 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||
 |
I am a software engineer at Agilent Technologies. I design software that is used on Agilent's test equipment. Specifically, test equipment used for electronics manufacturing. Circuit boards and computer chips go into your cell phone, Nintendo, and computer--but before those circuit boards and chips go into your cell phone or computer they need to be tested--I work on the software for that tester. I started at Agilent (it was Hewlett-Packard at the time) as an intern after my sophomore year in college. I did one more summer internship after that, then accepted a full-time position after graduation and have been here for a little over 3 years. My job duties have included fixing defects in the existing software, organizing system test for a major release of software, designing/implementing/testing new software features, and working closely with customers to understand how they want to use our tester so that we can design software to make their jobs easier. I have a BS in Computer Science from Iowa State University. When I first started college, I thought I might use my degree as a technical basis for a career in technical journalism, since I liked working with computers and English was one of my strong interests in high school. Between my sophomore and junior year in college I did an internship at Hewlett-Packard in a software group. I got to see firsthand what software developers did and realized that software development was something that interested me. Communicating and understanding problems is a big part of my job and it isn't always an easy thing to do. I am currently working on a team which is distributed throughout the US and the world. The goal of this team is to collaboratively organize ideas in for re-designing the software user interface of a tester that quite complex to use. Everyone on this team understands that there are problems in the existing user interface, but understanding the root of those problems and how to solve them is a big challenge, especially when you are working over e-mail, telephone, different time zones, different levels of knowledge and experience with the problem. There are a few exciting things about my career--- Solving problems: whether it be a problem in the code or figuring a solution around a communication problem, the best part is when you can solve a problem and accomplish that achievement. Working with smart and creative people: to work in an environment where you can learn a lot from your co-workers and enjoy working with them makes you look forward to going to work each day.
|
 |
||
 |
 |
|||
 |
 |
|||
 |
||||