries/APIs
Pandas, Google Ads API, NumPy, SciPy, jQuery UI, jQuery, Google API, Facebook API, OpenGL
Other
Cython
Education
2015 - 2016
Master of Science Degree in Applied Mathematics
University of Washington - Seattle, WA, USA
2007 - 2011
Bachelor of Arts Degree in Mathematics/Computer Science
The College of Wooster - Wooster, Ohio, USA