Believer
asked on
Heads Up!
Things look pretty slow in EE so far today, and I'm a bit bored, so I thought I'd break some news to those of you who know me and might be interested...
I quit.
No, not EE!! My _job_. I've decided to go it alone. It's a move I've been contemplating for quite some time and finally decided to pull the trigger.
I told the boss 2 days ago and he has asked me to give him a few days to notify the rest of the company. (You guys know before my co-workers!)
I have been working the past 3-1/2 years for a consulting company. I anticipate sub-contracting for them in the short-term 'cuz nobody else can take my clients over for a while. And, in what sounds like a panacea, I look to only do about 20-25 hours per week of billable time. The rest of my week will be spent contributing to an application for a client-turned-business partner. He has treated me as a partner in his business for several months and my move will further solidify that association.
What's really cool is the nature of his business... He audits health insurance companies on behalf of the companies that use them. Yes, I get to help stick it to 'em!! In a shameful display of advertising, check out his web site at http://www.sbaudit.com if you want to know more about his, no, OUR services!
I quit.
No, not EE!! My _job_. I've decided to go it alone. It's a move I've been contemplating for quite some time and finally decided to pull the trigger.
I told the boss 2 days ago and he has asked me to give him a few days to notify the rest of the company. (You guys know before my co-workers!)
I have been working the past 3-1/2 years for a consulting company. I anticipate sub-contracting for them in the short-term 'cuz nobody else can take my clients over for a while. And, in what sounds like a panacea, I look to only do about 20-25 hours per week of billable time. The rest of my week will be spent contributing to an application for a client-turned-business partner. He has treated me as a partner in his business for several months and my move will further solidify that association.
What's really cool is the nature of his business... He audits health insurance companies on behalf of the companies that use them. Yes, I get to help stick it to 'em!! In a shameful display of advertising, check out his web site at http://www.sbaudit.com if you want to know more about his, no, OUR services!
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So then, with 20-25 billable, you'll have 15-20 to spend on EE?
I'll be glad to help when I can, btw.
I'll be glad to help when I can, btw.
ASKER
Thanks to both of you.
MacRena: Yes, I believe the winds *are* in my favor... **loads** of work available in this platform!
paasky: EE hasn't made me any kind of offer... yet! (I *did* offer to be one of their beta testers, but they only do that for larger upgrades.) Sharing time with EE: Me too! Lots of things to consider, though...
• EE largely influenced my decision. I get more satisfaction from helping people here and kudos from you guy than in my job. In fact, the latest annuial "review" I had by my boss consisted only of a raise. Yeah, it's +$2/hr, but *no* feedback on how well I'm doing, what to focus on in the future, etc.
• Participation in EE is currently "costing" me $25/hr (yup, that's what I make). I don't work, I don't get paid. It's gonna cost me double that when I'm on my own. Ouch.
• I lost my train of though (boss passed thru the office with a job applicant), so I forget what else I was thinking of...
BrianWren: You're close! Here's the plan: 20-25 billable to make a living, the rest "invested" in writing the code for Insurance Audits. "Invested" because I willingly get no dollars-for-hours pay for it; instead, I get a stake in the company's earnings. Cool thing there is, when I told my new partner, Hal, that I want to be making $100,000/yr within a year, he said that should be no problem. And I believe him because by conservative estimates we should be able to have a take-home of $1 Million plus per year. (The amount of money we recover will be several times that, $1M is just our take.)
So after I make $$, and after I get work done on the new software, rest of time is EE! Or so the theory goes... I *must* allocate time for QuakeII in the SOMEWHERE!
MacRena: Yes, I believe the winds *are* in my favor... **loads** of work available in this platform!
paasky: EE hasn't made me any kind of offer... yet! (I *did* offer to be one of their beta testers, but they only do that for larger upgrades.) Sharing time with EE: Me too! Lots of things to consider, though...
• EE largely influenced my decision. I get more satisfaction from helping people here and kudos from you guy than in my job. In fact, the latest annuial "review" I had by my boss consisted only of a raise. Yeah, it's +$2/hr, but *no* feedback on how well I'm doing, what to focus on in the future, etc.
• Participation in EE is currently "costing" me $25/hr (yup, that's what I make). I don't work, I don't get paid. It's gonna cost me double that when I'm on my own. Ouch.
• I lost my train of though (boss passed thru the office with a job applicant), so I forget what else I was thinking of...
BrianWren: You're close! Here's the plan: 20-25 billable to make a living, the rest "invested" in writing the code for Insurance Audits. "Invested" because I willingly get no dollars-for-hours pay for it; instead, I get a stake in the company's earnings. Cool thing there is, when I told my new partner, Hal, that I want to be making $100,000/yr within a year, he said that should be no problem. And I believe him because by conservative estimates we should be able to have a take-home of $1 Million plus per year. (The amount of money we recover will be several times that, $1M is just our take.)
So after I make $$, and after I get work done on the new software, rest of time is EE! Or so the theory goes... I *must* allocate time for QuakeII in the SOMEWHERE!
WAY TO GO Believer,
Good luck, although I dont think you will need a lot. You have skill and most of all it sounds like you have a solid plan.
See you around.
Andy
Good luck, although I dont think you will need a lot. You have skill and most of all it sounds like you have a solid plan.
See you around.
Andy
ASKER
Interesting that you caught on that I have a solid plan... I didn't even tell you that I have a lawyer (who reviewed my non-compete and will probably be a tax advisor for me), booked an appt with a CPA, and have a long "to-do" list like office furniture, phone lines, ADSL (*very* important!), PC, software, ...
Believer, sorry to here you are leaving so soon....I am just starting my project. Well we all have to do what makes us happy.
See you around.
Maurice
See you around.
Maurice
ASKER
Hey, don't write me off just yet! Trust me, my addiction to EE (and, yes, it *is* an addiction) is strong at it will remain near the top of my list for a long time! Shoot, I *love* QuakeII (could you tell) and I even find myself in EE more often than QII when I have a choice!
Believer, you're member of some famous Quake II team?
Cool, I will post my Access questions as they come along.
Talk to you then.
Maurice
Talk to you then.
Maurice
Believer, sorry to here you are leaving so soon....I am just starting my project. Well we all have to do what makes us happy.
See you around.
Maurice
See you around.
Maurice
ASKER
paasky: Nope, just as I'm doing professionally, in Quake II I'm a loner! You play? C'mon, I'll kick yer arse! ROFL!!!!!
Believer, I have a copy of Quake I and II here, but they have started collecting dust for some time (after joining EE? *grin*)... you play over internet against other ppl or just yourself ?
ASKER
Internet, most definitely! *real* opponents are far more engaging that near-brainless monsters. Incidentally, QuakeIII does a very good job of introducing 'bots for you to play against... automated players, a.k.a. Robots.
(I started to get concerned about this diversion in the topic, but then I remembered that, "Hey, this is *my* question!")
Note: If you decide to load QII, you'll have to download the latest patches and updates... about 20mb worth. If you don't, you won't be version-compliant with the internet servers and cannot play thru them. AND you'll need a machine that can handle it... I won't elaborate for now. Feel free to post your PC specs & I'll let ya know if you're o'tay. (Include info on your video adapter!)
(I started to get concerned about this diversion in the topic, but then I remembered that, "Hey, this is *my* question!")
Note: If you decide to load QII, you'll have to download the latest patches and updates... about 20mb worth. If you don't, you won't be version-compliant with the internet servers and cannot play thru them. AND you'll need a machine that can handle it... I won't elaborate for now. Feel free to post your PC specs & I'll let ya know if you're o'tay. (Include info on your video adapter!)
Hmmmmmmmmm........
You people make money developing in Access??????? When did this start happening????
You people make money developing in Access??????? When did this start happening????
ASKER
I sure hope you're kidding.... and if you're not, elaborate on *your* current position/situation, please!
I knew berg would be in on this "New Job" thread sooner or later!!!
:?)
Dude, you're drooling on my shoes!
:?)
:?)
Dude, you're drooling on my shoes!
:?)
Believer, here are my home PC computer(s) specs (I have two identical connected with LAN):
CPU: Intel Celeron 400Mhz
Hard drive space: LOTS!
RAM: 128 MB
Display Adapter: Matrox G200 Millenium 8MB RAM
Modem: 56k (usual connection speed about 50k)
Maybe I download the latest Q2 patches next weekend...
CPU: Intel Celeron 400Mhz
Hard drive space: LOTS!
RAM: 128 MB
Display Adapter: Matrox G200 Millenium 8MB RAM
Modem: 56k (usual connection speed about 50k)
Maybe I download the latest Q2 patches next weekend...
ASKER
Awesome... you're ready to rock!
Now we'll just have to find a server that keeps us fairly equal in speed...
While you're at it, download GameSpy from GameSpy.com... Why? It's self-explanatory when you look at their site...
Now we'll just have to find a server that keeps us fairly equal in speed...
While you're at it, download GameSpy from GameSpy.com... Why? It's self-explanatory when you look at their site...
Games? Don't you people have WORK to do???
ASKER
MacRena: Jealous? na-na-na-na-na-naaaa :-P
Just for the record: I only play after hours. Mostly. And don't tell my wife!
Just for the record: I only play after hours. Mostly. And don't tell my wife!
ASKER
Speaking of Matrox... I just bought a G400 TV video capture card. Am still working out the "issues" (ignorance mostly) on video capture, but as a dual-head graphics card, it SCREEEEMS!
If I only had a life (de-de de-de de-de)
ASKER
Life doesn't come to you: you have to go out and grab it by the....
ASKER
..scruff!
..as long as your wife doesn't find out?
ASKER
Yeah... you know how women/wives/mothers are... they'd rather have you home with the family asap. No appreciation of needing some time for recreational activities (no, not drugs!)
And if your wife (collectively speaking) doesn't feel that way, you may be in trouble! ("No, honey, you stay at work and Quake for a couple hours...")
And if your wife (collectively speaking) doesn't feel that way, you may be in trouble! ("No, honey, you stay at work and Quake for a couple hours...")
..while I "Quake" here at home with the mailman!
oops, did I say that out loud???
ASKER
ROFL! (again!)
Courages decision Believer!
Hope to keep meeting you on EE regularly !
Perhaps you can now contribute to the EE Health section as it's a very boring section at this moment!
;)
Nico
Hope to keep meeting you on EE regularly !
Perhaps you can now contribute to the EE Health section as it's a very boring section at this moment!
;)
Nico
ASKER
Hmmm... I'll have to go check that one out...
Not that I *want* to learn much about the healthcare industry (IMHO second-worst thing to be involved in. The *first*? The government, of course!)
Not that I *want* to learn much about the healthcare industry (IMHO second-worst thing to be involved in. The *first*? The government, of course!)
Strange, your helping people with access problems is very much the same as helping people with their health, both are done for gratitude isn't it?
And for your worst industry:
Here in Holland we think it's the number best. If it wouldn't be there, wat's left to joke about ?
And for your worst industry:
Here in Holland we think it's the number best. If it wouldn't be there, wat's left to joke about ?
ASKER
Well, it would be admirable if I were helping people with their health, but that's not quite what's going on...
Over here, people pretty much hate the insurance companies. Insurance is expensive, claims get rejected, etc.
What I will be helping to do is *audit* the insurance companies. Here's how it works (trying to keep it simple):
The Widget Company, Inc. ("Widgets"), provides its employees with insurance. The insurance is provided by, say Blue Cross/Blue Shield (BCBS). The insurance portfolio is managed by a Third Party Administrator (TPA).
Widgets <--> TPA <--> BCBS
Widgets' cost of insurance is directly related to the amount of claims paid out. The TPA is paid based on the amount of claims paid out. The more claims that are paid, the more $$ the TPA makes. Yes, there's a built-in incentive to overpay claims! However...
The TPA is also liable for the overpayments.
That's where we come in. We pull in gobs of insurance claim information (typically every claim line for every employee over a date range, e.g. 1999). We do all kinds of analysis on the info to find claims that were paid and should not have been. Or claims that were paid at 100% instead of 80%.
In the end, Widget goes to TPA & BCBS and says, "Why'd you pay these when you weren't supposed to? I want some mone back." How much money? If it's not upwards of $200,000 then it's usually not worth our time because we get paid a % of the recovery. Frequently it's $500,000 - $2,000,000 in overpayments.
Now you know why I'm so excited! When the software gets rolling along (right now it's kind of on crutches), we should be able to *earn* $100,000/month. We are only limited by how much data we can handle and how fast we can process it.
The Access databases we've been using have typically been from 40 to 350mb. (Yes, SQL server is in the forseeable future.. one step at a time, though.)
So... which one of your companies is ready for an audit? (half joking)
Over here, people pretty much hate the insurance companies. Insurance is expensive, claims get rejected, etc.
What I will be helping to do is *audit* the insurance companies. Here's how it works (trying to keep it simple):
The Widget Company, Inc. ("Widgets"), provides its employees with insurance. The insurance is provided by, say Blue Cross/Blue Shield (BCBS). The insurance portfolio is managed by a Third Party Administrator (TPA).
Widgets <--> TPA <--> BCBS
Widgets' cost of insurance is directly related to the amount of claims paid out. The TPA is paid based on the amount of claims paid out. The more claims that are paid, the more $$ the TPA makes. Yes, there's a built-in incentive to overpay claims! However...
The TPA is also liable for the overpayments.
That's where we come in. We pull in gobs of insurance claim information (typically every claim line for every employee over a date range, e.g. 1999). We do all kinds of analysis on the info to find claims that were paid and should not have been. Or claims that were paid at 100% instead of 80%.
In the end, Widget goes to TPA & BCBS and says, "Why'd you pay these when you weren't supposed to? I want some mone back." How much money? If it's not upwards of $200,000 then it's usually not worth our time because we get paid a % of the recovery. Frequently it's $500,000 - $2,000,000 in overpayments.
Now you know why I'm so excited! When the software gets rolling along (right now it's kind of on crutches), we should be able to *earn* $100,000/month. We are only limited by how much data we can handle and how fast we can process it.
The Access databases we've been using have typically been from 40 to 350mb. (Yes, SQL server is in the forseeable future.. one step at a time, though.)
So... which one of your companies is ready for an audit? (half joking)
ASKER
nico: Just out of curiosity I checked out that "Health" forum... I don't think I'll be participating in it, with qeustions like "Blood in Stool" and all... har har har!
Believer,
I think you are aware of the possibilities of knowledge systems to trace irregularities in large amounts of data.
If not, just try the book of Avelino J. Gonzales and Douglas D. Dankel: "The engineering of knowledge-based systems"
It gives some good basics for filtering data intelligently and finding structures in lots of different fields (for example with Case Base Reasoning)
Should be interesting for you!
Nico
I think you are aware of the possibilities of knowledge systems to trace irregularities in large amounts of data.
If not, just try the book of Avelino J. Gonzales and Douglas D. Dankel: "The engineering of knowledge-based systems"
It gives some good basics for filtering data intelligently and finding structures in lots of different fields (for example with Case Base Reasoning)
Should be interesting for you!
Nico
ASKER
Nico: Thanks!
Just made something fun you might want to try (my wife gave me this idea):
' This little code utility can be implemented with any Access
' project. It's used when you or user want to have a coffee break
' and need something that holds you coffee cup (no free place
' in the desk because it's full of papers)
'
' Usage:
'
' to activate coffee cup holder:
' Have_A_Cup_Of_Coffee
'
' when coffee break ends (boss comes?)
' No_More_Coffee
'
' No Rights Reserved, paasky 2000, feel free to distribute
Private Declare Function mciSendStringA Lib "winmm.dll" _
(ByVal lpstrCommand As String, ByVal _
lpstrReturnString As String, ByVal uReturnLength As Long, _
ByVal hwndCallback As Long) As Long
Private Msg As String
Public Sub Have_A_Cup_Of_Coffee()
mciSendStringA "set CDAudio door open", Msg, 127, 0
End Sub
Public Sub No_More_Coffee()
mciSendStringA "set CDAudio door closed", Msg, 127, 0
End Sub
Paasky :o)
' This little code utility can be implemented with any Access
' project. It's used when you or user want to have a coffee break
' and need something that holds you coffee cup (no free place
' in the desk because it's full of papers)
'
' Usage:
'
' to activate coffee cup holder:
' Have_A_Cup_Of_Coffee
'
' when coffee break ends (boss comes?)
' No_More_Coffee
'
' No Rights Reserved, paasky 2000, feel free to distribute
Private Declare Function mciSendStringA Lib "winmm.dll" _
(ByVal lpstrCommand As String, ByVal _
lpstrReturnString As String, ByVal uReturnLength As Long, _
ByVal hwndCallback As Long) As Long
Private Msg As String
Public Sub Have_A_Cup_Of_Coffee()
mciSendStringA "set CDAudio door open", Msg, 127, 0
End Sub
Public Sub No_More_Coffee()
mciSendStringA "set CDAudio door closed", Msg, 127, 0
End Sub
Paasky :o)
there's some good advice, paasky - use the CD drive as a CUP HOLDER!
ASKER
paasky & MacRena: "You've Got Mail!"
"Good morning" Believer!
"You've Got mail" -> Notification of your comment, eh? :O)
"You've Got mail" -> Notification of your comment, eh? :O)
ASKER
No, I sent you guys an independent e-mail with an attachment... paasky@raketti.net and DMcElroy@wareunl.com respectively...
Ahh.. It must be huge because it hasn't come here yet?!
ASKER
Only 263k.
hmm.. would you please send it to my hotmail address, seems that "rocket" has crashed...
Believer,
I have not rec'd it.
Also, BTW, I prefer to have mac@wareunl.com posted on EE as I assume that there will come a time when someone will take my address and put it on a SPAM list somewhere. (You got my real address when I sent you a personel email.) In that way I can delete mac@wareunl.com and my family will still be able to email me. No harm done here; just us 3 watching.
I'm looking foreward to seeing what you sent me.
Mac
I have not rec'd it.
Also, BTW, I prefer to have mac@wareunl.com posted on EE as I assume that there will come a time when someone will take my address and put it on a SPAM list somewhere. (You got my real address when I sent you a personel email.) In that way I can delete mac@wareunl.com and my family will still be able to email me. No harm done here; just us 3 watching.
I'm looking foreward to seeing what you sent me.
Mac
ASKER
Okay, I resent the danged thing to both of you at the e-mail addresses you said here...
(Sorry, I'm in a fight with my ^%$^$# PC right now... aaaarrrrggggghhhh!)
(Sorry, I'm in a fight with my ^%$^$# PC right now... aaaarrrrggggghhhh!)
ASKER
Adjusted points from 0 to 20
ASKER
Okay, this is old news now & inactive, so I'm gonna close it. Mucho Gracias to all who participated and ESPECIALLY for all the support!!!!
(MacRena: Hey, I got pts to blow, here you go for being first to respond...)
(MacRena: Hey, I got pts to blow, here you go for being first to respond...)
After reading only first few lines of your message I was sure you're going move to EE... :o)
I'm sure you're valuable employee for any company - and hope that you still can arrange some time to share with us in EE even your new job probably captures all your interest when you start.
Best luck to you and wish you success in your new job!
Paasky