Software engineer since 1995. Came up through hardware installation and help desk before ever writing a line of code. Learned HTML. Then JavaScript. Then server-side web development. Then SQL. Then enterprise CMS. Then JavaScript again. Led teams. Mentored engineers. Became a manager.
I’ve spent the last decade teaching junior developers, including mentoring new engineers through apprenticeship programs, how to work on systems they didn’t build and don’t fully understand.
The 30 years matter because mentoring a junior dev and directing an AI model require the same core skill: knowing what to ask for, knowing when the output is wrong, and knowing how to hand off something complex to someone who doesn't fully understand it yet.
| ALLCAPSJOE.com | Home base |
| blog.ALLCAPSJOE.com | Linkstream of what I'm reading |
| tools.ALLCAPSJOE.com | Developer utilities I've built |
| sites.ALLCAPSJOE.com | Sites I've built |
| games.ALLCAPSJOE.com | Web games |
| bigunclejoe.com | 3D printing & maker stuff |
What I'm reading — updated automatically from blog.ALLCAPSJOE.com
- 024 I Pocket E-Reader - 3D Printed DIY Project - Paul Lagier - Projects’s Ko-fi Shop
2026-04-17 - Google Has a Secret Reference Desk. Here’s How to Use It.
2026-04-14 - Golden tickets.
2026-04-14 - How I Read 44 Books Last Year
2026-04-14 - “The problem is that LLMs inherently lack the virtue of laziness.”
2026-04-14
What I'm building — updated automatically from games.ALLCAPSJOE.com
- Woolong Exchange
2026-04-14 - Emoji Bloom
2026-03-19 - Neon Diver
2026-01-20
What I've launched — updated automatically from sites.ALLCAPSJOE.com
- BigUncleJoe.com
2026-03-03 - AC Bell Prices
2026-03-03 - How Many Days Since…
2026-02-18
What I've built — updated automatically from tools.ALLCAPSJOE.com
- Track Operator
2026-03-29 - JSON to Flashcards
2026-02-18 - Switch The List
2026-02-18
AI Operator
Think of the Operators in The Matrix. They are not jacked in. They sit in the real world, watching the screens, reading the data streams, running the board. They upload what the crew needs, monitor what is happening inside, and pull the cord when something goes wrong. The people in the construct get the credit for the moves, but the Operator is why they survive.
That is the role. Not inside the AI blindly accepting output, but above it, reading it, directing it, correcting it, shaping what gets kept and what gets cut. The contribution graph has exploded. The output is real. The craft directing it is still mine.
Tools change. Notepad became an IDE. The IDE became an AI pair. The craft behind the keyboard stays the same.
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