peter horwood - Professional Profile

My first commercial application was a db manager and UI on a Commodore pet. Followed by applications in Pascal on a mainframe used by Parks Canada at the Columbia Ice Fields (early 80's). Then xBase that ran towns and cities up to a population of 66k (accounting, utility billing, property taxation, payroll, cemetery and mapping.

Then PowerBuilder applications including a system with over 10k sync'd SQL dbs world worldwide, then to SilverStream (a Java based db focused tool kit). Several years of C# programming starting with version 0.9, then took a couple year break (though I still owned 50% of my computer software company with offices on several continents.) Recently HTML 5.0 development X-platform db application running on phones, tablets & desktops.
Looking forward to building some Windows 8 tablet and phone specific applications (not ResTricted Apps, but full blown, user friendly applications running on small devices.)

Since 1980 I've focused on easy to use but very powerful user interfaces that, rather than ResTricting like most small platform and metro applications that seem to only include features that 80% of users will use - thereby making the app underpowered, missing critical features for everyone, find ways of bringing the power that 99% of the users want/need without being overly complicated with the many features that any one user doesn't use- but each user needs 1+ of them. Many hours spent videotaping users learning & using the software, then evaluating how to improve the UI so that everyone gets what they need without being overwhelmed by the many features that any particular user doesn't need.
I know that most developers tell me my objectives are wrong, simple is best and the vast majority of iPad, Android, Metro apps 'prove' I'm wrong. But my customers, who pay me well, obviously disagree. I'm content to have my peers constantly tell me I'm wrong while I just quietly deposit my checks, knowing that most other developers have 'proven' I'm wrong!