Justice Addison – Web Developer

 

I assumed this position in the Webdev team after completing an MSC Computer Security degree at the University of Kent. Prior to this I also attained a BSC in Computer Science here and went on to work as a .NET developer for a year.

Having had prior enthusiasm for programming (particularly in Java, C++ and VB), I started web development when I was asked to build a website by a family friend having very little knowledge of how the web worked (pre-university days). There my journey of exploring the never ending maze of the web began, and what do you know, I’m still doing it, and indeed loving it!

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time in the webdev team so far and look forward to more growth and productivity to come.

Matthew Bull – UX Developer

photo-1I’ve been in the web development team since 2007, and have worked as a web developer since 2004. My first web site was built in the heady days of 1995. It used frames. It was a long time ago…

I have a PhD in Linguistics from Edinburgh University and a degree in Linguistics and AI from Sussex, but I haven’t done any linguistics for quite a while now. I got my MSc in Computing at Kent Uni.

I take a lot of photos, some of which you can see at matthewbullphoto.com.

Christian Cable – Web Developer

I’ve loved computers ever since receiving a Sinclair ZX81 one joyous Christmas morning. I went on to spend far too much of my childhood making sense of the BASIC listings from the backs of computer magazines.

I’m a Computing graduate of the University of Central Lancashire in Preston and have worked my entire career in education.

Before moving to _The South_, I spent most of my 20s and 30s at Lancaster University bouncing between systems administration, e-learning and development.

My most recent post was part of Lancaster University’s Web Team; working across the university to transform a maze of confusing and different websites into a single, useful, mobile-friendly website. We launched one of the UK’s first responsively designed sites in HE.

I’m excited to be part of the web development team here at Kent. After spending many years wrestling with various systems to help manage large university websites I’m really pleased to be working to build our own open-source CMS. Making something geared around the unique challenges faced by HE in the UK is a dream project for me. I can’t wait to see it power the next generation of websites here at Kent.

 

Mark Fendley – Web Development Team Manager

I started my love affair with technological things (mostly with a multicoloured Apple logo attached) back when they were magical, mystical items that I didn’t fully understand. I then started using them to express my artistic side, and they were still magical and mystical. A stint in the print industry honing my Photoshop, Illustrator, Quark and printing technologies (traditional offset and digital presses) skills followed. Next was a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Kent, which gave me a far better understanding of how hardware and software worked, taking away some of the mystique. I then embarked upon a journey starting at Ford Motor Company as a Business Analyst and then Systems Engineer, going through running my own small IT consultancy providing services to SMEs (web, desktop support, business process change), then returning to Kent as a Web Developer, originally concentrating on SharePoint.

Since being at Kent I have enjoyed contributing to a number of projects across a broad range of products. Over the past few years we have all embarked on fine-tuning Scrum for our specific environment, a process which has been particularly interesting. I find the Scrum process genuinely fascinating.

Outside of work I enjoy flying aeroplanes, appreciate finely engineered automobiles, Formula 1, attempts at gardening, and at the moment, a potentially expensive attempt to collect 90s-era Apple Macintoshes. I think it’s nostalgia…

Jonathan Thirlwell – UX developer

jonathanI studied Art Direction and Design in South Africa – I have a passion for innovative, creative solutions and a love of technology which has drawn me naturally towards web design and development and now I’m now excited to be the UX Developer for the team.

I aim to instil the concepts of user-centred design into developments at Kent and to bring consistency and unity to digital products improving the student experience. I want to make things simple, beautiful and easy to use for everyone by focussing design solutions on user needs.

In my spare time I run, read, garden and tend my allotment.

 

Sam Yapp – Web Developer