We’re back with a brand new announcement. We’re as pleased as we could be to announce that Peter Spenler has joined our team as a software engineer. Here’s a chance to meet him through his answers to our now-standard questions, and to admire his dedication to playing with swords.
Why software development?
My dad is an electrical engineer, so he always tried to push me towards techy interests and it definitely stuck. When I was young UW’s Engineering Science Quest introduced me to MIT’s Scratch, and I’d spend hours trying to develop games and projects. Then after taking computer engineering I really decided that while I found computer hardware fascinating, I much preferred writing software.
What kind of development do you like? Mobile? Web? Something else?
So far I’ve mostly done Android and web development. Although I've experimented with other kinds of development I find that I really enjoy web development. I've really enjoyed learning what tech powers the websites I use everyday, and there's so much new web tech that's arriving all the time.
Recommend one thing (maybe a book, movie, album, TV show, physical experience…) Why?
I’d whole heartedly recommendNathan For You. It’s a docu-reality comedy show where Canadian comedian Nathan Fielder goes to real small businesses as a “business expert” proposing unorthodox ideas to help them grow or overcome challenges. The objective absurdity of the situations that the show captures makes it a must watch for any lover of cringe-comedy.
What’s your favourite new (or old) discovery in Waterloo Region?
Recently I’ve really enjoyed going to the Grand River Rocks climbing gym. I’ve found that climbing’s a great way to mix exercise with problem solving and strategy which I really enjoy. It’s always satisfying when you’ve been working on a route or a boulder problem for a while and you finally finish it.
Share a cool thing that folks might like to know about you?
I've been a fencer for about 10 years now. It's a great sport which takes both solid physical and mental fitness. You have to be willing to totally commit to your strategy but also react to your opponent’s actions in fractions of a second. There’s always new techniques to learn and strategies to practise, plus you get to play with swords.
