W E L C O M E
I’m Ara, and I’m a technical writer based in Seattle.
For examples of my work, please see below.
PROFESSIONAL & PERSONAL WRITING SAMPLES
MATH FUNDAMENTALS FOR QUANTUM COMPUTING CHEAT SHEET SERIES
A 15-page PDF cheat sheet series covering essential mathematical topics related to quantum computing, primarily focused on linear algebra.
Used in quantum computing courses at University of the District of Columbia.
API DOCUMENTATION
Markdown + OpenAPI content for Branch REST APIs.
SDK FULL REFERENCES
Full references of all methods made publicly available in Branch SDKs.
GUIDES
Guides and tutorials for working with Branch SDKs and APIs.
MATH WRITING
A detailed blog post working through a tricky math problem. Review from a reader:
“You rock!!! Reading the book on my own and this was the first problem that seemed insurmountable to work out by myself. You conveyed this in the same brilliant style as the author..”
QUANTUM COMPUTING INTRO GUIDE (THEORY)
Introduction to Quantum Computing Basics: a guide that is meant to be accessible for people new to the topic and those without a coding background. For Pluralsight.
FULL LENGTH CLOUD LAB #1
Configure CloudTrail and Monitoring with CloudWatch on AWS: a 1hr lab walking users through how to use CloudWatch to gain insight into the health of their applications. For Pluralsight.
QUANTUM COMPUTING CODING GUIDE
Programming Your First Quantum Circuit with IBM Quantum Experience: an introduction to Qiskit and quantum computing in the cloud. For Pluralsight.
FULL LENGTH CLOUD LAB #2
Query and Export AWS CloudWatch Metrics for Long Term Storage and Analysis: a 1hr 20min lab that teaches users to dive deeper into their analytics data and also covers storage cost optimization. For Pluralsight.
MINI CLOUD LAB
An AWS cloud lab written as part of a successful application to be a Pluralsight author. Submission was given top feedback, and was later used by Pluralsight as an example for other author candidates to reference.
MOONRISE LABS
ABOUT
Moonrise Labs makes it easier to learn cloud services. The platform offers hands-on, interactive courses where you're equipped with a cloud sandbox that you can access directly in your browser with the help of a modern IDE.
With Moonrise Labs, you don’t need to install anything on your machine to begin using cloud SDKs. And, because the platform loads in all the critical permissions and environment variables, you’re able to get to coding and learning right away, without even needing to create an account with a cloud provider.
STACK
AWS (DynamoDB, Lambda, S3), Azure (VMs, ACI, DevOps), Python, Serverless framework, Vue.js
FEATURES
When you create an account with Moonrise and go to a course, you'll be given a "sandbox" environment. With this sandbox, you'll have access to a modern IDE in the browser that already has everything installed and set up that you'll need in order to get started.
COURSES WRITTEN
Python Fundamentals
Command Line Fundamentals
Python in the Cloud: DynamoDB
UPFRONT
Click image to view Upfront demo on YouTube
ABOUT
I worked on a team of two to create Upfront, which is a platform where users can anonymously submit information about their jobs and other users can search that data. Our goal was to make it easier for employees to get a sense of what it would be like to interview and work for a company before they decide whether to apply.
STACK
JavaScript & Vue, Flask & Python, AWS and Algolia.
‘Learn More’ view
FEATURES
Users can submit data via a form without needing to log in. Some form fields are conditional and change depending on what information the user inputs, but the form still maintains appropriate styles. This data is then sent to DynamoDB for storage using Python, as well as Algolia which powers the search functionality accessed through the search bar. Users can also use filters on the search results, and click in to the results to learn more about them.
OUT THE DOOR
Main view
ABOUT
Essentially, this project was born out of the assumption that other people are as nosy as I am and that they like getting a glimpse of what others are carrying around with them everyday. If my friend pulls out her makeup bag, I’ll always lean over and ask if I can snoop through it. Knowing what sorts of things people surround themselves with makes me feel like I know them a little better and have some insight into their daily rituals and routines.
STACK
Languages used include HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Python. Other tools used include Bootstrap, Google Places API, jQuery, AJAX, Flask, Flask-Login, PostgreSQL, SQLAlchemy, Amazon S3 and Heroku.
Create Account modal with error checking
FEATURES
The project is meant to be a web app that allows users to create an account as well as a public profile. Their public profile will display images that they’ve uploaded of the things that they carry around with them everyday. The profile will also collect and display information the person provides about themselves, like age and occupation. Once completed, I hope to add data visualization to the information collected.
Account creation verification
Login modal
Create Post modal with Google Places API
Edit Post modal
Logout modal
URBAN OUTFITTERS LOOKBOOK
Click image to view Lookbook demo on YouTube
LOOKBOOK
In Fall/Winter 2016, I was part of the team that built out Urban Outfitters' Lookbook feature, which was a shoppable catalogue where guests could click on an editorial image and see all of the products associated with it. For this project, I built several of the core elements including the HTML/CSS layout, Angular templates, and API calls. After the MVP release, I went back into the project to add animations and patch memory leaks.
IN-STORE PICK UP
This project was an effort made by Urban Outfitters to feature in-store availability on its product pages. A customer would be able to select the size/color/quantity of the product they wanted, and then see if it was available at a UO store near them. In addition to building out the HTML/CSS and Angular templates for this project, I also contributed by refactoring the services which provided data associated with store stock levels.
QUICKSHOP
Quickshop is a feature that is constantly being called on the UO site, since it is available for each product on every category page. I was responsible for adding seamless animations to this feature and refactoring it to be easily added to Angular apps across the site.