A. J. Saavedra

Software Engineer

Hi there! I'm Tony. And Portland is my home.

Me circle

I'm a software engineer with a Masters in Interdisciplinary Computer Science.

A graduate of UC Berkeley, I earned my Bachelor's degree in English Literature in the Summer of 2014. Ever want to talk about Victorian literature or film noir? Message me!

Always the technical monkey, I decided to make the transition to CS where I started coding primarily in Java, but of course since starting my journer I have picked up other neat programming tools, like JavaScript, HTML and CSS, React, MySQL and, of course, git.

Currently, I'm working as a Solutions Engineer for a wonderful company called Datadog, where I've had the opportunity to learn and cover a wide breadth of tools and platforms from plain Windows to ECS Fargate. I've also helped build internal tools to help replicate and troubleshoot cases ranging from Application Performance Monitoring, containerized envrionments, and logging.

What I'm always looking for

My previous experience as a Data Software Engineer made it so I could have liberty to play with a massive amount of data. I was like a kid in a candy store, building tools so that could teach non-technical admins how to leverage technology for their benefit. Working as a Solutions Engineer is a lot like that, except I get to work with fellow engineers. I absolutely love working in a group but am enthusiastic enough to lead myself along the way.

As a former Masters student, I love when I get to impart knowledge onto others especially through code. As such, I've worked in a classroom setting on a Rails application for a non-profit organization in the bay area that benefitted disabled children. I also had the pleasure of hosting lab hours to teach basic frontend skills and was a grader for Intermediate Java which cements the foundation of many data structures.

For nine months, I worked at a small company in San Francisco as a Backend Developer Intern. Check out my resume for more information!

Last, but not least, I typically get along well with like-minded folk who are also passionate about coding, gluten-free foods, social justice, or Portal 2.

Maggie2

Where I'm from

I grew up in sunny Southern California in the city of Santa Ana. Getting accepted into UC Berkeley was a major blessing. Moving to the San Francisco Bay Area was an amazing experience for a first-generational student from a low-income family like myself.

As time went on, and as life would have it, I found myself re-transplanting myself in Portland, Oregon, whose eclectic energy is something I thrive off as both an artist and engineer. When I'm not working or learning, you can either find me at home playing my violin, with my rowdy cat, Maggie, or perhaps I've gone out for coffee with my partner.

Frequently Asked Questions

I did. And I wouldn't go back on that decision. A lot of times, people ask me why I chose to study English if I was just going to end up studying computer science, but I always feel that English and CS chose me.
Towards the end of my undergraduate program at Berkeley, I began to feel like I needed something that both challenged and nurtured a part of me that was left unknown. I took an Intro to CS class, and the rest is history.
Primarily Java and JavaScript, although my past internship had me deeply immersed in PHP and I've built a few Swift iOS applications. I've also been exposed to C++, Ruby, Prolog, and Go.
That I am a real team player, honest and loyal to my team. There's no grand secret or note to tell. Chances are I want to work with you.
Check out my Contact section for options. You can also find me on some typical sites like LinkedIn and connect with me!
After a semester in my Software Engineering class, I was left inspired to work on my own application. Do you like it?
Mostly from books I read, or the people I encounter. I'm also a huge advocate for meditation and go for long walks whenever I need the presence of trees.
To the Lighthouse, Beloved, and The Return of the King.

Resume

Education

  • Mills College
  • M.A. Computer Science
  • December 2017
Mills
  • UC Berkeley
  • Bachelor's in English
  • August 2014
Berkeley

Coursework

  • Machine Learning
  • Comp Concepts & Int Programming
  • Discrete Mathematics I & II
  • Data Structures & Algorithms
  • Intro to Databases
  • Computer Architecture
  • Software Engineering
  • Computer Networks
  • Cryptography & Network Security
  • Theory of Algorithms
  • Theory of Computation
  • Programming Languages
  • Design Thinking
  • Thesis for Master's

Previous Experience

  • Datadog — Solutions Engineer (Feb 2019 - Present)
  • • Developed internal tools and documentation to help replicate issues on containerized environments.
  • • Enriched client relationships by efficiently investigating cases across multiple technologies.
  • • Cases ranged from containerized applications on ECS, querying databases, and replicating environments to isolate issues.
  • • Coordinated with Engineering leads to provide an interface between customers.
  • • Provided technical expertise and guidance to Sales Engineers and Account Executives.
  • Berkeley Bowl Marketplace — Data Software Engineer (Jan 2018 - Feb 2019)
  • • Redesigned and developed optimized software solutions for departmental tasks.
  • • Introduced improvements on database queries to complete tasks in optimal time.
  • • Created REST API layer using Node, Express, MongoDB and MSSQL.
  • • Implemented new interactive software system for on-demand sales reporting.
  • • Architected administrator-level privileges to secure access to private sales information.
  • • Significantly improved the runtime of All Departments reporting by 93 percent.
  • Vonnda — Backend Developer Intern (June 2015 - Feb 2016)
  • • Created and integrated modules into existing Magento and PHP applications
  • • Implemented and maintained REST services, both custom and 3rd party
  • • Created and maintained cron-based services to manage and report customer sales
  • • Developed and extended systems to streamline team workflow

Projects

  • tonyjs.com: Personal web app to profile my work and skills
  • Nibbler: web app built on the MEAN stack. Helps those with celiac disease find nearby restaturants.
  • SocketChat: an iOS application implementing the Socket.IO client using Node, Express and Alamofire
  • BirthdayAlarm: an iOS application that alerts users of any upcoming birthday notifications set
  • MazeGenerator: a Java GUI that generates and is able to solve random large mazes
  • FlappyBird: recreated the game of Flappy Bird using the JavaFX platform
  • SpaceInvadersFX: an implementation of the classic arcade game done entirely in Java
  • TetrisFX: a JavaFX recreation of the classic arcade game
  • Solitaire: replicated the game of Solitaire entirely in Java
  • PhonebookDB: a Java GUI that implements an address book by creating a doubly-linked list from scratch
  • MarioMatch: a card-matching game done in Java using Nintendo characters
  • Blackjack: replicated the game of blackjack entirely in Java
  • VideoGameDB: mock MySQL DB for an online gaming company
  • ForgingFriendships: Rails app for a nonprofit organization benefitting disabled children in the bay area. Responsibilities included creating the application's design and maintaining its responsiveness on mobile.

Skills

  • Object-Oriented Programming in Java
  • Functional Programming in JS, Scheme & Haskell
  • iOS programming in Swift
  • Angular, React, Redux
  • Go, PHP, HTML / CSS, Bootstrap
  • Docker and Kubernetes
  • MySQL, Redis, MongoDB, MSSQL
  • Familiar with C, C++, Prolog
  • Eclipse, Xcode, VirtualBox
  • Terminal, Homebrew, Git, GitHub, Bitbucket
  • Mac OS X, Windows
  • Bilingual: English, Spanish, with some French

Contact me

Questions? I'm always happy to answer any. Feel free to send me a message.