Ryan James
Chief Technology Officer
As an Open Source Programmer, Ryan specializes in custom programming and E-commerce. For the former, Ryan writes all of the one-off software that falls outside of general development, which basically entails any nonstandard modification to Drupal’s usual functioning. This can include tasks like custom registration forms and third party integration with sites like Facebook and Twitter. For E-Commerce programming, he is responsible for setting up stores, setting up products, and dealing with sales tax.
Ryan’s background includes a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Computer Systems Engineering from the University of Victoria, and he also interned at northStudio prior to working here.
What Ryan is best at is the “really hard stuff”. He loves the mental challenge of finding solutions to our toughest technical issues. For Ryan, working with people who like to have fun is a major job perk—at northStudio, we work hard, and we play hard!
Outside of the office, Ryan’s passions include sports, such as hockey, softball, mountain biking, and skiing, as well as gadgets and computer games.
“Quiet with a side order of sly, Ryan powers through programming projects with ease, a real core part of the team!” –Gord Christmas
Quick Facts Questions
What lunchroom item is unmistakeably yours?
Sushi.
If you could be any movie or TV character, who would you be?
Timothy McGee (bonus points for anyone familiar with that character).
What three things could you not live without?
Family, friends, computer.
What was the eight year old version of you like?
I was a good kid, well behaved, or so I'm told.
Growing up, what did you always get in trouble for?
I did not get in trouble much, other than for terrorizing my younger sister.
What’s the best advice you were ever given?
That's not a bug/issue, it's a feature! (inside joke)
Tell us a random fact about yourself.
When I was a kid I won a city championship.
Recent Projects
Community Contributions
- Co-maintainer of Semantic Fields module
- Co-maintainer of Semantic CCK module
- Co-maintainer of Layoutstudio theme
- Attended Pacific Northwest Drupal Summit 2010

