I'm Marcus, a technology enthusiast with over two decades of hands-on experience building solutions that matter. My journey has taken me from startup environments to large-scale systems, always driven by curiosity and the desire to create something meaningful.

Currently, I'm pouring my passion into developing a retro gaming ecosystem that celebrates, preserves, and educates people about classic gaming culture through modern technology. It's more than just nostalgia; it's about preserving authentic experiences while making them accessible to modern audiences.

Core Technologies I Work With:

• JavaScript & TypeScript: Building scalable applications with Node.js, real-time systems with WebRTC and Socket.io, and modern frontend experiences
• Go: Building concurrent backend systems, porting legacy applications, and creating reliable services
• C/C++: When performance matters most, especially for embedded applications and system-level programming
• Python: Automation, tooling, scripting, and CLI development that keeps systems running smoothly
• Hardware Development: FPGA design with SystemVerilog, microcontroller programming, and IoT solutions
• DevOps & Automation: Streamlining deployments, infrastructure as code, monitoring with Prometheus/Grafana, and building reliable CI/CD pipelines
• Full-Stack Development: From database design to user interfaces, including UX/UI design and user experience optimization

What Sets Me Apart:

• Built and scaled infrastructure for a blog network serving 40+ million monthly views with a distributed team of 100+ contributors, tackling real-world challenges around server scaling, CDN optimization, and database performance under heavy load
• I build with the mindset that code is read far more often than it's written. Clean, modular, and well-documented systems aren't just nice to have; they're essential for anything that needs to scale and evolve
• I thrive in environments where quick architectural decisions matter, but always with an eye toward long-term maintainability
• I believe in automating everything that gets repeated more than twice, freeing teams to focus on solving actual problems

My work has always centered around solving problems that matter. Whether it was diagnosing why database queries were bringing servers to their knees during peak traffic, implementing Redis caching strategies that actually reduced load instead of just moving it around, or figuring out why a CDN configuration worked perfectly in testing but failed spectacularly in production, I've learned to dig deep and understand the actual problem before jumping to solutions.

The blog network taught me that scaling isn't just about adding more servers. Sometimes it's about rewriting a single poorly optimized query that was causing cascading failures. Sometimes it's about implementing smart caching layers with Redis to handle read-heavy workloads. The technical solution is only as good as your understanding of what's actually breaking.

Beyond the blog network, I've built SaaS platforms where downtime meant lost revenue and angry customers. These experiences taught me that the most elegant code means nothing if it doesn't solve the actual business problem.

Away from programming, I'm usually taking apart old computers to see how they tick, experimenting with photography projects, or diving too deep into cryptography papers at ungodly hours. The hardware tinkering feeds directly into the retro gaming work, but honestly, I just enjoy understanding how things work at a fundamental level.

• Languages & Frameworks: JavaScript/TypeScript, Node.js, Go, C/C++, Python, HTML5/CSS3, Vue.js, Express
• Real-time & APIs: WebRTC, Socket.io, GraphQL, REST APIs, WebSocket
• Hardware & Embedded: SystemVerilog/Verilog, FPGA development, microcontrollers, embedded Linux
• DevOps & Infrastructure: Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD Pipelines (GitHub and GitLab), Ansible, Prometheus, Grafana, cloud platforms (AWS, GCP)
• Database & Messaging: PostgreSQL, Redis, RabbitMQ, MySQL/MariaDB
• Design & UX: UI/UX design, prototyping, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects), Figma
• Development Practices: Clean architecture, automated testing, infrastructure as code, monitoring and observability

I'm currently focused on my own projects but open to interesting freelance and contract opportunities. Feel free to explore my repositories and reach out if something catches your eye or if you'd like to discuss potential collaborations!