Robert Urquhart, BSc, Dip. EB
History in brief
I spent my childhood on Erewhon station, in the South Island high country and just a few miles upstream (right) of the photo in the sidebar.
My education started on Correspondence and continued with private schooling in Christchurch, then most of a Chemistry degree at the University of Canterbury, completing it during my time as a technician at the Wool Research Organisation of New Zealand and the later disestablished Canesis.
After Canesis I took a change of direction and completed a Diploma in eBusiness Support at the Computer Power Institute, completing with Excellence and as Dux of my course.
Now I earn my crust as a contract website developer (freelance webmonkey) based in Christchurch.
Hobbies and interests
Learning more about the internet
I consider myself lucky to be working in a field for which I have a passion. However the internet is today developing at such a terrific rate that no one can possibly keep up with it all and I find myself spending a lot more time happily immersed in 'research' than could sanely be accounted for by professional development or project time.
Roleplaying - the tabletop + pencil + paper + dice kind
As a reformed gaming evangelist with occasional relapses I enjoy both the social and creative aspects of roleplaying games such as Dungeons & Dragons. My preferred genres are Sword & Sorcery, Science Fiction/Fantasy and supers. I tend to GM more than I play, and have dabbled in creating my own systems. I spent several years on committee at the local university club and still run and play in games there, and am attempting to start a movement to run sponsored games for charity.
So far I have avoided the online RPGs such as World of Warcraft, Neverwinter Nights online and Runescape, although the campaign I am currently running is based off the original Neverwinter Nights computer game. It would be dangerous to mix my passions any more than using a laptop at the gaming table.
Complementing the above is a liking for board games - such as Settlers of Cataan, Carcassone and Puerto Rico.
Social Photography
Rarely without my camera at social events, the ease (and cheapness) of digital photography has led to the accumulation of quite an archive over the past several years. I've been intending to sign up for a beginners photography course and improve my technique.
