User:Philbutler
About Me
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 I am a semi-retired publisher and journalist, and analyst for media and business. My journalistic (writing) endeavors began in the early 1980s when I was an engineer in the United States Navy (USN). Since that time my work has revolved, in part, around writing, editing, and/or researching information and data. I also worked for several manufacturing entities in the engineering departments such as; Nucor, Gerdau (Ameristeel), Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, and several others. By the early 2000s I began working with cable and internet companies. It was during this time I took up analysis and writing for various technology blogs including; Mashable, ReadWrite, SitePoint, and several others. I also got heavily involved in Beta phase testing of technology innovations, internet platforms, search engines, and various social networks. Then in 2007, I became one of the few at the time to interview Wikipedia founder Jimbo Wales. It was through the influence of Wales, and innovators like him, that my career and my positive view of the future of technology as it applied to humans took off. 2007 was really a turning point, and not just for me. I was also involved in testing and analyzing the revolutionary new search engine Wikia Search, during the so-called "Search Engine Wars" at the advent of Semantic search and natural language search. Back then I referred to Wikipedia as a "repository of all human knowledge" in my later articles and reports. Time constraints and learning the markup were the hurdles that kept me from daily Wikipedia contributions back then. By 2008 I was working with blogs, newspapers, and magazines researching and reporting on Web 2.0 and the Social web. I also became friends with and interviewed several times former Wikia CEO Gil Penchina. Wikia (now Fandom), which was founded by Jimmy Wales and another friend, Angela Beesley, was another bright point of interest for me. My work led me to being an editor at any number of online media sites including Everything PR News, Search Engine Journal, and later at Travel Daily News International. In 2018, another serious heart issue arose forcing me into retiring. These days I contribute to several travel news outlets, a few newspapers, and confine myself to taking care of and enjoying my family here on Crete. It is my intention, my hope, to contribute as much as I can to Wikipedia relating to Crete, Greece, and to the industries I have worked in. To be continued... |