Meet Luis Taniça!
Luis is a Senior Software Engineer and is currently focused on development of Solstice Client Applications, while still helping the embedded software team when needed. Learn more about Luis below.
Mersive Questions
What is your role at Mersive, and what do you do?
I’m a software engineer, and started by working mostly on the embedded software side of things. Solstice Conference was my first major project at Mersive, which was a very exciting and learning experience. Currently, I work mostly on our client applications, so frontend development sounds like a good description.
What has your experience been with our company culture?
The culture at Mersive is one of my favorite things about this company. The team spirit, the constant focus on people and improvement. Everyone has a voice at Mersive!
How have you grown professionally while working at Mersive?
My professional growth has been off the charts since joining Mersive. In the past, I’ve always been an embedded Linux engineer, so working mostly in C and low-level systems programming. When I joined Mersive, I was exposed to all kinds of challenges. From Android, Windows and macOS development to having to learn all kinds of new languages and technologies like Rust, React and React Native. I feel like I went from building Linux kernel drivers to being able to build a complete software product, and this all happened within a couple of years!
What is your favorite part of working at Mersive?
As a developer, I love the freedom we’re given to go and explore new ideas/solutions for some of our current problems. I’m constantly learning new things, and we’re constantly improving our products.
Personal Questions
Before working at Mersive, what was the most unusual or interesting job you had? As a teenager back in Portugal, I used to get random jobs grape picking during the summer. I’d only do it for a week or two, as it was extremely hard (over 100F temperatures) and pretty monotonous. But it was always rewarding to be able to get that new Nokia phone or whatever gadget I was into at the time.
What did you want to be when growing up?
I never really knew what I wanted to be. I always loved trying new things, so as a kid I learned music, played handball, swam, and even became a boy scout for a short period of time. All I knew was that I liked math and physics, so it had to be something in engineering. It was only in my freshman year in college that I found my passion for coding and computer science in general.
What do you like to do in your spare time? In the summer I love playing volleyball at the park, camping and backyard BBQs with friends and family. The winters come down to mostly skiing and snowboarding, as I wasn’t built for this Colorado cold. As I mentioned, I love learning new things, so I’m constantly doing online courses or trying DIY projects around the house. I also love traveling in general, and try doing it whenever possible. My wife and I always travel back to Portugal to visit friends and family there at least once a year, but we try finding the time to travel to other places.
What places have you lived in? I lived in Portugal for most of my life (that’s where I’m originally from). During my college period, I lived in the Czech Republic (Prague) for 6 months as an exchange student, and that’s when I decided I needed to explore more of the world. So, after I finished college, I started looking for jobs abroad. I ended up moving to England shortly after, where I started my first job as a Software Engineer and, a couple of years later, got an opportunity to move to Colorado, and I’ve been in love with it ever since.
What is your favorite food? I really love Portuguese food in general. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but I’d say “Caldeirada Portuguesa” or “Migas com Carne de Porco” are some of my favorite dishes.
If you could have any superpower, what would it be? Time traveling would definitely be my superpower of choice. Who wouldn’t love to have all the extra time they need to explore the world, learn everything there is to know, or even take a peek at the past?
