Chapter 55: <Seattle, New York, and Silicone Valley>

After 20 minutes of Q&A, the session finally ended. Woosung was surrounded by a crowd of people. Go Sangjun tried to get closer to him.

“It’s an amazing technology.”

“How did you make it?”

“I love it.”

“Awesome!”

Woosung was showered with compliments. As a fellow Korean, Go Sangjun felt proud.

“Thank you.”

“I can’t reveal it yet because it’s not done.”

“You’re correct. It has a Pub/substructure.”

Woosung answered each question without hesitation. Even long after the end of the session, people approached him with more questions, compliments, and business cards. One in particular interested Woosung. It had ‘-, +’ embedded on it. The man who handed him the card introduced himself.

“Hello. My name is Jonathan Logan. I am an Arduino project committer.”

A reviewer was someone who could suggest an opinion on the open source projects.

A contributor was someone who could suggest codes.

And finally, a committer was an individual who could modify the source code of a particular piece of open source software. Committer was considered a key member of a project.

‘Another great catch!’

This could be a useful person to Woosung.

“If you have time, I would love to talk to you about your seminar today.”

Woosung had some personal experiences with Arduino. In the past, he used it to install a camera outside his house as a security measure. He connected it to his smartphone, so he could monitor it. He told Logan about his experience.

“Wow, that’s impressive. I can see that you have a great knowledge of it.”

“I find it fascinating.”

“And is that why you developed MQTT?”

“That is actually for something else I’m working on.”

“And would that something be IoT related service?”

“Perhaps in the future, but not right now.”

Logan’s questions were endless. Woosung had his own questions to ask, so when he had a chance, he said quickly.

“If you are an Arduino project committer, are you also involved in the PCB layout design?”

“Not by myself. I am one of many.”

Woosung lowered his voice and whispered. “Then would it be possible to use Qualcomm chip instead of ATmega?”

ATmega was the microcontroller chip used by Arduino. When Woosung asked about Qualcomm chip, he was implying that he meant to make a phone.

Logan’s eyes widened. “What?”

Woosung knew Logan understood what he was suggesting. He handed Logan his business card.

“Arduino could become a cell phone too. If you are interested in learning more about it, please call me.”

When Woosung stood up, Logan stopped him. “W…wait.”

Woosung sat down and continued. “Google is working on the Android. It will be released as an open source.” Logan listened quietly. “And Arduino is already on its way to the open source hardware platform.”

Logan swallowed audibly.

“I realize Arduino is different than cell phones. I don’t plan on combining the two.” Go Sangjun, who was also sitting next to him, listened attentively. “But they are heading in the same direction. Premium line will be manufactured directly. The mass production of the phone’s layout will be produced by OEM. Foxconn would be a good example.”

Foxconn.

It was a famous electronic industry company in Taiwan responsible for manufacturing iPhones.

“I need people with open minds and who aren’t afraid to share their skills. Someone like you, Jonathan Logan.” Logan inhaled deeply. It was obvious he was hooked. “If you are interested in making this phone with me, please call me.”

Woosung stood up again and left.

On their way to the hotel, Go Sangjun complained. “When you were sweet talking me, you didn’t draw such a big picture like that for me.”

“Haha. Each person has his own interest, and I try to make my speech personal. For you, I talked about the cons of big corporations because I could tell you were sick of working for the man.”

Go Sangjun continued to pout despite Woosung’s explanation. “I forgot to ask you how old you are. I’m 26.” Woosung tried to hide his smile as he changed the subject.

“What?”

“I’m still a baby.”

Go Sangjun couldn’t hide his surprise.

“26? Not 36?”

“Yup.”

“No way…”

“And you are…”

“33.”

“So you’re older than me. Should I call you big brother then?”

Go Sangjun still couldn’t believe how young Woosung was. “That would make you a brand new grad…Yet you are already a freelancer CEO…” He murmured.

The last day was a boring day for Woosung. He didn’t meet anyone interesting and none of the sessions were useful.

It all changed during the dinner party.

Famous musicians and DJ’s were invited. As Woosung listened to the loud music, he drank champaign. Go Sangjun murmured.

“I thought it would be a tame party for nerds, but I guess I was wrong.”

“I know.” Woosung replied as he looked around.

Go Sangjun asked Woosung. “So what are your plans? Tour? Home?”

“I plan to stay a while longer.”

“Good idea. There is a lot to see in America.”

Woosung planned to go to New York. He wanted to hire a lawyer to create an investment corporation in preparation for the financial crisis.

“Yup. I want to see and learn as much as possible before I return.”

Woosung felt excited. Things were happening according to his plan. When he returned home, he vowed to take the First Class.

“Hey, I think someone’s interested in you.”

Go Sangjun pointed at a woman across the room. When Woosung turned around, a girl in a thick pair of glasses was indeed staring at him. She had long curly hair and big eyes.

‘Wow. Is she really interested in me?’

When their eyes met, she hesitantly approached Woosung. When he bowed lightly, she stammered.

“I…I saw your session on MQTT.” She seemed very shy, but she continued bravely. “It…it was very impressive. How did you do it?”

“I thought I explained it briefly at the seminar.”

The woman hesitated again before asking. “C…could I get the codes?”

“Codes?”

“C…could I have a look? I…I know I’m asking a lot but…”

“There is only one way for you to have a look.”

MQTT would be released as an open source. Unlike GTT, MQTT would be used as a key technology in Woosung’s project.

He couldn’t reveal it at this point.

“Please tell me!”

The woman tried to get closer to Woosung, but she was clumsy. She stumbled and fell on the ground. Champaign splattered everywhere.

Woosung offered her his hand.

“Are you ok?”

The woman didn’t seem to care as she asked again.

“Yes. I…I’m fine. So can I have a look at the codes?”

She seemed ok. In fact, she seemed excited at the possibility of looking at the codes.

“I didn’t say I will show it to you. It’s also not done yet.”

“Oh! I don’t care if it’s incomplete.”

“I’m sorry. What I meant was the only way to be allowed to look at this code is to become an employee of my company.”

“T…then can you hire me?”

“What?”

“I graduated from MIT this year and I am currently working as an intern at Microsoft. My name is Sandra Amelia. So far, I participated in the indoor tracking system using the wireless sensor network, improving the speed of Big Data analysis, and Window Mobile BSP (Board Support Package).”

She introduced herself quicker than light itself and looked at Woosung with eyes filled with expectations. Woosung could see her drive for knowledge. He answered slowly.

“I appreciate your enthusiasm but it’s not that simple. We might not be able to pay you what you deserve, or you may not be someone we need.”

Amelia frowned unhappily. “But I really want to see them…”

“Then how about this? I will show you the library codes. If you can develop a few things I need based on these codes, I will hire you and show you everything I have. How’s that?”

Amelia nodded in excitement. Woosung gave his hand for a handshake. She shook it gently and asked.

“Shall we go now?”

Woosung nodded, and they headed to the hotel. Go Sangjun followed quickly.

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