PRESTON
Mt Horeb, WI
ordohereticus at gmail dot com

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

RHT/ NETWORK ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGIES, MIDDLETON, WI
Technical Support Coordinator Oct 2007 to Present
Daily support of field technicians for Data and Voice cabling troubleshooting and MAC requests for a great number of clients ranging from Wal-Mart, Radioshack, Cracker Barrel, CVS Pharmacy, Costco to Chevron and FedEx. Daily access of Cisco switches and routers: viewing and modification of VLAN settings, and other port configuration. Project coordination: ordering parts and materials for sites, verification of location for everything needed for the field tech for when they arrive on site: conduit, AC power, lifts, and coordination with other vendors. Familiarity with Avaya and Cisco phone switches and telecom connectivity.

EXACTA CORPORATION/ CUNA MUTUAL GROUP, MADISON, WI
Account Management Support May 2007 to Aug 2006 Account creation and support of numerous online applications and the CMG Enterprise Login System.

WILLWERKS CREATIVE DESIGN, MOUNT HOREB, WI
Sole Proprietor/ Illustrator 2002 to Present
Freelance Illustration in the gaming industry. Creating quality gray-scale interior and cover artwork for a number of published products. Daily use of Photoshop as well as traditional media ranging from pencils, graphite, watercolors and india inks.

EXACTA CORPORATION/ WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION, MADISON, WI
Enterprise Support Analyst May 2006 to Nov 2006
Support of the Sate of Wisconsin WAN (Badgernet). Monitoring of agency LAN/WAN and servers, troubleshooting of same. Telnet used to directly log in to Cisco 2800 series routers/ CPE. Coordination of telco/ circuit/ CE support through Norlight. Desktop support for several agencies. Enterprise email password administration, limited support of AS400 Mainframes as well as VPN and Citrix support. Account Management duties, regular use of Active Directory. Regular support of Outlook 2003 (limited support of Groupwise).

TDS TELECOM, MIDDLETON, WI
Customer Service and Sales Representative Nov 2005 to Feb 2006
Support of residential and small business telephone service. Used the Remedy Action Request System. Provisioned Dial-up, DSL and Dish Network Accounts. Telnet used to directly access switches

CUNA MUTUAL GROUP, MADISON, WI
Claims Examiner May 2005 to Oct 2005
Credit disability claims adjudication, investigating fraudulent claims, ordering of direct surveillance.

CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS INC, VANCOUVER, WA
HSI Tier II Lead 2002-Dec 15 2004
Support of Residential Cable Broadband Internet and Digital/ Analog Video Services. Advanced troubleshooting and escalated calls involving communication to local offices in the NW region including WA, OR, NV, Northern Idaho, and Northern California. Support of Charter Business Networks/ Small Business Internet subscribers including Static and Dynamic IP provisioning, Domain hosting/ Registration, E-Mail and Webspace administration and education. Responsible for assigning priorities to trouble calls for Field Technicians, directly escalated service issues to local dispatchers. Provided advocacy for HSD Technicians in linear troubleshooting, support boundaries, and advanced troubleshooting of TCP/IP over Cable Broadband. Limited project management and documentation for the Training Department

WISCONSIN PHYSICIANS SERVICE, MADISON, WI
MEDICARE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE III 2001-2002 Support representative for beneficiaries and healthcare providers.

SONIC FOUNDRY, INC. MADISON, WI
SOFTWARE DESIGN ENGINEER 2000
Responsible for all Media Services Division application output and storage. Responsible for automating and streamlining the build process for Media Services. Specifically chosen to join the install team for my leadership abilities and strong work ethic over more technically proficient candidates.

THE UNITED STATES ARMY INFANTRYMAN Sergeant E-5 1996-2000
11M20P, Transitioned to 11M after a training injury. Deployed to Bosnia, Macedonia for the UN and Kosovo with NATO.

TRI-COUNTY METROPOLITAN DISTRICT OF OREGON (TRI-MET), PORTLAND, OR HELPDESK TECHNICIAN I 1995-1996 Desktop, LAN/ WAN support. (Novell Netware Administrator) Responsible for all new system integration, including data transfer and backup within the entire Tri-Met organization.

CDI Corp./INTEL CORPORATION, BEAVERTON, OR FLOOR MANAGER, PENTIUM CALL CENTER 1993-1995 As part of a five-man managerial team, supervised and trained 120+ customer service technicians. Coordinated Customer Service Training and CSR QA coaching. Responsible for the scheduling and approval of all time off as well as disciplinary action.

Remiss...

Yeah...I've been extra busy lately. Little time or patience for miniatures; played only one game last month...and that was with Katie at Pegasus Games. Photos of that bout here.

My latest obsession is my Xbox 360 and a little game called Call of Duty 4: Modern Combat.
Got it a couple weeks ago and have spent an inordinate amount of time burning off aggression and work stress by shooting people...online.

I've even been recruited in to an online gaming clan: Xiled Gaming: Aft3rMath. I think what I like about the clan is that they are all about communication. Playing a multiplayer game with a team that doesn't communicate is too much like playing alone. I really like to talk with the team members, call out where the bad-guys are and where they are moving to, and coordinate our assault. That's probably the cornerstone of what I like best in multiplayer games.

Aside from communications, I'm easily the worst player on the team. The way I look at this...it's important to train with the best...and these guys are all top-ranked players. I'm so used to PC gaming and keyboard/ mouse controls...that the controller is hard to use. I tend to be too aggressive with the controller and over-correct, slewing back and forth...unable to hit a target with out spraying and praying. I'm getting better daily.

Non-Spoiler Review of Only in Death

Picked up the latest of the Gaunt's Ghosts series and finished it last
night around 10:30pm

Only in Death
(Gaunt's Ghosts)

By Dan Abnett
This Edition: Mass Market Paperback
Publication Date: December, 2007

The Summary:

For those of you who aren't regular readers of the Gaunt's Ghosts
series...it's a war story akin to Band of Brothers but set in the
gritty, war-torn future of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. The
protagonists are Imperial Guardsmen. Not super-soldiers like Space
Marines, or having any god-like powers like Inquisitors (see
Eisenhorn, Ravenor, etc). Nope these are down home folks serving out
their tour of duty as The Hammer of the Emperor, guardsmen,
essentially...fodder for the never-ending battles of the 41st
millennium.

Like Band of Brothers, you get to know the interesting personalities
of the Regiment through hard times; see what they are really like in
adversity, grow to love them...and some...many die along the way. I've
seen some of my favorite characters die in this series over the years.
Still others survive, and every page you hope they make it to the end.

Only in Death is a fine example of this.
The book keeps a creepy, almost haunted feel throughout which adds an
additional element of stress for the dear reader as they turn the
page.

The Review:

While I have enjoyed the Gaunt's Ghosts series immensely, and have
recommended it to everyone I've met, some books are better than
others. You can tell when the writer hits the mother lode, and when
he's panning in the river, and Dan is much the same. Thankfully his
standard of writing has never in my opinion dropped to the point where
a book was unenjoyable; every book has been good. Just some are more
inspired, or maybe just reach me differently.

THIS book, Only in Death, as in the old proverb "Only in Death does
duty end" is one of my top 3 of the series. My favorite being Sabbat
Martyr BTW.

I was left a little flat after Armor of Contempt, but Only in Death
made up for any shortcoming I may have felt. This is one hell of a
good read!

My Rating:

Of all the Gaunts Ghosts series, I'm grading this one of the BEST so
far. That being said, on a scale of One to Five Stars, One meaning it
Truly Sucked and Five being an All-Time Classic....I'm giving Only in
Death Five Stars. (*****)

Only In Death: Review and Summary *spoilers*

Picked up the latest of the Gaunt's Ghosts series and finished it last night around 10:30pm

Only in Death
(Gaunt's Ghosts)

By Dan Abnett
This Edition: Mass Market Paperback
Publication Date: December, 2007

The Summary:

For those of you who aren't regular readers of the Gaunt's Ghosts series...it's a war story akin to Band of Brothers but set in the gritty, war-torn future of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. The protagonists are Imperial Guardsmen. Not super-soldiers like Space Marines, or having any god-like powers like Inquisitors (see Eisenhorn, Ravenor, etc). Nope these are down home folks serving out their tour of duty as The Hammer of the Emperor, guardsmen, essentially...fodder for the never-ending battles of the 41st millennium.

Like Band of Brothers, you get to know the interesting personalities of the Regiment through hard times; see what they are really like in adversity, grow to love them...and some...many die along the way. I've seen some of my favorite characters die in this series over the years. Still others survive, and every page you hope they make it to the end.

Only in Death is a fine example of this.

In Only in Death, the regiment is sent off on a mission to protect the flank and hold a strange craggy "house" which is more of a Iwo Jima-like fortress, with twists and turns, hidden passages, strange tunnels, and seems very likely haunted. The story begins from the perspective of one of my favorite characters, Commissar Hark who is attempting to quash rumors about the planet and the place they are marching to. Stacks and stacks of skulls, with the tops sawed off as if in some strange ritual. This is what starts the unease throughout the unit, and it persists to the end.

The book keeps a creepy, almost haunted feel throughout which adds an additional element of stress for the dear reader as they turn the page.

Soon the Ghosts realize that the fortress isn't entirely unoccupied, finding that it is being infiltrated somehow by Blood Pact warriors who seem to be slipping in and out, taking any dead with them.

Soon the battle begins in earnest and the fortress is assaulted in strength, repeatedly and characters die. There are several moments of laughter in the series as some characters grow in to their own, while others are cut short.

In the end, when things seem lost (Gaunt has been dragged away, severe losses, low ammunition and supplies, and everyone seeming to have more and more sightings of apparitions and strangeness) Rawne takes command and holds the regiment together, supported by Hark, Ludd, and his remaining officers. Ezrah ap Niht vanishes to go on a death hunt for his charge, Ibram Gaunt, and Mkoll goes AWOL hunting Ezrah.

When all looks hopeless, at the very end, the Ghosts hunker down and do what they do best...survive in the face of impossible odds. Hark and some others are hauled out with crucial data only to be shot down. The scene with Hark and ...yes...Agun Soric is one I'll remember for a long time (Thank you Dan, it was perfectly done).

The Review:

While I have enjoyed the Gaunt's Ghosts series immensely, and have recommended it to everyone I've met, some books are better than others. You can tell when the writer hits the mother lode, and when he's panning in the river, and Dan is much the same. Thankfully his standard of writing has never in my opinion dropped to the point where a book was unenjoyable; every book has been good. Just some are more inspired, or maybe just reach me differently.

THIS book, Only in Death, as in the old proverb "Only in Death does duty end" is one of my top 3 of the series. My favorite being Sabbat Martyr BTW.

I was left a little flat after Armor of Contempt, but Only in Death made up for any shortcoming I may have felt. This is one hell of a good read!

My Rating:

Of all the Gaunts Ghosts series, I'm grading this one of the BEST so far. That being said, on a scale of One to Five Stars, One meaning it Truly Sucked and Five being an All-Time Classic....I'm giving Only in Death Five Stars. (*****)

It's 2008!

Nothing new going on. SSDD (same shit, different day). On new years eve we installed City Of Heroes (City of Heroin) and we've been playing somewhat regularly ever since. A little instant gratification and catharsis was exactly what the doctor ordered.

We've also backed away from our miniatures collecting/ painting hobby for a bit. It's expensive, and I'm a bit burned out. So we're taking a bit of time away from the hobby. It sucks when you just aren't interested in your hobby anymore, and we were getting there...just struggled to pick up a brush.

The Warhammer 40,000 Dark Heresy Book came and went so fast it made my head spin. Didn't get a copy.

Burned out on Facebook.
If you think about it, what exactly is the point of Facebook aside from simply wasting time on BS? I mean, it's all the parts of Livejournal that I avoided. In my quest for improving my Signal to Noise Ratio, Facebook took me on a 180'.