Here is a rundown of my employment history in computing.

July 2005 - Date:Ashgaming Ltd.
April 2005 - June 2005:Mindhouse Ltd.
Oct 2003 - April 2005:OpenTV Ltd. - Playjam
May 2003 - Oct 2003:Summer 2003
Feb 2002 - May 2003:Ash Luecker Ltd.
Nov 2001 - Feb 2002:Winter 2001/2
Aug 2001 - Nov 2001:Jacobs Rimell Ltd
Aug 1999 - Aug 2001:Two Way TV Ltd
Pre 1999:Previous Contracts
Academic record

 

My skillset includes (in no particular order):

C, C++
OpenTV SDK on SKY (UK)
Liberate API, Liberate 1.1, 1.2 on Telewest and NTL
JavaScript/HTML on Liberate and WWW
MediaHighway DLi3
Complete technical understanding of graphics requirements and formats for all platforms
Java 1.1x, 1.2, Swing, JDBC/ODBC, beans
Windows XP, 2000, NT, 98, Cygwin, Apache, Tomcat
Exposure to J2EE, XML, XSL, XSLT, ActionScript, PHP, SSI, SQL, RDBMS
Experienced with Visual Studio, Eclipse, Borland CBuilder, Photoshop, PSP, Ultra Edit and many other IDE's, hex editors etc


Ashgaming Ltd.

April 2005 - Date

Senior Software Engineer
Chris Ash of ashluecker splits with Wolf Luecker and refocuses the result into Ash Gaming.
My role is to design and write the server-side functionality for AWP (Amusement With Prize) fruit machines using MFC compliant DLLs in C++. These interface with the Flash client using XML.
They are deployed to online casinos worldwide by one of the industry's most respected providers and are designed to closely replicate the offline experience.


Mindhouse Ltd.

April 2005 - May 2005

Senior Software Engineer
Mindhouse was taken over by the receivers some six weeks after I joined.


OpenTV Ltd/Playjam

October 2003 - April 2005

Senior Software Developer (games)
OpenTV now owns Playjam where I wrote quiz, puzzle and (mainly) arcade-style games from October 2003 to April 2005. The games are for transmission SKY's UK satellite platform as well as TPS in France and OpenTV in the USA, Italy and elsewhere.
This was a challenging role demanding a high degree of creativity and requiring excellent C skills.
Many of my titles are still returning to air.

Completed projects:

Flying Circus
A wonderfully complex flying game featuring a side-scrolling background and a multitude of hazards to negotiate before you can complete a level.
Jamble
Swap two tiles and clear lines of 3 or more against the clock. 60 levels. Deployed on Playjam UK, TPS France and ITVi.
Kennel Pups Chain Gang
This is a 20-level top-down arcade-style game. Lead the pups to safety before the guards can corner you. Deployed on Playjam UK.
Teen Wolf Tantrum
A side-scrolling arcade-style game in which advancing columns of toys must be cleared by wanging your baseball bat across the screen. Deployed on Playjam UK, TPS France and ITVi.
Strange Hill
A fiendishly complex puzzle and action style RPG: this is the closest thing to a Gameboy title on SKY. A multi-path RPG with over 30 rooms to explore incorporating 13 games of logic and skill requiring 17 pick-up items. Playjam UK.
Happy Word Time
A madcap word game based on Countdown but themed as an oriental Banzai-style game with lots of animation and Japanese-style cartoon elements. Playjam UK.
When Fruit Turns Bad
A 20-level top-down platform game; a cross between Pacman, Dig Dug and Mr. Do. Deployed on Playjam UK and TPS France.
Box Clever
A 4-round general knowledge quiz hosted by the perma-tanned Leslie Merkin; lots of bells and whistles and very TV-stylee. Deployed on Playjam UK and ITVi.

I also completed and deployed nearly a dozen reskins and rebuilds of varying complexity; the more popular a game proves to be, the more it needs to be rebuilt with updated content and/or graphics, especially when 3rd parties want their own branded versions. This is complicated by the varying requirements of broadcasters outside of the UK.


Summer 2003

I spent the summer as consultant on a variety of iTV and Web projects for a number of clients while preparing myself (and our house!) for first-time fatherhood in August 2003 :-)
Clients included Ash Luecker Ltd., Avago Ltd., Gates-Ink Ltd., Customer Champions Ltd.


Ash Luecker Ltd

February 2002 - May 2003

Senior iTV Developer
I worked on a variety of projects and platforms, usually as part of a small production team assembled for each project.

Principal duties:

Platform specifics:

I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to design and implement integrated solutions using a variety of technologies. The part I played in enabling other team members to learn and exploit the platforms' strengths was very rewarding.

While at ashluecker I completed accredited formal training in OpenTV SDK and completed the following projects:

SPRINGBOARD
A quiz engine configurable by the user using a web-based XML "wizard" which allows them to update content and change the look and feel of the resulting experience. This greatly simplifies the broadcaster's task of publishing new versions to the SKY format.
Client: ashluecker

CBEEBIES demo.
A colouring-in game for 3-6yr olds exploiting some of the hardware-specific graphics capabilities of the OpenTV SDK environment.
Client: CBBC

FRUIT MACHINE demo.
A 3-reel fruit machine demo interface using XML to interface with server-side data.
Client: Gala Games ©

SNAKES AND LADDERS demo.
A gambling game with the feel of the old kiddie's favourite, built around the AVAGO scratchcard engine concept.
Client: AVAGO ©

Other Completed Projects:

Gala Games - a suite of three fixed-odds betting games to run on the Telewest platform. These integrate with 3rd party server-side solutions for croupier, banker and hosting solution to form part of Gala Interactive's overall strategy. Gala Games has launched the Flash versions on the Web and they may even go live on Telewest some day, though I think someone's bought them up, so who knows?
Client: Gala Games ©

Hunt The Ancestor, an 86 page multi-path educational game available via the BBCi History channel. A complete redesign of the original flash game was necessary to create the iTV version which must run within the BBCi interactive environment. The BBC were particularly impressed with my translation of the user interaction experience. This project passed Telewest, NTL and BBC compliance testing at the first trial and went to air on Thursday 4th July 2002.
Client: BBCi History

Fruit Machine simulator (Java) in support of Gala Games' Online Casino. This engine tests reel combinations and payout probabilities and will be developed into a server-side engine using XML to drive client-side gaming interfaces.
Client: Gala Games ©

A game simulator (C++ for Windows) in support of the BBCi History site Build A Pyramid educational game. This tool enabled a rapid development cycle to evolve between our company and our client BBC History, who said that it provided their best ever 3rd-party development experience.
Client: BBCi History

See my games page for full details.

Ash Luecker logo, click here to go to ashluecker.com


November 2001 - February 2002

Some call it resting ;-) ...in other words redundant (boo).
And it was nice while it lasted; having lunch with my friends Jon Ritman, a fellow programmer and John Gosler, an artist working in animation; played a lot of guitar with old friend Chris Greene....then there was the gym, and the gruelling body conditioning classes which got me in shape for my first go at skiing in Meribel; I knew nothing was going to happen on the job front 'till after Xmas anyway so I just enjoyed the free time.

I also worked some more on some personal projects I've been developing.

  1. Personal Tracker.
    A Windows application based around dietary requirements. It uses a database and some straightforward maths to present the user with a graphic representation of the data, which is far easier to interpret than a load of dates and numbers.
  2. Code Compactor.
    Intended to operate on Web and iTV JavaScript files, this is a Windows tool written in C++. The Code Compactor application reduces the size of code files by clearing out all unwanted spaces, tabs, linefeeds and comments while preserving those that are necessary for the correct interpretation of the code by the STB. It can also clear out all "debugtext" statements. In the output phase of the program any number of javascript files may be appended to a single file saving 45k per file by reducing the number of contexts. The Code Compactor can also clean comments from HTML files.


Jacobs Rimell Ltd.

August 2001 - November 2001

iTV Applications Developer
Working as part of a team, I was responsible for the design, development and documentation of client-side GUI components of a brandable EPG, which is part of the broadband package offered by Jacobs Rimell (London).

Jacobs Rimell were building an API to interface with the standard Liberate environment providing access to their proprietary customer-centered provisioning system.
In the time that I was there (about 9 weeks) I wrote:

I was also responsible for the Object Oriented design and development of proprietary API classes in JavaScript which ensured that these components integrated easily into their target environment.

Jacobs Rimell logo, click here to go to Jacobs Rimell


Two Way TV Ltd.

November 2000 - August 2001

In November 2000 I received one week's accredited formal training at CanalPlus in Paris. I then led a small team of programmers in the initial development of TWTV's API to the Mediahighway environment.

Having set up the environment for further development I became responsible for the technical design and development of the clientside portal to the TwoWayTV onDigital (and then iTVDigital) service using the Canal+ MediaHighway Application Workshop IDE under UNIX, working to a specific brief and deadline. Meantime I continued to work closely with others to further develop TWTV's proprietary API and to create content developer's tools.

I also led the graphics department in the design and development of suitable graphics formats, finding solutions within the platform's technical constraints.

I played an occasional support role to our Q&A dept. and to fellow developers.

Previously at Two Way TV

August 1999 - November 2000

I developed games and other applications for the Liberate platform using high level Object-Orientated languages. All use Web-like server technology to provide database support and live updates affording a high degree of interaction which can be provided standalone or synch-to-broadcast.

Working closely within a small production team for each project I had sole responsibility for the design and delivery of all client-side code. This also involved development of the GUI and graphics and the creation of a proprietary database for content developers. I was also responsible for documentation and supporting the code through test and in service.

These games all use TwoWayTV's head-end systems to provide live data, access to content and information databases, score leaderboards etc.
For more detail on the TwoWayTV games click here.

See my games page for full details.

TwoWayTV logo, click here to go to TWOWAYTV


Previous Contracts

Computing-related work experience, two 3-month contracts completed while I was studying for my degree at Middlesex University.


Academic History

Academic history.