Bio: Ville Vahtera

Bio: Ville Vahtera

Printer-friendly version

Bio: Ville Vahtera
4-Apr-2002 -- Susan Pichotta

The Icetips News Network is pleased to present our first bio from Finland! An expert in HVAC and SCADA (read the bio to find out what those are), he also loves "gizmos" and has made the coolest birdhouse, complete with automation and camera. Lots of other pictures, too, showing his beautiful family and country.

Ville Vahtera

Who do you work for?
I do have my own company, but currently I'm employed by ARE OY (www.are.fi) and I'm working in our research and development center under the title IT-specialist. My primary tasks are training for our SCADA* system, software and product development. My current project is to build control system/ software for our AV-system (Audio/Video) and I'm doing that with CWIC. The complete system will have browser interface for all the hardware in the system :-)

*Editor's note: SCADA stands for "Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition", and is used in industrial automation. Jay Guengerich recently wrote a two-part article about creating a SCADA interface in Clarion Magazine.

What do you like best about what you do now?
I really enjoy what I do now. I'm at my best when I'm solving problems (hardware & software). I do also fix mechanical devices (vcr, tv, washing machine, etc.) and other stuff like that. Please, my fellow Clarion users, don't start to ask me "what's wrong with my appliance"? <g>

What has been one of your biggest challenges in using Clarion?
My biggest challenge was to make an alarm transmit program for a Honeywell HVAC (Heating, Ventilating, and Air-Conditioning) control system.

On the job, introducing SCADA system for visitors

When I started to do it, I didn't have a chance to get support for the Honeywell API so I did have to dig out everything by myself and boy that was pure pain! After all that, it was truly rewarding to get things done and working.

Second challenge within this project was UCP protocol for cellular phones. This was the channel for the transmitted alarms to customer cell phone, quite similar to a pager system. Well, that was my first Clarion program. <g>

What has been one of your biggest challenges in business?
Starting and finishing my own company around early 90. I brought it to an end because I got an offer from Honeywell and started to work for them.

Do you use any computer languages besides Clarion?
Yes, so-called "triple language" which is similar to Java. Triple is a proprietary programming language running on proprietary hardware and operating system developed by Tridium Inc.

When did you start using Clarion?
Somewhere in the early -90's. One of my friends was using the DOS version and the Windows version just came out and I get hooked because of the low threshold it was offering to start making your own applications, you know, kind of "out of the box" realization.

What's the coolest project(s) you've worked on using Clarion?

Our bird's nest is done and wired. Here are a few pictures of the first visitors :-)

Well, I can't name just one. The Honeywell alarming app was cool because that was my first big one. Right now I'm doing a bird's nest project for me and my kids. We are going to put a "hi-tech" bird nest into some of our yard tree and this nest is having 0-lux camera and infrared gates to track incoming-/outgoing birds + inside-/outside temperature monitoring. Principle operation: When we track incoming bird we will record about 5 pics series of pictures + temperature, and my Clarion app will put them on my Internet server in a nice logical structure for anyone interested to observe bird life.

As you see, I like to play with "gizmos" and stuff. I have also done gateway application between my PC and ISDN phone line. This app will catch CID (caller-ID) information, place it into database and transmit it onto our TV screen or when we're not home, it will forward CID info to my cell phone.

I have also done quite a range of SMS applications with Clarion. What is SMS? "Short Message Service" similar to a pager, but here we are using cell phones to receive (and transmit) ~160 char. long text messages. Once again, one of my Clarion apps is detecting these messages at my home and when it will receive the correct command from my cell number it will open, for example, our front door.

I have also been giving assistance for the past month to David Khoury, retired Chief Of Police who is doing some work on a free basis for a small town police department. Well, have to say that Dave is a very funny man, joking all the time about himself, however he is also tenacious when it comes to the programming with Clarion.

Have you done anything for a living other than software development?
Most of my life. My primary education is around HVAC and SCADA systems. I have done work for Honeywell, Siemens and few other companys with proprietary and open SCADA systems.

Positive mark for coming summer, small lizard (lat. lacerta vivipara) and butterfly detected on our courtyard at morning 29.3.2002 :-)

What are your hobbies/what do you like to do when you're not using Clarion?
Outdoor activities mostly, I do also listen music and watch movies. I have a home theater system with Dolby prologic sound, electrostatic speakers (self made) and video projector with 400" picture.

I love to discuss with my father about the universe, heh... purpose of life and quantum physics (admired person: Stephen Hawking, www.hawking.org.uk).

Married, children, grandchildren, other close family you want to

Brother-in-law, wife and kids

mention?
I am married to my wife, Katri. We have been married over ten years. I met my wife in a former working place I've been :-)

Our daughters are Jenna, who is 11 years old, and Jenita, 7 years old.

My kids, Jenita and Jenna

Where were you born?
I was born in Uusikaupunki, located on the west coast of Finland.

Where do you live now?
We are living in Kirkkonummi. Kirkkonummi is a quite rural community and it is about an hour west from Helsinki, the capital city of Finland.

Our house + profile picture (part of "over the Internet access")

What's interesting about where you live?
I love being fairly close to the sea. At summer time we will go pulling trolls with my friend. Well, we also have one NHL hockey player living here in Kirkkonummi, you know Teemu Selanne? Winnipeg Jets 1992-1996, Anaheim Mighty Ducks 1996-2001, San Jose Sharks.

Have you lived any other interesting places?

Wife, brother-in-law and kids coming down from sight

No, I haven't.

Which person, from past or present, do you most admire and why?
There is no one person especially. Absolute honesty and respect are core principles I demand and look for. Of course I admire and love my parents.

What comes to the company, I think I like to spend time with technically oriented persons.

For the Clarion community, Arnor is one individual I'd like to mention. He has given a lot for this community with strong patience!

What is your favorite food?
Self-made. <g> I love to cook. Sometimes I get a feeling that our kids like more of the food I have done. <bg>

It's easier to say what I don't like and that's liver ... yack!

What is your favorite drink?
Coffee, coffee and coffee! Basically I live on coffee. <g> I have drank it from the time I was about 5 years old to this day. Well, someone would probably like to know if I have any stomach problems or like, but no, I haven't suffered any and yes, I do sleep at night :-)

Anyone of you guys! If you are going to have plans to visit Finland, taste the coffee!!! And SAUNA of course.

What is your favorite type of music?
I like anything melodic music, instrumental, heavy, etc... One kind of music gives me thrills when listened to loud with electrostats and that is Scots bagpipes!

What is your favorite book? Movie?
Well, I really love horror books and movies (Stephen King).

One of the best book series and movie I've ever read and seen is JRR Tolkien, The Lord Of The Rings ... that's must!

At our summer cottage - parents-in-law, wife and kids

If Clarion never existed, what do you think you would be doing at this time?
Since 80% of my doings with Clarion are purely hobby based, I think I would be doing the very same I'm doing right now with HVAC & SCADA.

Maybe some day I will make my living with Clarion, who knows? But seriously, Finland is kind of dominated by a few huge software companies, so therefore it would be quite difficult to go on the market, unless I find some speciality I would like to start to develop.

Anything else you want to mention?
You know, these bios are great! It's really nice to know more about the persons behind the name ... faces are nice too. <g> Thanks to Arnor for the Icetips site and Sue for "blowing" a spirit into it.

Summer cottage - evening

Printer-friendly version

Copyright © 1999-2008 by CoveComm Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in any form without the express written consent of CoveComm Inc., except as described in the subscription agreement, is prohibited.

Clarion Magazine ISSN 1718-9942