Chatting with Clint Patterson about DNN, IoT, Open Source Software and Clemson Football
Clint Patterson is a DNN, ASP.NET and IoT enthusiast who lives near the North Carolina / South Carolina border. I worked with Clint for a number of years at DNN Corp. We share some passions, such as writing, Twitter, football and IPA. Here’s a Q&A that I did with Clint via email. Follow Clint on Twitter.
Tell us what you did last Halloween?
When we moved into this neighborhood, the first thing people told us was “Just wait til Halloween”. There is a guy three houses up the street who loves Halloween and goes all out. He turns his garage, front yard, and downstairs into a haunted house like you wouldn’t believe was possible.
For this reason our street is packed during Halloween. It’s non-stop with kids for 3–4 hours. We run out of candy every year and other houses in our neighborhood send candy to our street to help out. So I figured I should participate.
For the past three years, I’ve been trying to tie IoT into the mix, pushing creative boundaries and technology. The first year was the fire-throwing pumpkin, second year was the air ghost, and this year was the IoT clown.
Read about the IoT clown: http://clintpatterson.com/Blog/Blog-Details/PostId/523/2018-halloween-iot-clown-brought-to-you-by-particle-dnn-and-open-source
Now I’ve got to figure out how to top it next year … but I’m already getting started :-)
What’s new with DNN?
There is a shift of control of the OSS platform code that is being realized. It has taken some time because the first phase was more of an exercise in learning. Learning how the platform was architected and delivered.
The DNN Technology Advisory Group (DNNTAG) spent a good deal of time figuring things out and planning a strategy.
From the outside it may have felt like not much progress was being made, but it was for sure.
Once past that initial phase the DNNTAG now has a good grasp on how things are structured, integrated, and working.
The DNNTAG is working on cleaning up old dependencies, modernizing and automating build tasks and streamlining the new processes that allow the community to contribute.
It has taken a lot of work to get to this point, but we are arriving and gaining momentum. There is also a big announcement that will take place at DNN Summit that has been in the works over the past 6 months.
I can’t share info about it publicly, but you will hear about in the community soon. It’s great that the community is empowered, responding to the call and stepping up. We’ve got a lot of unsung heroes behind the scenes doing a ton of work.
Speaking of DNN Summit, what excites you the most about the upcoming conference?
I’m excited about the awesome speakers and sessions for sure, but I mostly enjoy getting to meet and spend time with the people whom we frequently connect with online. Every year the conference is like a family reunion of sorts. It’s good to see old faces and meet new ones as well.
What’s one open source project that will see strong growth this year?
Blazor will gain adoption because it allows Microsoft’s C# developers to leverage their existing server-side skills on the client-side. What this means is that C# developers don’t have to learn each new JavaScript framework-of-the-week. Keep in mind that Blazor is still “experimental,” but it is changing fast.
If you had more time, what’s a technology you’d like to learn more about and why?
If I had more time I would like to learn more about Microsoft’s Azure technologies.
They continue to promote the cloud and they add new services all the time.
You could spend a long time in Azure and not have touched a large portion of it.
You’re stranded on a deserted island for 3 months with one person. Whom would it be and why?
Dabo Swinney. I’d like to ask him questions about leadership and culture.
As you know, Dabo has turned Clemson’s football program into a national brand and dominant force, which is no easy feat.
I respect him and how he has stayed humble throughout the entire process.
I think I could learn a lot from him.
