sakerbos

Joined 4 years ago

Karma
78
Submissions
75
Member since
Feb 25
My name’s Shaun and I’m a Frontend/Product Engineer based in Brisbane, Australia (previously Cape Town, South Africa ).

I pivoted from rocks to code

Early on in my career as a Geologist, I was buried under an avalanche of manual processes, something was at fault, it was a bore and it wasn't very Gneiss

I knew there had to be a better way. So I taught myself how to code. All of a sudden I had superpowers, automating processes left, right and center, with some staff not even knowing what to do with their time anymore, I was the schist

It wasn’t enough; I wanted more superpowers. So I spent the next 6 months studying coding after hours, much to my wife and dog’s dismay - not only because I had less availability but because they were forced to look at all the things I had built, “See how I just made that text turn red!”

But eventually I did it! I got my first job as a real live web developer, making websites on the internet! Although even that wouldn’t quench my insatiable thirst for automation…

Shortly thereafter, during a chance encounter with my wife’s employer’s neighbour, I discovered the many gross inefficiencies lurking in the medical industry. This encounter led to me spearheading the development of a mobile app for one of South Africa’s largest hospital networks, Mediclinic, which they used to replace paper at hundreds of sporting events across the country, streamlining operations and saving the planet, #winning

My journey has been fuelled by a passion for automation and shaped by three guiding principles: simplicity, practicality and fun, that I have brought to every endeavour. Fast forward 8 years and many projects later, in the words of Pinocchio, I shout from the rooftops, “I’m a real boy!”

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed my Geology puns

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Recent submissions

Comment · 1 year ago
Try reaching out to our own network. You really only need a few paying customers to get the ball rolling. Word of mouth is probably going to be your best friend.
Comment · 1 year ago
There's a time and place for everything.

I find that this style of programming is super useful in the technical design phase. During development I prefer to have a plan in place.

Comment · 1 year ago
That's an epic win! 15 years of the startup grind/rollercoaster is impressive, well done!
Comment · 1 year ago
Yeehah thanks! It's good fun! At this rate, next year's theme will no doubt be video calls to Santa.
Comment · 1 year ago
Hey guys, I'm Shaun :wave:

  Location: Brisbane, Australia
  Remote: Yes
  Willing to relocate: No (we've just moved here from South Africa :))
  Technologies: React, React-Native, Typescript, Node.js, Firebase
  Résumé/CV: https://sakerbos.notion.site/Shaun-Saker-s-Resume-0cff4c4bd3d046ffbb92705f947fed0d?pvs=4
  Email: [email protected]
I'm a self-starter and ex-Geologist. I've spent the last 8+ years building startups, mostly on the frontend but quite happy doing full-stack. Looking for something fresh and interesting! Give me a shout if you see a good fit.

PS: Links to my latest projects in my resume if you're interested :)

Comment · 2 years ago
Love this!
Comment · 2 years ago
Ooh I felt the same after moving to Australia from South Africa. We found that the veggies tasted blander in general and I have no idea why. Keen to plant some heirloom tomatoes in the spring.
Comment · 2 years ago
There was a massive one back in South Africa that must have been a thousand years old. Naturally someone put a pub in it. Must have been tree-cky.
Comment · 2 years ago
Yeah I've always found the browser bar hiding when you scroll to the bottom of a page a bit weird. But yeah you're right, it looks like a Chrome-only thing my bad.
Comment · 2 years ago
Yeah fair enough. I actually found the massive navigation history annoying too, I'd just forgotten about it until now. I think I have a solution to replace the navigation history with local state so we should still be able to navigate between board versions, will see. Appreciate the feedback :)
Comment · 2 years ago
Ooh fair enough. I'll add an option to disable that, thanks!
Comment · 2 years ago
Yes this is a problem and a great idea thanks! Adding to my TODO list :)

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