About Me
Some ask, and I often wonder myself, why have a webpage?!? I don't know...for starters who wouldn't want to save their own "digital" identity? And, who knows when you'll have your 15 seconds of fame? The concept of creating or protecting a personal brand has been floating around and was enough for me to stake out my online real estate. You know...so the other Ben Rapin's in the world couldn't beat me to it ;)
Current Topics of Interest
- Social Media: Twitter, Facebook, and FourSquare oh my.
- E-commerce, and PCI Compliance (is your card holder data safe?)
- Webcasting and Live Video streaming
- Learning Spanish...never thought I would have enjoyed it so.
- And, of course: Working with smart people to build amazing web-applications!
As the saying goes... "The cobbler always wears the worst shoes." I am often too busy helping other with thier sites that mine is left unkempt. If you're looking for more info or if I can be of some service to you please email me here: ben@benrapin.com.
Read More
I've worked in the web development, design, and project management realm in one capacity or another for about 12 years, yet I've managed to successfully avoid maintaining my own site for some time. My professional career began as a developer working with ASP in a Microsoft partner shop (CQL Inc.) but I migrated more to the client/people side of web projects about the time .NET rolled out. Maybe it was a way to avoid learning something new, but I prefer to think that it was where my talents more naturally fit. I love managing smart people with amazing skill sets, and working them to take a project from a basic concept, to a simple prototype and then to a fully-featured business application.
After an exciting stint with CQL, and after much consideration and thought, I decided to take a position with my alma mater, Grand Valley State University. It would take a very exciting opportunity to convince me there is a better place to work than either CQL or GVSU. I currently perform a sundry list of tasks for the Web Team at GVSU, but most revolve around project management, day to day administration, and internal client support for an ever-growing list of custom web applications. I'm continually blown away by the projects our relatively small team produces. A centralized group of developers is something very unique to GVSU, and after to talking to other institutions I think we have gotten it just right!
Somewhere in the midst of all this I was able to earn a master's degree in Information Systems Management from Ferris State University. I'm not sure what exactly that buys me, but it was a fair amount of work and a big accomplishment. If nothing else, it instilled in me the value of being a life long learner and listener.
After my masters classes I needed a break from the classroom and studying for a bit, but last year I decided to jump back in and enrolled in a Spanish course at GVSU. I so thoroughly enjoyed it that I signed up for another class this semester and hope to continue further in the program. I'm far from fluent, but I'm so thrilled by how far I've come in such a short time. I think everyone should pick up a second language, I've found that if nothing else, it will help you better understand the fundamentals of your own language. ;)
Read Less