Oleks Sobol

Jack of all trades; breaks production only on Tuesdays.

I just got back from six weeks of backpacking trip on the Continental Divide Trail (CDT).
Those long miles gave me time to think, and I realized it’s time for a big change:
I’m moving from Network Engineering into Software Engineering.

Early Sparks

My first encounter with a computer was at age 6. It was magical.
Like many kids, I was hooked by games. But curiosity pushed me deeper—I loved digging through menus, flipping switches, and breaking things just to see what would happen.

That curiosity got me into some unexpected places (like discovering StripChess had a “hidden” setting most 6-year-olds probably shouldn’t have found). But it also gave me one important skill: I wasn’t afraid to explore software and push buttons until I understood how it worked.

First Steps in Programming

By the time I was 12 years old, I stumbled into programming.
My first language? Pascal. More specifically, Turbo Pascal—my very first IDE.

From there I hopped between languages over the years:

  • C#
  • C / C++
  • Java
  • Assembler
  • JavaScript
  • Python

I kept chasing whatever “hot” language or framework was trending. But eventually I realized: chasing hype won’t make me the developer I want to be.

The Mental Block

I’ve always been good at fixing problems in other people’s projects.
But when it comes to building my own? That’s where I’ve struggled.

I’d start projects with excitement but often drop them halfway through.
Looking back, I think the missing piece was deployment knowledge. Writing code is one thing, but getting it running live, accessible, and finished is a whole other skillset.

The Turning Point

Now, after the CDT and a lot of reflection, I’ve decided:

  • I want to be a high-level developer.
  • I need to focus on finishing small projects, not chasing languages.
  • I’ll invest in learning deployment, so my ideas actually see the light of day.

I’ve spent years tinkering. Now it’s time to ship.

Looking Forward

I don’t expect this path to be easy. But it’s the one I’m most excited about.
This blog will be my place to document the process—failures, breakthroughs, and everything in between.

So here it begins: the journey from Network Engineer to Software Engineer.
Stay tuned.

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