Hello everyone! Some of you already know me, some don’t, but anyway, welcome to my blog. Here I will post some of my ideas about different things, mostly related to programming, electronics, and engineering.

About me

  • Name: Nicolas J. Altmann
  • Location: Arizona, USA
  • Occupation: Software Development
  • Education: PhD in Computer Science (2015)
  • Interests: Programming, electronics, reverse engineering, malware, neural networks, computer games, hiking, RVing
  • Favorite Technologies: C, Go, FreeBSD, Tor, Raspberry Pi

My projects

OSS

  • Eris - PGP workstation with simple intuitive GUI what supports sign/encrypt/verify/decrypt workflows. Written in Go.

  • SoftRoom - SSH-based secure chatroom for groups. Written in Go.

  • TinyGate - Fast and light reverse proxy. Written in C. Educational project mostly.

  • Trailblazer - TIU tool for software versions planning and project roadmapping. Advanced to-do list for developers. Written in Go.

  • Trusty - Crossplatform GUI application that allows you to add encryption to ANY conversation. Messengers, emails, public platforms, traditional paper mail, whatever. Written in Go.

  • deadend - Lighweight honeypot runner scriptable in Lua. Works on Linux and Windows. Written in C.

Libraries

  • mtime - Go package to operate with Martian time.

  • upnp-go - Go package to forward local port at router with uPNP support.

  • smtpd - Go package of SMTP server. Adopted and actively maintained by me from other developer.

  • cwg - C header file, Go-style WaitGroup implementation. Cross-platform for Linux and Windows.

Online Initiatives

Offline Initiatives

  • Tor Initiative - I’m maintaining Tor nodes in about 3 different countries. At this moment, 5 nodes are successfully deployed, kept maintained, and on duty. You can help me deploy even more.

  • Offline Educational Classes - I’m organizing FREE classes about software developing and electronics for local kids and teenagers. We working on real projects to study programming. As an example, project TinyGate was implemented by me during this classes to show the kids how it works. You can support us.

Career

  • Currently: I run my own small business developing custom software solutions.
  • Past Experience: My career includes working at various companies, from major industry players like Oracle to a few small startups.
  • Expertise: I specialize in:
    • Languages: C/C++ (since the early 2000s), Go (since 2016), various assembly languages (primarily x86 and ARM).
    • Core Fields: Network communication, cryptography, database systems, reverse engineering, malware.

Academic Achievements

I got my PhD in Computer Science in 2015. The dissertation topic was elliptic curve encryption (ECC).

Publications and Research

I am the author of some publications, articles, and methodical materials. My written work covers topics including:

  • Cryptography
  • Programming (C/C++, Go, low-level assembly)
  • Electronics (ICs, microprocessors, electronics in direct)
  • Ethical (and not so) hacking
  • Social engineering

Outside the Code

When I’m not focused on software, I like to do different things. I’m actively working with various microcontrollers and embedded systems and often use my Raspberry Pi and similar boards. I also enjoy more physical fabrication, like welding projects (TIG/MIG). When tired of all of this, I love taking my RV into the Arizona desert. I enjoy playing casual video games—MMORPGs, mostly. Unfortunately, there haven’t been a lot of good games in the past 10 years…