
My Mission
To master the process of software development, gain advanced proficiency in a few programming languages and use those skills and knowledge to build applications that:
- are novel solutions to everyday problems
- help others develop solutions
- make the world a better place than i found it
- brings people together
About Me
Hey there, welcome to my website! My name is Danny Lee, a NYC-based coding enthusiast who pivoted into software development in 2019. I've had a lot of past careers, including telco cable splicer, commercial real estate broker and small business owner, handyman, and a manager in different organizations. I also have a lot of hobbies including woodwork, acrylic and watercolor painting, letterpress printing, gardening, welding and a more recent interest in surfing.
Location
I'm a perennial New Yorker, born in, raised and lived most of my whole life in the greatest city in the world. Its an amazing, diverse and constantly changing landscape that is always renewing and rebuilding itself. Recently, nyc's taken a sharp shift towards tech and startups, which is incredibly exciting.
What do you love about software development?
I've recently shifted into software development and I love it! What do I love about it? Well first, although its difficult to pull off, the possibility of working remotely was that last push I needed to take the plunge. Bali, here I come! 🏄🏻♂️🌊 Next, there is an endless supply of knowledge to feed my love of learning and practicing new skills. Programming is a challenging, yet highly accessible field. The knowledge is readily available in different forms (books, documentation, videos, podcasts, et cetera). There's just so much of it, which is another positive reason for me. I love learning. Thirdly, I see potential for building passive income streams from apps and websites, that just need some time, an entrepreneurial spirit and some cash to get off the ground. And lastly, but perhaps, most importantly the challenges of programming aligns exceedingly well with my creative problem solving skills and there is an endless supply of knowledge to feed my love of learning and practicing new skills. Dream, explore, create, review, rebuild. Its how I approach my work, my hobbies and interests, its how I live.
As a handyman at Taskrabbit, I had the chance to take on all kinds of odd jobs and come up with solutions and bring them to fruition. Its at that time, that I truly learned my passions are in finding and building creative solutions for peoples' real world problems. I'm actually really proud of the reviews and kudos I received from my many clients during that time (link: https://tr.co/dhl), because I didn't grow up as a handy person. I also wasn't formally trained in the field, though 5 years as a telco cable splicer taught me a lot.
Handywork was something I always wanted to do growing up (having been a huge fan of This Old House and Bob Vila). After deciding to try my hand at it, and jump into the handyman field, I learned through reading lots of books and websites, YouTube videos, scouring handywork forums and reddit, and last but not least--the way I learn best--hands-on experience. It was scary at first, and it had a challenging learning curve, but I believe I can say, humbly, that I mastered handywork. But, I couldn't see doing it for another 15 or 20 years. I needed a new challenge and I think I've found it in software development.
We'll see how this goes! 😊
Quote of the moment
“Extroverts are more likely to take a quick-and-dirty approach to problem-solving, trading accuracy for speed, making increasing numbers of mistakes as they go, and abandoning ship altogether when the problem seems too difficult or frustrating. Introverts think before they act, digest information thoroughly, stay on task longer, give up less easily, and work more accurately. Introverts and extroverts also direct their attention differently: if you leave them to their own devices, the introverts tend to sit around wondering about things, imagining things, recalling events from their past, and making plans for the future. The extroverts are more likely to focus on what's happening around them. It's as if extroverts are seeing "what is" while their introverted peers are asking "what if.” ― Susan Cain, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
Portfolio Projects
Twitter Geographic Trend Analysis
Team 6 Project 2
Using Big Data technologies, and Twitter's Trend API endpoint, project 2 consists of retrieving responses from Twitter with the Spark Structured Streaming API at 10 minute intervals, transforming the response with Spark by converting a single object with a location value and an array of 50 trends into 50 row entries and writing them to CSV format The output is then analyzed using Spark SQL to extract trend patterns to find the trends average rank, highest rank, hours trending, number of tweeets about the trend and top trends. The output of the project include Spark jarfiles, both pre and post processed datasets and documentation to repeatable and used on larger datasets and datasets that streamed on an ongoing basis. The questions examined follow: Can we identify patterns in trending topics being popular in one location and then moving to others? If so, can we identify separate regions for these patterns? (ex.: North American patterns, East Asian patterns, etc.) What about global scale patterns for specific events? ex.: Burning of Notre Dame-how did this topic travel according to twitter usage?
- Utilized Postman and it's Collection Runner functionality to script the automated retrieval of Twitter Trend API events.
- Designed a Scala Spark Runner program to input raw JSON response files for processing.
- Extracted Twitter's JSON Trend Api response and fitted it to a Spark schema.
- Transformed the data from one object with a Location and fifty Trend topics to fifty objects with a Trend topic at that location.
- Exported data into the local file system as CSV.
- Destructured SparkSQL query function into separate Scala modules and packaged them as individual JAR files.
- Tested functionality of SparkSQL JAR files in Google DataProc.
- Produced and reported on analysis results.
- Implemented Scala, Spark on Windows, and Ubuntu Linux.
- Source control and versioning handled using Git and GitHub.
COVID Dataset Analysis
Project involves a series of data analysis questions about the 2020 COVID pandemic. Analysis is performed using Spark applications (predominantly Spark SQL) on static and streaming data sources, making use of a Spark cluster and a Kafka cluster running on Amazon's cloud. Analysis questions and goals follow: Which Regions handled COVID-19 the best assuming our metrics are change in GDP by percentage and COVID-19 infection rate per capita. (Jan 1 2020 - Oct 31 2020)? Find the top 5 pairs of countries that share a land border and have the highest discrepancy in covid-19 infection rate per capita. Additionally find the top 5 landlocked countries that have the highest covid-19 infection rate per capita. Live update by Region of current relevant totals from COVID-19 data. Is the trend of the global COVID-19 discussion going up or down? Do spikes in infection rates of the 5-30 age range affect the volume of discussion? When was COVID-19 being discussed the most? What percentage of countries have an increasing COVID-19 Infection rate? What are the hashtags used to describe COVID-19 by Region (e.g. #covid, #COVID-19, #Coronavirus, #NovelCoronavirus)? Additionally what are the top 10 commonly used hashtags used alongside COVID hashtags? Is there a significant relationship between a Region’s cumulative GDP and Infection Rate per capita? What is the average amount of time it took for each region to reach its first peak in infection rate per capita?
Roles / Responsibilities- Point person for Docker, Kubernetes, Amazon S3 and Elastic Stack (Beats, LogStash, ElasticSearch, Kibana).
- Designed a Scala Spark Runner program to input raw JSON response files for processing.
- Write and maintain documentation for Docker, Kubernetes, Running Spark jobs on Kubernetes (Amazon EKS). [github directory]
- Sourced documents, sample files, and wrote documentation for ELK, Spark, Git, DataProc, and Kubernetes/Docker.
- Spark-Submit jobs to Spark cluster running on AWS Elastic Kubernetes Service (EKS)
- Ran Spark jobs on Google DataProc using Google Cloud Storage.
- Utilized Amazon S3 to store Datasets and Spark JARs
- Ran Spark jobs on Amazon EMR in Cluster mode as well as Step Execution mode.
- Collaborated using Git on Github to manage source control between multiple teams.

TTP Stock Trade
- Implemented Sessions and Bcrypt authentication
- Created RESTful API and data retrieval from IEX Cloud API for financial data
- Built with RoR server, Javascript/React front end, Axios Promise based HTTP requests
- Deployed to Heroku (server) and Netlify (frontend)

DevTeam - Dev Team Building
- Conceptualized app idea and MVP requirements
- Implemented a Ruby on Rails RESTful API server backend
- Developed a Javascript/React frontend Single Page App (SPA)
- Deployed to Heroku (frontend and server)
Websites I've worked on recently (2020)
Past website work (2011 - 2018)
Industry Knowledge
- Big Data Development
- Full-stack Software Development
- Handywork, Maintenance and Repair
- Computer HW/SW Installation and Troubleshooting
- Video/Photo Editing
- Office administration
- Commercial RE Sales and Marketing
- Property Research and Analysis
- Telecom Cable Troubleshooting and Splicing
Tools and Technologies
- Scala
- Hadoop
- Hive
- Spark
- AWS EMR, Google DataProc
- IntelliJ
- sbt
- AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
- Javascript with React
- Ruby / Ruby on Rails
- HTML/CSS
- REST APIs
- Git/Github VCS
- Heroku/Netlify
- FTP/Telnet
- Wordpress
- MS Office / Google Apps
- Acrobat, Photoshop, Premiere
- Most Hand and Power tools
- Some Woodworking tools :)
- Flux Core Welding
Hobbies and Interests
- Acrylic and watercolor painting
- Video art and mashups
- Woodworking and welding
- Gardening (indoor and outdoor, propagation)
- Creative Writing
- Karaoke
- and, soon, Surfing!
Presentations
- A Visual Introduction to Git - Local and remote repositories, data movement between layers, and options for hosting repositories
General
Educational:
- Education Technology Clearinghouse [usf.edu] - Many educational and research related links
- Finding Copyright Free Images@uw.edu
- HathiTrust Digital Library - Digitized books, some very old.
- Encyclopedias and Dictionaries@uw.edu
Autism Resources
NYC & Real Estate Resources:
- NYC Digital Tax Map - Prop. info. by BBL/Address
- NYC DOF - Property
- DOTMap - Searchable map for info parking regs, street construction, bicycle paths and more.
- QCAD - easy, FOSS CAD for floorplans and diagrams.
- Building codes clarified (geo unspecific)
Nature:
- [English name translation of Korea Native Plants (from Korea Forest Service)]
- Three birds I have fond childhood memories of. To sight them occasionally outside our 2nd floor apt window. Twas thrilling!
- Not a fan of this uppity bird, but they're everywhere and I never knew its name:
Technical
For Scientists:
- Piotr Migdal's list of software for scientists
- Useful Apps for Scientists (outdated - 2012)
- GUI clients for GIT
- Article: How do Scientists really use computers?
- Overview of Git's usefulness in research
- Quick Intro - step by step walkthrough
- Reproducible workflow and version control
- Teaching plan for VC with GIT
Misc.:
- ICANN WHOIS lookup - Better way to research domains. Prevents unscrupulous hosts from registering your domain ideas.
- Folding@home - distributed computing for simulating protein folding to cure disease.
- DevDocs API reference
- OverAPI - all the cheat sheets
- Pingdom Website Speed Test
- Internet Health Test (Broadband speed)
- CSS Specificity Calculator
Inter-net of Yore:
- Wayback Machine - Website snapshots from the past.
- MUDs (Multi-User Dungeons)
- Genocide LPMud - my all-time favorite. The original PUBG-style arena-style battle game.
- Dragonfire Mud - my first LPMud
- Perilous Realms - another mud I enjoyed
- Ancient Anguish LPMud - another good mud back in the day
- MUDStats.com - stats and info on MUDs
- Top Mud Sites Forum
- LPMuds.net - LPC, LPMud info
- Galaxy/einet's Mud directory
- The MUD Connector
- MUDs @ Lysator.liu.se
- BBSs (Bulletin Board Systems)
- BBS Corner Telnet BBS Guide
- Textfiles.com - Historical BBS List
- Renegade BBS Software
- Mystic BBS Software
- Internet wildernesses - places for digital exploration
- Dennis M Ritchie
- Textfiles.com (1980s - 1995 Internet)
- Unix History
- Computer Languages History
- Windows History
- Alan De Smet
- Aalt.sysadmin.recovery FAQ v1.799999999999999998...
- The Swiss Bay's PDF archive
- Lagmonster
- Ascii Art Archives
- Calver's site
- Wisc.edu Basement Computing
- Old Video Game Software and Media
- VGMRIPS - Arcade video game sounds and music
- Looping Audio Converter - Audio converter for video game looping audio files
- Roms and emulator sites: DopeROMs EMUparadise ROMsmania

Creative Karass
- Awkwafina - Web
- Ayumi Nojiri - Instagram
- Cadence Ryu - Blog
- DJ Shine - YouTube Playlist
- Flowsik - Youtube
- Gayageum Pierna - Instagram
- Joe Yun - Web Podcast
- Kurt Vonnegut, jr. - Cat's Cradle
- Lois K. Lee - Instagram
- Makoto Oki - Web
- Matt Granger - Youtube
- Risa Nishimori - Web Pottery Studio
- Sarah Graham - Web
- Vera Protopopova - Instagram
Last updated: 5/26/2020
[image source,
The Books of Bokonon]
![[Myself at 38 w32nd Street with Canvas]](img/creative/image-cap-art.jpg)
Art Galleries:
- Altitude Gallery (Bozeman, MT, US)
- Will's Art Warehouse (London, UK) Great thread on making fine art prints.
Collectionism
Not yet a defined art style, but it should be! It would include 2D and 3D artwork composed in a style that organizes and brings together objects with a common connection (purpose, color, time period, etc.)
The retail version of Collectionism: Pop Chart
Last updated: 5/27/2020
[personal photo]
한국 물건 - Korean related stuff
![[image of korean characters]](img/korea/image-cap-language.jpg)
Language
- Korean Pop Songs from the 80s and 90s [youtube]
- Hanja links (Chinese characters learned in Korean schools)
- Vocabulary Videos A fun intro to Korean vocabulary by Jaehwi from KoreanClass101.com (youtube).
Last updated: 5/26/2020
[image source]
![[image of korean characters with brushes]](img/korea/image-cap-poetry.jpg)
Poetry
- Sijo (Korean poetic form) introduction - A basic guide to Sijo, with examples and links to more info.
- The Columbia Anthology of Modern Korean Poetry [pdf]
- Poetry by Kim Sowohl (Translated by Sekyo Nam Haines)
- Poetry by Lee Yuk Sa (Translated by Sekyo Nam Haines)
Last updated: 5/26/2020
[image source]
![[Kim Hong-do, A Cat and a Butterfly painting]](img/korea/image-cap-art.jpg)
Art
- Bojagi Wrapping Cloths - A video introduction by Youngmin Lee (vimeo).
- Kim Hong Do art gallery
Last updated: 5/26/2020
[image source]
![[Seoul Food Shop 1890-1923]](img/korea/image-cap-historical.jpg)
Historical
-
Old books about Korea
- The passing in Korea (1906) by Homer B. Hulbert
- Korea (1904) by Angus Hamilton (w/ maps and illustrations)
- Korean Genealogy - tracing family names.
Last updated: 5/26/2020
[image source]
Bali
| |
![[image of sunset and temple in Bali]](img/bali/image-cap-general.jpg)
General Info
-
Visas
- Embassy of Indonesia, Washington, DC
- US Department of State: Indonesia travel requirements, country info and advisories.
- The Lonely Planet: Visas and Customs
- Bali.com - Visa & Immigration Bali
- BMC Money Changer: Daily rates on the ground
- TransferWise: Cheaper than bank transfers with clear fees and money in hand.
Currency Exchange Rate
Last updated: 5/27/2020
[personal photo]
![[I love bali sign]](img/bali/image-cap-places.jpg)

![[Legs crossed next to a pool]](img/bali/image-cap-dn.jpg)
Digital Nomads/Freelance
- Digital Nomads Community Link Directory - All kinds of info.
- Nomad List - Place finder and remote jobs.
- Digital Nomad Board - Jobs and community.
- We Work Remotely - Jobs and community.
- Working Nomads - Jobs
- Authentic Jobs - Freelance job board for creatives.
- Freelancer Map - Freelance job board.
- Freelancer - Freelance job board.
Last updated: 5/27/2020
[personal photo]