Hi, my name is Oz.

I run Bradfield, a small professional school in San Francisco teaching foundational computer science to practicing software engineers. Previously I spent around 10 years as a software engineer and engineering manager, including as the founding CTO of Vida Health and Topguest

I believe that technology can be a force for great good, but only if we understand it in great depth. My primary goal for the last five years has been to help other engineers—particularly those who did not happen to receive a rigorous computer science education, for whatever reason—to improve their understanding of the field and thereby do more effective and fulfilling work.

I intend to use this website primarily as an index page for any writing I do related to the above goal. If you’d like to contact me about this or anything else, the best ways are by twitter or email.

Guides

• teachyourselfcs.com is a microsite I co-created, listing the best resources and focus areas for those wishing to teach themselves computer science.
• Learn how computers work contains some short, practical suggestions for learning about computer architecture
• How to learn about database systems does the same, but for databases.

Opinion pieces

• The case against CS master's degrees considers whether self-taught software engineers should pursue graduate studies.
• Cutting through to what matters is about mastering basic, well established tools rather than the latest shiny library.
• You Are Not Google implores you to avoid hype and make good technology choices.
• Learn every language suggest that you understand languages and compilers generally, rather than just the details of any one in particular.
• The cost of forsaking C suggests that while C may not be the right tool for every job, most software engineers should still know it.