27/m/wa
My name is Rafael Rivera. I was born in luscious Honolulu, Hawaii and raised by ARMY parents making me an official military brat. I have visited many places throughout the world and spent a large chunk of time on a quaint military base in Heidelberg, Germany. (I never could pick up German, though.) I currently live in an apartment located in Bellevue, WA, right above my geeky girlfriend, Jenny!
During the day, I write some code for a company that provides managed and secure enterprise-class messaging solutions to the U.S. Government. Working remotely, from my apartment, I’m allowed to perform stunts, such as rolling out of bed and onto a computer chair in one swoop.
During the night, I tear technology apart (mainly Microsoft software) to understand how and why it (doesn’t) work, in hopes that one day I’ll be sucked up by Microsoft. Eerily, I share the exact birth-date, not birthday, with Microsoft Windows… coincidence?
Hey, aren’t you that guy that…
Maybe. I am responsible for a number of technical memes such as patched Uxtheme libraries and UxStyle, which nullify the need for having your Microsoft Windows themes digitally signed, and also wrote a few books — Windows 7 Secrets, Windows 8 Secrets – with tech pundit Paul Thurrott. I raise hell on occasion when large tech companies do weird things.
When time permits, I travel to conferences like //build/, meeting up with VIPs such as Mary Jo Foley and weirdos such as Long Zheng.
Are you a PC?
Yes! I’m currently living it large on Windows 8 Pro on an Intel Core i7 (4ghz) processor installed into an EVGA X58 Classified motherboard. (Yep, still using that ol’ EVGA board.) 12GB of memory, a scary OCZ Vertex 2 boot drive, and a recently revived ATI Radeon HD 5970 (dual GPU) card.
Can I send you …?
I’m open-minded and considerate of other’s needs, especially when it comes to the off-loading of new technology. Send me an email (rafael@withinwindows.com) and let’s talk! (I must, however, stop accepting corrosive chemicals and explosive liquids not in 3 ounce (or less), clear plastic containers. Sorry.)
If email isn’t your thing, you can certainly tweet me @WithinRafael.
