Hi everyone! The blog has been a bit slow lately because we’ve been working feverishly on that UMPC product we talked about before (along with the updates to eWallet and ListPro that we’ve got in the works!) But the UMPC work is done, the beta is complete, and the final version should be out soon! We’ll be sure to let everyone know when it goes out.
A week from now I’m heading to California for the Handango Summit and the CTIA Wireless show. If you’re a blog watcher here and plan to attend either of those, let me know. I’d love to meet you and say “hi!”
And for all of our non-US readers, this coming Monday is Labor Day here so Ilium Software will be closed as we all take a nice 3-day weekend to kick back and recover from the big UMPC push! (And for all of our US readers, have a great Labor Day!)
Hi everyone! I’m Marc Tassin, the Product Manager here at Ilium Software. I’ve been with Ilium Software since 2000 and I am “Employee #0001”. That is to say, I’m the first person to start working at Ilium Software who wasn’t one of the three founders.
So….want to know more about me? Then read on!
Still reading? Alright then! If you want to know what kind of guy I am I’ll sum it up in a few words: Computers, Star Wars, and Role-Playing games. It’s the nerd Trifecta, I know, but hey…it’s what I like! So let’s talk about computers since this is the Ilium Software blog after all.
I’ve loved computers since I got my first one back in 1980. I was 9 years old and my parents bought the Magnavox Odyssey 2 Micro Computer. They also purchased the Computer Intro! cartridge that explained how computers work (on an excruciatingly technical level). Plus, it let you start programming your own Odyssey 2 games. I was hooked. I never became an actual programmer but computers have been a big part of my life ever since.
I started out working part-time at Ilium Software doing general office work and light support. Later I became the main Technical Support guy. In time Quality Assurance (aka software testing) became one of my big responsibilities. Soon we were adding new people and I was passing down my hard earned knowledge to them and taking up new responsibilities. And then late last year I was made the Product Manager.
So what is a Product Manager anyhow? I’m sort of like a software architect. I draw up plans for a product then work with all the other people here to bring that product to life. It’s one of the most exciting and challenging jobs I’ve had. Of course I’m lucky because my job is made easier by the excellent people I work with here. We have great leadership, extremely talented programmers, and a fantastic software testing and support team!
No prizes for recognizing the reference in the title here - it’s much too obvious (please don’t tell me if it isn’t).
Here’s the current staff of Ilium Software (click for the big version):
Standing, left to right: Ken, Julie, Dan, Sheri, Matt, Ellen, Marc
Kneeling: Kevin, Lee
OK, we’ll have a prize (one of our programs, or, if you have all of them already, a handful of excellent stylus pens) for anyone who comes up with a good caption. Put any entries into the comments.
I’m Lee, part of the support team, and if you call or email for tech support you will probably get Kevin before you get me, unless you are a bulk-purchaser or one of a select bunch of resellers.
I have been doing tech support of one variety or another for about 15 years, nearly five of those here at Ilium Software. It truly is a great place to work; it’s nice to be around people who are caring and honest, and really believe in what they are doing.
I, too, am a big fan of our software, especially ListPro and eWallet. I use them every day, both at work and home, and wonder how I ever managed without them. Both travel everywhere with me on my Treo 650; it’s so nice to have my information at my fingertips! I save a ton of time by filtering my grocery list to only show the items I need, and then sort it by aisle. Then I print it out and check it off in the store (I really don’t have enough hands to wrangle two active kids, a grocery cart, *and* my Palm – and besides my kids will ask endlessly “Mom, can I play a game on your Palm now?” Out of sight, out of mind). One trip through the store and I’m done. No backtracking to a missed item (this is a really good thing – see previous statement about two active kids…).
Also, since I am calendar-challenged (write it on the calendar and promptly forget it), I use a running list of appointments, events, reminders, etc. in ListPro. Since I am constantly referring to it for one reason or another, I don’t miss appointments anymore. When an event is past, I check it off to make it hidden, but I can easily look back and say “When was that?”.
Did someone encourage me to write about our software? No. Do I recommend it to friends, and even people I don’t know? Yup. It’s good stuff, and it just works.
Hi, I’m Julie. I’ve been working at Ilium Software since last September, and I help work on the website and marketing end of things. I also help answer the phones when everyone in support gets swamped. So, if any out there ever calls and gets me, you might not get technical help right away, but I am great at taking messages!
Besides working on the web site here, I am still going to school, online, for a degree in web development, so I am pretty much in front of a computer screen either here or at home, about 12 hours a day. Of course, I’m not complaining, really – I’m glad that there is such a thing as online school. I don’t know if I would be able to work here and attend a traditional college – there just isn’t much flexibility in on-site schools, but the Internet is always open.
I have to admit, before I started working at Ilium Software, I didn’t know much at all about PDAs. I mean, I’d heard about them, seen commercials and ads, but I couldn’t have told you the difference between a Pocket PC and a Palm handheld to save my life. Of course, it’s not like they always make it easy out there, as in the new Palm Treo 700w Smartphone, which actually runs a Pocket PC operating system. I’m sure I’m not the only person who’s ever been confused by handheld devices. So I’m really glad that I’m starting to understand more about mobile devices and that I am able to use them when I need to around here – the world is definitely becoming more mobile, and wireless, and all those other technological-type adjectives.
I was reading an article on the Just Another Mobile Monday blog about students in a New Jersey high school who are going to be issued tablet PCs in the Fall, and man! if that’s not proof right there about how important it’s becoming to understand how to live in a technological world. When I was in high school, I only had one or two teachers who wouldn’t accept reports that weren’t typed – the rest still took handwritten work. In my house, we had a Brother word processor with this tiny screen that displayed gold text on a black background only, and I thought I was so cool when I used that thing to type stuff up! I can’t even imagine using a school-issued tablet PC with Internet access to turn in my work and talk to my teachers. Not going to be very good news for those kids who don’t like to turn in their work – no more excuses, like the article said.
So, that’s me. Probably one of the least tech-savvy people who happened to ever stumble into this line of work, but I’m getting better.
I liked Kevin’s introduction so much that I’m going to encourage everyone else here to write one. Which I’m pretty sure means I should do one first.
I’m Ellen, one of the people who started Ilium Software, back in 1997. I’ve met some of the people who are reading this - many of the people who run the PDA and mobile related websites, as well as many other developers and even quite a few users - at various conferences and events over the years. I’ve also talked to a number of users (fewer in recent years, but still keep my hand in a little) over the phone and by email. And of course I’ve seen many companies and individuals drop out of mobile software completely. Like people say about old age, it’s definitely not for sissies.
If companies reflect the personalities of the people who started them, I guess Ilium Software reflects mine to a large extent. Certainly our emphasis on providing really good support is a direct result of my frustration with the very bad support I’ve received from too many companies over the years. I don’t accept bad support from anyone (at least not more than once), and as long as I’m in control, we won’t provide it.
Like Kevin, I use our software all the time, because I like what it does and how it works. This probably isn’t coincidence - I designed or at least specified much of it. But because my background isn’t in tech, I think (or at least hope) that I have more of an end-user perspective than other people might.
I don’t want to put up a picture of myself (like many people, I hate pictures of myself), and don’t have quite the collection of handhelds that Kevin does, so will instead put up my bulletin board. Since I’m writing about my personality, I think it’s a pretty good illustration.
The buttons say:
Trust me; I’m a professional
This is just my corporate image
If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention
Making the world safe for musical comedy
I am a Jewish American Princess; please buy me a Tab
The bumper stickers say:
Oh No, Not Another Learning Experience
Don’t make me release the flying monkeys
The cartoons are about being impatient, easily distracted, grown-up, and short. I’d show pictures of them, but I think that’s a violation of their intellectual property, which, as a software developer, I’m of course very sensitive to.
The picture is the guys on Sports Night (TV series of a few years ago), in their shirts, ties and boxer shorts.
