http://www.jobster.com/at/person/show/140?hbxcmp=feed&hbxsrc=rss_user_answers http://www.jobster.com/at/assets/images/jobster/logos/rss_logo.gif http://www.jobster.com/at/person/show/140?hbxcmp=feed&hbxsrc=rss_user_answers Thu, 30 Nov 2006 06:21:33 GMT Most recently updated answers by Eric Kennedy http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/60344?answer_class=AnswerBase 2-4 mugs, each of which contains 6 oz of coffee (technically 0.75 cup). The Starbucks coffee machine at Jobster makes it too easy. I do try to drink green tea when I'm not tired and just want a mug of something warm... Thu, 30 Nov 2006 06:21:33 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/60344?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/6101?answer_class=AnswerBase My senior project in Computer Science was a peer-to-peer replication system that allowed each peer to make changes even if it was disconnected from the network. That type of replication system is called optimistic, since it optimistically assumes that the other peers won't edit the same file(s) before the peer is reconnected to the network and synchronization can occur. It was similar to source control systems like Subversion/CVS, were if conflicts do occur, they must be manually reconciled by a user. In contrast, ATMs use a pessimistic replication system where they temporarily lock your bank account while they deduct funds. That prevents conflicts from occuring, but requires a robust network where all peers are connected. It was a fun and challenging project. You can read more about it here: http://zoo.cs.yale.edu/classes/cs490/01-02b/kennedy.eric.ebk4/ebk4.pdf Fri, 14 Jul 2006 00:18:40 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/6101?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/6081?answer_class=AnswerBase In 1999-2000, I created the system that Yale uses to manage registrations for alumni reunions: http://www.aya.yale.edu/reunions The site was extended and updated over the next few years, and is still in use 6 years later. I worked with a great team at the Association of Yale Alumni, and it was a great experience to build a system that was used by tens of thousands of alumni. It was also great to have that background when I went to Expedia, since I could apply my experience building an incremental hotel reservation system for Yale to the projects at Expedia. Fri, 14 Jul 2006 00:09:13 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/6081?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/198?answer_class=AnswerBase 1) The gym with a view at AllStar fitness. Their pool is on the southern corner of the 14th floor, while most other gyms have pools in the basement. 2) Salumi - best Italian sandwiches in the narrowest restaurant ever. Run by the father of Mario Batali. 3) Zania - great Mediterranean food. 4) Uwajimaya - best Asian grocer, with a decent food court. 5) Pike Place Market - it's a long walk, but it's worth it. Thu, 13 Jul 2006 17:28:25 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/198?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/4841?answer_class=AnswerBase The opportunity for Program Managers with a technical background to prototype (and occasionally check-in) features. I got a CS degree in college, and some of my favorite courses were also the most hard-core technical -- such as a networking course where I had to implement the reliable packet protocol TCP over the unreliable UDP base protocol, and another course where I had to add multithreading, virtual memory, and a file system to a bare-bones operating system. It was difficult to decide whether to become a Software Developer or a Program Manager after college, yet I ultimately realized that I cared more about the way that a feature worked for a user than the language, coding conventions, and applications on which it was implemented. Rapid prototyping is the best way to refine the design of a feature and work out any issues, and it's wonderful that Jobster allows Program Managers to be so closely involved in this process. Thu, 13 Jul 2006 01:17:55 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/4841?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/4821?answer_class=AnswerBase Expedia was spun off from Microsoft, and it kept Microsoft's rigorous interview process. I was looking for a job in the depths of the late 2002-early 2003 tech bust, when most jobs that matched my skills and interests required 2-3 years of _post college_ experience. Even though I had 5 paid summer internships through high school and college, most recruiters at tech firms wouldn't even consider me. So I sent my resume with a cover letter to people in the Yale Alumni Network who worked in Program Management in the Seattle area. Two weeks later, I got a screening interview at Expedia. Another week later, I went through 4 more intense interviews, including the "as appropriate" interview with the Group Manager of the Hotel team. Those interviews went well, yet the hiring manager for the only PM job open at that time was on vacation, so I had to come back for another 3 interviews. Questions ranged from those intended to illustrate my personality and intelligence to "describe everything that it takes to make an e-commerce site work." Although the interview process was intense, it was also engaging way to meet my future coworkers. Thu, 13 Jul 2006 01:01:15 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/4821?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/4801?answer_class=AnswerBase Dynamic Package Pricing of hotels with flights. In the offline travel world, it has long been the case to discount hotels for travelers that arrive from certain cities. People in Seattle love the weather in the summer, so they don't travel to Hawaii as much as they do during the cold and gray winter months. In contrast, it is cold in San Francisco during the summer because cool ocean air is pulled over the city by the heat in the East Bay and Central Valley. So Expedia might want to offer discounts on summer hotel+flight packages to Hawaii for travelers from Seattle but not from San Francisco. That's a simple example, yet the logic to make this work with all of the existing pricing rules for hotels and flights makes it quite complicated. It was an engaging and fun project, and I was working with a great team of people. Thu, 13 Jul 2006 00:41:21 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/4801?answer_class=AnswerBase http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/149612?answer_class=AnswerBase "Always building": I care deeply about building beautiful things, both at work (web services and database structures), and in my personal life (tearing apart my condo and rebuilding the rooms from the studs-out). Tue, 17 Oct 2006 22:31:44 GMT http://www.jobster.com/at/answer/view/149612?answer_class=AnswerBase