Andy

Andy Ford, Technical Lead.

Flamboyant writer of code, player of video games and recently converted cycling enthusiast.

Bio

Hi there, I'm Andy! I am a Technical Lead and Senior Software Engineer living in North-east Somerset with a passion for trying new technologies and building clean, scalable software. Currently, I'm working at Ably, building innovative solutions within a distributed systems environment that deliver realtime experiences at scale.

Outside of code (if there is such a thing?!), i'm quite partial to a bit of cycling, musical theatre and video games. I play the piano and have a rather... unusual... collection of t-shirts!

I have two lovely cats called Twix and Picnic, and my goals for 2023 are to keep learning more about large distributed systems as well as starting a masters degree in Artificial Intelligence!

Education

I graduated from The University of Bath in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science with first class honours. My final year thesis concerned Human Computer Interaction and mental healthcare, with a particular focus on Care Pathways. Throughout my studies I have taken modules in Networking, Parallel Computing, Cryptography and Safety Critical Systems. Since graduating, I give an annual lecture at the university on Safety Critical Systems in relation to aviation.

I am an associate member of the British Computing Society and also a Zend Certified PHP Engineer on PHP 5.6.

From 2023, I've been studying part-time for a Master of Sciences in Artificial Intelligence at the University of Bath.

Skills

PHP
AWS
Docker
C Sharp
C++
Golang
Node
Kotlin
Mysql

Projects

UK Controller Plugin

A C++ DLL that integrates with EuroScope 3.2 to provide useful functionality for members of VATSIM UK whilst controlling on the VATSIM network.
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Project Repository

UK Controller API

Laravel-based API that acts a focus point for shared actions by the UK Controller Plugin. Includes a Websocket integration to allow two-way communication and event broadcasting.
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Project Repository

AFV EuroScope Bridge

Simple integration for EuroScope 3.2 to support the release of Audio for VATSIM with functionality to reduce user workload whilst other software is upgraded.
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Project Repository

Sector File Compiler

Small, cross-platform application to compile and validate the VATSIM UK Sector File from source files.
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Project Repository

UKCP - vStrips Integration

EuroScope plugins historically cannot communicate with each other or share data in an effective manner. To enable communication between two popular programs used by VATSIM UK members, we implemented a custom JSON over TCP protocol for inter-process communication.
Project Page
Project Repository

European Collaboration & Flow Management Project

An international collaboration to coordinate the flow of traffic on the VATSIM Network. Includes management of Flow Measures and Discord notifications.
Project Page
Project Repository

Lectures and Talks

Advancement of Safety in the Aviation Industry

A yearly talk given to final year students studying Safety Critical Systems at the University of Bath. The talk analyses a number of high-profile accidents, the lessons learned from them as well as other advancements in safety in the industry. 2021 will be the fifth instalment of the lecture.

History and Classification of Programming Languages

Delivered to students at the iO Academy in Bath during the first few weeks of their course. Covers the development of programming languages from the mid 1900's to the present day, looking at how they've built on each other and how they might be classified.

Introduction to Eloquent

Delivered as a lunchtime talk with a colleague. Introduced the development team to the Eloquent ORM and how it could be utilised within the product line.

History of Programming and its Languages

Delivered to new students at the iO Academy in Bath. Developed from feedback from the previous talk. This talk also covers the different paradigms of programming and places a greater focus on the history.

MySQL Query Optimisation

Delivered as a lunchtime talk. A deeper look into how MySQL runs queries, with tips and techniques for using indexes to optimise them.

Contact

Copyright© Andy Ford 2019 - 2023