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
the Sueetie .NET Open Source online community framework.
DBVT.COM was built with Sueetie.
I founded Sueetie and created Sueetie.org to demonstrate
how full-featured and robust online communities are now possible using .NET Open
Source-based software. To describe the process let's look at how we're using .NET
Open Source solutions here at dbvt.com. The top sidebar page image at left is my
home page, a typical .NET page. Below the home page is my blog, an outstanding 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.
With Sueetie I have been leading the movement to promote collaboration and innovation
in .NET Open Source community development. Rather than detail the driving forces
behind Sueetie, please read
the announcement of Sueetie on my blog. This will give you an idea of why
I believe so strongly in the Sueetie Open Source development model.
As a freelance developer my philosophy 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 attention to 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 recently, 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 and Sueetie.
I've been on the road culminating in Sueetie 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.
I no longer accept Community Server project requests because I believe the Open
Source architecture of Sueetie is a better choice
because of its 1) low entry into Social Networking capabilities for my clients,
2) full source code availability enabling extensive customization and immediate
bug fixes, 3) Open Source applications of outstanding quality becoming increasingly
available, and 4) the motivation of sharing in the passion of developer communities
around Open Source products results in greater productivity and innovation.
When I create a new Sueetie online community or
add social networking capabilities to an existing site, the applications are essentially
already written. My job is to integrate, customize and add specific client enhancements,
which is what I do very well. 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 using Microsoft .NET-based Open Source applications
and the Sueetie Online Community framework. If I can 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!
