Kirk Israel Portfolio

I'm Kirk, an experienced programmer currently open to a UI + UX role (near Boston or remote) as a lead or individual contributor.

professional roles

I've worked for a wide range of companies, from small lean startups to household-name corporations where code I wrote was used by of millions of unique users every month. (I also have an online résumé, optimized for print.)

production flow diagram

brought a react flow-based diagraming tool with advanced back-end integration and client-side pdf export from interactive prototype to production.

fmglobal polaris

Leading contributor on cross-module ui/ux team for rollout of react/graphql inhouse reporting tool for field engineers.

insight dashboard

created kepler.gl-based tool for display and investigation of real-time streaming GIS data as part of r+d-centric innovation lab

monster + randstad

trailblazed design-system-for-design-systems and renovated homepage and job search for major industry player

monster widget

revamp of a customizable, tech-agnostic widget for monster's newspaper partners to embed, used across hearst newspaper sites

cargurus search

upgraded homepage and search on the industry leading car buying website

porchfest.info

signups, scheduling, and mobile and print maps for porchfests in Fenway, Medford, Dedham, JP, Newton, Belmont, Watertown, Melrose, and Natick.

ads for aol

developed management and tracking dashboards for vast-scale mobile ad placement camapaigns

scrumtool@aol

a hackathon project that became an integral part of team sprint planning

webrtc @ cafex

prototyped a webrtc proof-of-concept allowing medical professionals to mark up shared visual resources in realtime behind webvideo link

alleyoop

championed "juicy ui" at pearson education's early foray in sprint-based development

dataviz + ui

A gallery of personal and professional experiments in data visualization and ui prototypes

web projects and communities

I am a big believer in the independent web and its ability to make community and bring people together. Most often I act as sole developer, creating experiences in the fullstack from whole cloth, solving challenges of ux, scalability, and longevity.

kirkdev

my long running tech blog to share ui/ux knowledge with others and provide a reference for my future self

blender of love

web's first romance poetry community, at its peak publishing 700 works a month.

chart-o-tron

band sheet music management and setlist polling for street bands on the go

interactive tools, toys, and games

"creative coding" has always been a profund source of pleasure in my life, from in-browser toys to online (and increasingly, real-time interactive) web tools to empower others.

animals

24 delightful virtual puppets, a tribute to illustrator ed emberley who taught kids how to draw 'em.

timelines

a ux challenge - how do you present decades of life in a way people can connect with?

med-plan-print

practical tool for generating printable medicine and meal checksheets

kirk.is/polling

minimalistic free tool for making web surveys and polls

kirk.is/drawing

minimalistic free shared online whiteboard, a tool for early work-from-home days.

joking at a distance

browser-based realtime online-multiplayer port of a (NSFW) tabletop game, made in early quarantine times.

atari code tools

web-based tools (some old but beloved) outputting runnable code for character and backgrounds graphics and jamming and looping music for the atari 2600

lowLag.js

simple wrapper for low-latency, high-compatibility, html5-friendly audio for an earlier web era

offline art and projects

Other creations (and concerts!) I am proud of.

mortality comic

so, you're going to die, illustrated by dc comic artist james harvey, is a guide to coping with one's own mortality.

band performance

I made a business card with a QR code URL on the back telling folks about local options to get back into making music in one of several bands I play tuba for and help lead

atari 2600 games

original games running on real 80s-era hardware

yee & lan

a story of planetary love, illustrated by marissa saradpon