I got into redstone in highschool. A few months later, I had built my first working processor. Redstone introduced me to the crazy world of computing and to a crazier community of world-class nerds. It brought me to a place where I could hang out with other kids like me – people who asked about Bresenham’s line drawing algorithm, Taylor serieses, or how GPU caches worked.
Here, I became an engineer and learned how to lead in a community.
Software Engineering Manager
ORE Cofounder
Although this server hasn’t directly helped my career, it has been very helpful. Its community has motivated me to learn things I would have otherwise never looked into: finding number sequences arising from problems in game, or reading about algorithms to try to engineer faster circuits, or learning to program to improve/analyze solutions or even taking courses to expand my knowledge on how real circuitry is designed or built; all under the guise of building in a game. I first joined ORE looking to get better at redstone. Today I have problems and challenges that enrich my time, friends that I enjoy building with, catching up with, and brainstorming with, and so many projects/ideas that I don’t know when I’ll finish.
I spent a while curious about computer hardware but not really sure where to start. Eventually, I found ORE through a friend and quickly found it was exactly the space I was looking for: Brilliant community members, lots of building space, and a fairly active moderation team. It helped me find a solid interest in computer engineering which eventually lead me to the career path I hope to take.
Open Redstone Engineers piqued my interest in computer engineering, something that has steered my career and life goals in a huge way. After having done hobbyist stuff at ORE, programming and embedded electronics courses in university felt easy. I believe this had a huge impact on making my career successful.
Being an admin at ORE was also my first taste of volunteering, which is something I’ve done quite a bit after ORE. Volunteering has definitely improved my leadership, presentation and organizational skills. This is something ORE also impacted greatly.
Admin @ Open Redstone Engineers 2012-2015
MSc. (Tech.) Computer Engineering 2022
Senior Software Engineer
Before joining ORE back in November 2013, I had previously fallen in-love with the idea that real world logical circuits could be built out of Redstone. That time being spent trying to figure things out on my own. After a bit I thought “there has got to be a community out there somewhere for this”. A short search later, I found ORE through a Newomaster YouTube video on division. I jumped right in. A short time later, I saw that people were not only making Adders, Multipliers, Dividers, etc… but also full CPUs… I was hooked. I spent the next several years learning everything I could from the community and Google/YouTube searches. Fast forward to a few years ago and I was able to use the skills gained from building CPUs on ORE to get a job building computational accelerators on FPGAs and working on new kinds of microprocessor organization. Those skills gained were not only the scientific and engineering based kills, but also how to collaborate with others constructively… Learned some valuable lessons on how to take criticism of different kinds (lol). In addition, I have been an Admin since mid 2014. The amount of management and administrative experience that has granted me… is immeasurable. I truly dreamed about being able to do what I am doing for a living now… and without ORE those dreams would simply not have been possible in any realistic timeline.
ORE Builder: 2013 – Present
ORE Admin: 2014 – Present
Company Founder: 2018 – Present
Professional Microarchitect: 2019 – Present
Professional Lead Engineer: 2020 – Present
LordDecapo: Forever
The Open Redstone Engineers has been foundational in developing my interest in research and teaching. One of the cornerstones of ORE is the School server, where new users can learn from experienced redstoners. When I began taking redstone seriously in late 2011, I learned quickly because of the help of several advanced users who spent hours tutoring me on the basics of boolean logic and computer architecture. By mid 2012, I had become proficient enough to teach redstone myself, and it was through my experience that I learned many skills that would be important later in my career.
Admin @ Open Redstone Engineers 2013
Admin @ Redstone Development Foundation 2012-2013
Ph.D. Physics 2022
Postdoctoral Scholar
ORE Cofounder
ORE is what steered me in the direction of computer science, which has been a perfect fit for me. It is all thanks to the massive talent and passion the members show. It’s an uplifting community and I found it very motivating to learn and work with the members.