Hey! 👋
I’m Monty, a software engineer who loves building stuff. These days, I’m working on backend systems at Nexl in Sydney. Over the years, I’ve worn different hats - from writing code at startups to co-founding a couple of my own ventures.
What I’ve Been Up To
I’ve had a pretty interesting journey in tech. Here’s the quick version:
Right now, I’m building backend systems at Nexl (2024). Before that, I spent some time at Sentia (2023-2024) working on all sorts of things - payment systems, matching algorithms, you name it. Ruby on Rails was my trusty companion there.
I had a fun time working with Ecliptic Ideas (2019-2022) where I worked on The Wine Spies e-commerce platform. Started as an engineer, ended up leading the tech side of things. Did some cool stuff like building a wine storage system and a mystery wine box feature (think gacha boxes but wines!).
In between, I tried my hand at the startup world. Co-founded Level One Gaming (2021-2022) where I got to play with blockchain tech, building stuff for NFTs and managing a pretty active gaming community. Also co-founded and developed The Altru (2020-2021), where we built a platform connecting NGOs with donors - managed to raise over 50k AUD for some good causes.
Tech I Work With
I spend most of my time with:
- Ruby on Rails (my go-to for backend work)
- JavaScript/React for frontend stuff
- Some blockchain tech (mostly NFT-related)
- Whatever else gets the job done!
What I’m Learning
These days I’m diving into some fun stuff:
Game Dev Adventures
Being a gamer myself, I’ve always been curious about how games actually work under the hood. Now I’m learning game development with LÖVE (love2d), and it’s fascinating to build features I usually take for granted while playing - things like collision detection, game states, or even just making a character move smoothly. There’s something really satisfying about bringing game ideas from my head to life, especially when you have to build everything from scratch. It gives you a whole new appreciation for the games you play!
Golang Journey
While Ruby has been my go-to language for years, I’m pushing myself out of that comfort zone by diving into Go. I wanted to explore a compiled language to broaden my toolkit - different problems need different tools, after all. Plus, being part of different tech communities is fascinating; you get to see how Ruby and Go developers approach similar problems in different ways. This cross-pollination of ideas actually helps me bring fresh perspectives to my day-to-day work. It’s pretty cool how learning a new language isn’t just about the language itself, but about the different ways of thinking it introduces you to.
Pixel Art
Recently started pixel art as a creative outlet when I need a break from coding. I’m currently focused on turning anime characters into pixel art - there’s something satisfying about capturing their essence in a limited pixel space. Here are some of my attempts:
About This Site
This is my little corner of the internet where I jot down interesting tech problems I’ve solved and things I’ve learned along the way. Check out my hello world post to see what kind of content to expect.
On Writing with AI
Here’s something interesting - I’m using AI to help me write these posts. Why? Well, I love coding but writing has never been my strong suit. Rather than let that stop me from documenting stuff, I’m using AI as a writing partner. Think of it like pair programming - I bring the technical knowledge and experiences, AI helps make it readable. Everything still comes from my brain, it just helps me get it out in a clearer way.
Let’s Chat
If you want to talk about code, startups, or anything else, you can find me on LinkedIn. Always happy to chat!