Welcome to my home page. I am Arnold Robbins. In Israel, where I live now, I use my Hebrew name, "Aharon".
This website is and will likely remain a work-in-progress for quite a while.
For fun, instead of editing raw HTML with vim, I decided to try using a WYSIWYG HTML editor — Amaya from the W3C. In particular, I really like the fact that it is Free Software that works on GNU/Linux. I am also very impressed that it compiled out-of-the-box with no problems.
I know this looks like something out of 1992. However, to quote the old Jim Croce song: "There's never enough time to do the things you want to do, once you find them...". At least there's a page here; fancy web design will have to wait until my next reincarnation. ;-)
I am a native of Atlanta, GA, in the USA, where I was born and spent most of my life. I earned my undergraduate degree at Yeshiva University in New York City and my graduate degree at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta.
I am a professional programmer and technical author. I am also a happy husband, the father of four wonderful children, and an amateur Talmudist (Babylonian and Jerusalem). My wife and I have been married since 1990, and boy does the time fly!
Since late 1997, My family and I have been living in Israel. I speak Hebrew fairly well, although as a second language, with a noticeable American accent. I despair of ever getting all the gender difference stuff right.
I have two younger brothers and, between my brother and brother-in-law, four nieces.
I have been working with Unix systems since 1980, when I was introduced to a PDP-11 running a version of Sixth Edition Unix. My experience also includes multiple commercial Unix systems, from Sun, IBM, HP and DEC. I have been working with GNU/Linux systems since 1996. I like my now not-so-new Macintosh laptop, but it has been pretty much commandeered by my children.
I have been a heavy awk user since 1987, when I became involved
with gawk, the GNU Project's
version of awk. As a member of the POSIX 1003.2 balloting group in
the early 1990s, I helped shape the POSIX standard for awk.
As mentioned, I maintain gawk (which is Free
Software) and its documention. The Free Software
Foundation's home page for gawk is here. I have been involved with
gawk since late 1987 or so, and have been the sole maintainer
since approximately 1994.
In previous incarnations I have been a systems administrator, and a teacher of Unix and networking Continuing Education classes. I have also had more than one poor experience with start-up software companies, which I prefer not to think about anymore. For several years I worked writing high end Command and Control related software for a leading Isreali software company.
Now, in my mild-mannered secret identity as Aharon Robbins, I work at Intel's Israel Software Design Center, in Jerusalem. I have to admit that I like working for Intel; it's an amazing company. I occasionally write a work-related blog for Intel, and will eventually start a personal blog as well.
My resume (not the most up-to-date) in PDF form, is here.
My domain is named after the main character in Robert Asprin's "myth" series
of books which I was really into at the time I got my first home computer (a
Unix system, of course). Initially, I was skeeve!arnold (yes,
UUCP), and then later, arnold AT skeeve.atl.ga.us. Shortly after moving to
Israel, I registered the skeeve.com domain.
I am the author or co-author of a number of books from O'Reilly and Prentice Hall. The full list is available here. (NO LINK YET - but you can put "Arnold Robbins" into the Search box at Amazon.com and get a list).
I have also written some articles for Linux Journal (long ago) and for O'Reilly. Here is a list of them. (NO LINK YET)
I have even been interviewed. Here are links to the ones I can find:
gawk and writing for O'Reilly from
2001 is here.gawk, but also
about programming, writing, and other stuff, from 2005, is here.In early 2009 a volunteer started putting together an
awk-related website and code archive at http://awk.info. I own this domain, but it is being
run by Tim Menzies, for which I'm quite grateful.
If you are so impressed that you wish to reach me, send email to arnold AT skeeve DOT com. No web links, since I already get more spam than anyone deserves.
Copyright © 2009, Arnold David Robbins. All Rights Reserved.
First started: 24 March, 2009.
Last updated: 2 May, 2009