Benjamin Bowser
- Resume
- bowserbl [at] miamioh.edu
- Cincinnati, Ohio
I am a software developer with a passion for learning new programming languages and tools. In my professional career, college, and personal time, I have worked on projects in Java, C#, and JavaScript. My strongest area is backend development, but I have some experiences with frontend as well. My personal work has involved the utilization of the Amazon Web Services platform, which I hope to use in a future role.
Work Experiences
Associate Technical Consultant
- Implemented Salesforce Lightning solutions based on requirements from external clients.
- Worked directly with technical architects and external client to refine requirements and architecture.
- Created test cases to ensure all backend code was functioning as intended.
- Utilized Apex (Java-like), JavaScript, and lightning framework to build full stack Salesforce experiences for users.
Software Engineer
- New product development using a variety of enterprise tools, systems, and programming languages in an agile environment to create the largest financial API marketplace in the world
- Worked with SOAP and REST APIs written in various languages, including C# and Java. Development was primarily backend with code deployed to on-premises servers.
- Designed and architected new APIs based on user stories gathered through meetings with product teams regarding software requirements.
- Development on Real Time Payment project to decrease the wait time for banking transactions to fully post. Utilized Java to implement new features and functionality per business requirements.
- Used Git and BitBucket for version control, along with automated builds occurring in Jenkins.
- Project development in an Agile/SAFe environment, utilizing Jira to track progress to stay consistent with project timelines
- Participated in a company run hackathon, creating an Amazon Alexa skill with JavaScript and NodeJS that helps users manage their retirement. The user can use their voice or touchscreen to see different features like account balances, news, and milestones.
Student Networking Assistant - IT
- Assist network engineers in daily operation of managing a large-scale enterprise network for over 15,000 users.
- Troubleshoot, maintain, and install new equipment, often in networking rooms in buildings on campus.
- Visit offices and dorm rooms to repair customer equipment and diagnose connection issues, redirecting issue to the proper department if necessary.
- Work with other non-IT departments to gain access to restricted areas where work will be conducted, including construction sites, tunnels, crawlspaces, mechanical rooms, attics, and other access-controlled rooms.
- Respond to unexpected outages in a timely manner, usually without knowledge of what caused the issue, including visiting locations to repair connections that serve multiple buildings.
- Replace and test new and existing fiber optic connections to expand network redundancy within the network.
- Deliver, setup, and retrieve Cisco telephones within the university telecommunications network.
- Diagnose and repair problems with Cisco access points to provide wireless network connectivity campus wide.
Projects
RetireMe Amazon Alexa Skill
As part of the FIS Hackathon called InnovateIn48, I worked with 4 other coworkers over the course of 48 hours to design a solution that could be a future product offering from FIS. My team members and I started from scratch at the beginning and successfully wrote a proof of concept Amazon Alexa skill to help users monitor their retirement. The user can use their voice or touchscreen of the device to access different features like viewing account balance, retirement milestones, and news.
Tic-Tac-Toe Game
In my Javascript, NodeJS & Web Programming course, I designed a complex Node.JS multiplayer tic-tac-toe game using mongoDB, a REST API, and well designed HTML and Javascript code. This game allows two players to play tic-tac-toe against each other, without being next to each other. Player 1 enters their name to start and is given a 6-character randomly generated ID. Player 2 enters their name and this ID and the game begins on a standard webpage. The game includes code to check for wins, losses, stalemates, and also shows statistical data on players who have used the game. You can see my code here.
Consumption Diary Website
Using HTML, PHP, a database, and a REST API, my partner and I effectively applied the skills we learned in Web Application Programming at Miami University to create a diary website with a login that allows the user to keep track of foods they have consumed. Although the project was mostly designed to apply the skills from the course, it was an excellent project that required version control and coordination between team members. You can test out this project here.
Data Fusion Contest Capstone
For my Senior Capstone Project, I worked with two other Computer Science students to create an entry for the 2019 IEEE GRSS Data Fusion Contest. Every year, the Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (GRSS) holds a challenge that involves processing remote sensing data. In May 2019, we presented our final project to our department. You can see our poster here.
Application List Viewer
In Intro to Software Engineering at Miami University, I applied Java skills with a team of other students to create a Java application with swing to display a list of applications in a computer application. The primary objective of this project was to teach the software development process and the teamwork it requires. We worked with a client (our teaching assistant) as she changed the requirements during the development process. This project showed me what the development process involves in a professional setting. You can see our code here.
Tumblr Notifier
A complex web application running on AWS that makes a call to the tumblr API to see if a user has recently liked a post. If the specified user has liked a post recently, the application sends a push notification to a list of users specified to tell them that a user is online. This ideally is designed for tracking when celebrities or famous accounts are online liking posts. I'm continuing to improve this project to add more features in the future.