Shannon Sofield

Shannon Sofield is the personification of a hack, he takes anything that is supposed to do one thing, and manipulates it to serve his own purposes, both in his life as a developer and his life in general. If it was supposed to do one thing originaly, he probably has it doing something entirely different instead.Shannon began creating PayPal solutions more than 3 years ago using his original database driven PayPal purchase system that integrated with Macromedia Dreamweaver UltraDev. Since then, he has gone on to work on implementing unique fixes for common eCommerce problems using PayPal. He has written several tutorials and articles, as well as spoken on the topic of using PayPal in new ways. One of the first members of the PayPal Developer Network, he was added to the PayPal Developer Network Advisory Boards on its inception. He also served several terms as a member of Team Macromedia for their web development program Dreamweaver which he uses in his daily PayPal development. His technical background extends back to the initial Internet boom when he began picking up simple web design that evolved into web planning and programming using a variety of technologies, languages, and databases.Currently, he manages the PayLoadz Digital Goods eCommerce system that allows merchants to sell digital goods securely with PayPal. One of the first and most successful 3rd party solutions for PayPal, this system made headlines when it launched Madonna's American Life single higher on the Billboard music charts than any previous digital single (and he did it before selling digital music was cool). In addition, he continually contributes to the PayPal Developer Network Message Boards (www.paypaldev.org) which his company, Superfreaker Studios, hosts and maintains.While not slogging through code at his computer in a caffeinated, sleep-deprived state, Shannon enjoys outdoor activities that fit the time of year. In the Summer he surfs and volunteers for the surfboard manufacturer Wave Riding Vehicles, while in Winter, he can be found on the slopes working on his kicker spins. Year round, he can be found reliving his BMX days on his 24 GT cruiser. Shannon's undergraduate studies majored in Finance and Accounting, while his Maters in Business Administration includes a concentration in Finance. Ctrl+C is his best friend