This picture was drawn by Todd Parlee of ParleeStumpf. Todd is not the first person to think of me this way - I love this drawing.
Ross Lasley is the chief geek of the Internet Educator. He lives and breathes the web every day and has been an Interactive professional for over 20 years.
Ross holds a wide variety of technical certifications and is a widely recognized expert in improving conversion rates and usability. Many people refer to Ross as a "walking Internet encyclopedia" as a result of his comprehensive knowledge of web history and unusual ability to retain information.
In his early days - back when he could convert hexadecimal to binary numbers in his head faster than with a calculator - Ross was involved with a number of technology firms including RSA, NCR, and many forms of Lasley Computer Consulting. In 1996 Ross founded a website design and development company called KISS Computing. The firm produced thousands of websites in the decade Ross was at the helm, significant accomplishments included winning Governor Mitt Romney's Entrepreneurial Spirit award and being recognized by The Webby's. In 2006 - in typical successful technology company fashion - the firm was sold to Michael McGrath, an employee who continues to run KISS with gusto.
Ross moved out to rural Maine to attempt to "retire" and become a farmer. He rode & bred horses, ran many farm implements including a chainsaw, raised farm animals (even processed & ate some of them), and showered infrequently. He failed at being a farmer. Badly.
Ross found out that being a geek is not just what he does but who he is - and the Internet Educator was born in 2007.
Since founding The Internet Educator Ross has been a judge of Editor & Publisher's EPpy Awards, a speaker at SEMNE, and a speaker at the Governor's Conference on Tourism. Ross spoke to the world's biggest E-Commerce show in 2009, and he has again been invited to speak at Internet Retailer's Conference and Exhibition in 2012. Ross is on the Board of Directors of Milarepa Center, a Tibetan Buddhist retreat center, and is currently serving as Treasurer.
Today Ross lives in Manchester Maine on 35 acres with the love of his life Melissa where he works from a home office. Together they have 5 dogs, a small herd of redfoot tortoises, and a lovely large garden where they grow a variety of yummy foods.
12 things about Ross:
Can score 100,000 points on Galaga (on a good day)
Was born in Sydney, Australia
Loves the hippie music, especially Grateful Dead tunes
At one point I briefly bred reptiles for a living and produced 32 species / 1,254 baby animals in one year
Is an FPMT (Tibetan) Buddhist and tries to meditate every day
Has never been good with power tools and tends to injure himself when he tries to use them
His favorite Star Wars line is: "Do or do not. There is no try."
Prior to the Age of Majority his Handle was "Dr. Dos"
Loves to read junk fiction, Grisham and Patterson are favorites
Has seen every episode of Star Trek and has most (ok, all) of The Next Generation memorized
Loves to garden, even though he would not claim to be any good at it
