I am a freelance Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer and work out of my home office in Burlington, Vermont. I specialize in building online communities using .NET Open Source applications like those you see here at dbvt.com. I also bring social networking capabilities to existing sites with Open Source blogging, forum, media gallery and wiki solutions according to the specific functions needed by the community.
The sidebar graphic is an example of an integrated website...this one! I will be sharing the details of how I integrated the various site applications on my blog (with more features to come!), but to get you started the top page is my home page, a typical .NET page. Below the home page is my blog, an excellent Open Source .NET application by Mads Kristensen from Denmark called BlogEngine.Net. Below the blog is my photo gallery, an Open Source application created by Roger Martin from Wisconsin called Gallery Server Pro. For all practical purposes, with the integrated login and contact forms that follow, dbvt.com is a single application, sharing ASP.NET Membership and Roles, a single database and more.
My philosophy as a freelance developer is all about the relationships I maintain with my clients, with the three pillars of those relationships being 1) articulated and shared objectives, 2) constant vigilance on productivity, and 3) never taking our eye off of why we started the project in the first place: to enjoy a return on investment. My clients trust me to provide them with the best technology, delivering on what was promised in the shortest amount of time possible. I have clients that go back over 10 years because I don't work on a project, I enter into a relationship with great people and great companies for the long term.
I turned 50-years-old this year, so I have a bit of history with the Internet. The first web site I created was on an NCSA HTTPd web server which I installed on an RS/6000 AIX Unix box in 1994, the same box I had previously installed the WAIS and Gopher systems that pre-dated the web. I was an Assistant Professor then, but I left Academia later that year to work in business. I have been building web applications ever since. It's been a great ride, and Lord Willing, that ride is far from over.
I was employed by various companies through the 1990's, both public and privately-held, and have worked exclusively out of my home office here in Vermont since 2000. One of the things I've learned along the way that has been an ingredient in my success as a Freelance Developer is to work with technologies I'm passionate about and that other developers are passionate about, too. Enter Open Source .NET Online Community development.
I've been on this road for a number of years now. The first version of this dbvt.com site in 2004, for instance, consisted of an integrated architecture of DotNetNuke, nGallery for photos, and .Text for blogs. As nGallery and .Text went on to form Telligent's commercial Community Server product, I naturally did a lot of Community Server development and in 2006 was hired as Telligent's Community Evangelist until I left the company to return to full-time freelance development in early 2007. It was time for me to leave the commercial software arena and follow my passions back into Open Source application development.
I use Open Source alternatives to commercial applications like Community Server because 1) low entry into Social Networking capabilities for my clients, 2) in designing a solution specific to my clients' needs, the final application is more light-weight than all-in-one commercial offerings, 3) full source code availability enables extensive customization and immediate bug fixes, 4) Open Source applications of outstanding quality are becoming increasingly available, and 5) the motivation of sharing in the passion of user and developer communities around Open Source products.
When I create a new online community or add social networking capabilities to an existing site using Open Source solutions, the application is essentially already written. My job is to integrate, customize and add specific client enhancements, which is what I do very well and usually very quickly. This model enables me to deliver the best technology to my clients for a return on their investment, and in the shortest amount of time possible.
I create online communities and web applications which contain social networking capabilities using Microsoft .NET-based Open Source applications. If I can advise you or help build an online community for your business, please email me at daveburke@dbvt.com or call my home office at (802) 863-3251 any business day from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST.
Thanks for reading!
