About

About the Tech Cleaner Blog

This blog is my commentary about computer and information technology and its use personally as well as in the enterprise, with forays into personal productivity and business management. I will write about my experiences, both past and present, with technologies and techniques, and provide some insight into technology news and trends. I have my opinions, and they will be clear to see. I will avoid “snarkiness” – I am an agnostic when it comes to camps of technology. Oracle or IBM or SAP? PC or Mac or Linux? HP vs. Dell? I have my personal preferences in each of these, but at the end of the day, it is really not the technology “stack” or vendor suite you choose, it is how well you use it. I personally use a MacBook Pro, and will not go back to the PC, but I also know that you can be very productive using PCs – I started using PCs in 1985, and they contributed mightily to my career, so who am I to argue?

The term “Cleaner” comes from the movie “La Femme Nakita,” where Victor the Cleaner comes in and fixes, rather effectively, a botched job. That is what I do. So, this blog will also discuss my thoughts and techniques about my experiences in this role, and in general how I approach situations that need fixing.

This blog is the evolution of Ask Uncle Mark, which I started in 2005, and which was geared toward the neophyte computer user. Over the years, the blog morphed away from personal advice and into general commentary, and so I officially recognized the fact by changing its name and its focus (and even its platform, from Blogger to WordPress). I moved the posts from Ask Uncle Mark into this one for context and history.

About Me

I am Mark Patterson, a technologist and IT executive. I have been involved with computer and information technology in one form or another since childhood. I started my professional career in computer technology in 1985, starting out as a programmer coding in Iris BASIC for real estate offices and film labs in Los Angeles. My education is in Sound and Recording Engineering, and in fact I worked in the recording industry in Hollywood for a few years prior to finding my calling in computer technology. You learn a lot about how to deal with people when you are trying to get a clean track from an amped-up punk rocker!

I worked as a programmer, software designer, development manager, and freelancer for a number of years until joining KPMG Consulting in 1994 as a manager in their fledgling Sales Force Automation (SFA) practice. SFA evolved into Customer Relationship Management. During my tenure at KPMG, I implemented CRM solutions for companies such as Cisco Systems, Intel, Sears, Hitachi Data Systems, Mitsubishi, just to name a few. In 2002, I joined The Thomas Kinkade Company, where I became the Vice President of Information Technology. Currently, I am a consultant specializing in IT strategy, process, and implementation, Oracle JD Edwards ERP, and CIO Advisory services.

I welcome your input and comments. Welcome to Tech Cleaner Blog!