Sagar is a full-stack software developer at VHX. But, he wasn't always a computer programmer. He actually got his degree in finance and economics at NYU and worked in consulting for three years before fully committing to his interests in computer science. After spending an intensive 3 months at The Flatiron School, Sagar joined VHX in October 2013 as a developer and hasn't looked back since. Here's a quick Q&A with Sagar.

What draws you to programming?

The cliche, but extremely true answer: I really love building things. It's gratifying to know that people are using something that I worked on. Also, I live for those "A'ha!" moments. You could say I'm kind of addicted to it. Because, let's be honest - programming is a struggle. But, when you solve a problem, or finally connect the dots and learn something new, it's the greatest feeling.

What kinds of things have you made recently?

Currently, I'm working on integrating ChromeCast into the VHX watching experience. So, VHX users, get ready to stream your purchases directly to your TV! It's been great working more with Javascript and learning about streaming protocols, subtitles, and the ChromeCast sender/receiver application structure.

I've also spent a lot of time over the past few months working on our publisher blogging/email communication tool, PayPal payouts for our publishers, spruces to our invoicing system, and some number crunching for our stats page.

What is something you discovered recently that you really liked?

One thing that a coworker introduced me to recently while I was writing some specs was a Ruby Gem called Timecop, which makes it much easier to test time dependent code. It literally freezes time.

In your specs, you can add something like this in a before block:

Timecop.freeze(Time.new(2014, 4, 16))

This will mock any Time.now call during the exeuction of those specs. Then, just specify Timecop.return in an after block to return to normal Rspec execution. Look at that, you just went back in time to run your specs, and you didnt even need a flux capacitor!

What's a great movie you've seen recently?

These are some of my recent favorites:

Documentaries: Mitt and Indie Game: The Movie (shoutout to Lisanne Pajot who is now helping other filmmakers successfully distribute through VHX!)

Features: Mud and Joe. Two films with monosyllabic titles set in the deep south about outlaw alpha males making an impact on Tye Sheridan. Basically the same film, but enjoyed both of 'em!

TV: Cosmos. Who doesn't love Neil Degrasse Tyson. Also, Blue Mountain State because it's hilarious.