The Legit Baines Blog

Baines is on a path of continuous personal development, his next target is the programming language C++  💪💪💪  I’ve always believed that growth happens when you deliberately step outside your comfort zone. That’s exactly why I’ve started learning C++. I’m constantly looking for ways to raise my programming game to the next level, and C++ feels like a natural progression—especially as I continue aiming for a future in embedded systems . Even though I haven’t yet had my big break into the professional embedded world, I want to be ready when the right opportunity appears. Preparation meets opportunity-that’s the goal. C++ is powerful, fast, and close to the hardware, which makes it ideal for embedded development. It forces you to think more carefully about memory, performance, and system design. That challenge is exactly what attracts me. I don’t just want to write code that works-I want to understand what’s happening under the hood. By building a strong foundation in C++, I’m...

I have always been good with numbers, when I was at school I did my Maths GCSE a year early and got a B. Unfortunately I had a lot of bad things going on in my life at the time so I didn’t go forward with University at that time.  Fast forward a decade or two and now I’m a recent graduate from Hallam University , I went there as a mature student to do a degree in computing and the course involved loads of data related modules. During my Computing course at Hallam University I spent a lot of time learning about data, databases, data cleaning , data processing, data management, data analytics and data visualisations . The course also involved a number of assignments that included a power point presentations in front of tutors and answering their questions about the work afterwards. Presentations were something I was very comfortable doing. I learned to collect raw sensor data using a Raspberry Pin (or from a pico using micropython/circuitpython), I learned that it is absolu...

 Becoming an IT Graduate as a Mature Student: The Reality No One Talks About Going to university as a mature student was one of the hardest and most rewarding things I’ve ever done. Studying IT later in life meant juggling responsibilities, self-doubt, and the pressure of starting again in a completely new industry. Graduating felt like a huge achievement. But stepping into the job market as a new IT graduate who isn’t new to work at all came with its own set of challenges. What I quickly realised is that breaking into IT as a mature graduate isn’t just about technical skills. It’s about confidence, reframing experience, and learning how to tell your story in a way employers understand. Sheffield Hallam University Challenging the Assumptions of Employers and Recruiters One of the first hurdles I encountered was assumption. There’s a quiet expectation in some recruitment processes that a “graduate” is young, fresh out of university, and at the very start of their working life. ...

  One Problem, Loads of Solutions One of the things I love most about computer programming is that there’s rarely just one “correct” way to solve a problem. Give ten developers the same task and you’ll likely get ten different solutions - all of which might work perfectly well. In programming, the how often matters less than the does it work . The approach you choose is shaped by your own technical background, the time you have available, and the resources you can realistically access. If your solution works, then it works and you weren’t wrong just because someone else took a different route to get to the same destination. That’s something worth remembering, especially when comparing projects or reading other people’s code. A different solution doesn’t automatically mean a better or worse one; it just means different constraints, priorities, or preferences were at play. One developer might prioritise speed of development, another long-term scalability, and another simplicity or...

What is Bar Billiards? Bar Billiards Auto-Score Project Outline BB Auto-score code on git hub. 🏆🏆🏆 Stage 1 of my Bar Billiards Auto-Score Project is complete.  It's not rocket science but my method for making progress is to go step by step.  If I can do something straight away I'll do it then make incremental progress.  Whenever I'm working on a new kind of project that involves doing things I haven't done before and using technologies that I haven't used before I try to simplify it as much as I possibly can just so I can get something working.  It's a lot easier to start with something small and simple that works than something big and expansive that isn't working.  When it's new, big, complicated and not working it will be incredibly difficult to work out what's gone wrong. 💻💾📈 Python command line is about as simple as it gets, I've done it this way because this is what's required for this project.  The next step will involve getting ...

  Bar Billiards Auto-Score 🏆🏆🏆 ─ President Cuthbert Baines The Bar Billiards Premier League Sheffield Overview We want to use IOT and smart technologies to create a computerised system that will automatically detect when a players has scored points, keep track of their score for them and display the score on screen for them. The system should also include the clock, the rules and instructions as required. Specifications The system should not have any affect on the Bar Billiards game itself, the players should not be required to stop playing to wait for a computer to load data or process data. Milestones Create Python based program that keeps track of the scores for the Bar Billiards players while displaying the scores on screen when the players manually input them into a hand held raspberry pi/pico powered device with an attachment that enables user input. The timer/alert indicating the bar dropping should become part of the program. Instructions/advi...

Why Would I be the Ideal Solutions Architect? 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 In today’s fast-moving technology landscape, organisations need more than just technical expertise - they need strategic thinkers who can bridge the gap between business goals and technical reality. A Solutions Architect must translate complex requirements into efficient, scalable, and maintainable systems, while communicating effectively with technical teams and stakeholders alike. I believe my journey — from a mature computing student at Sheffield Hallam University to a creative problem-solver with hands-on experience in software, hardware and real-world projects - uniquely positions me for this role. A Solid Technical Foundation My journey into tech wasn’t traditional — I returned to study computing as a mature student, driven by curiosity and a passion for solving problems in elegant, efficient ways. On my GitHub profile , I describe myself as “The Man of Many Moments” — which reflects both my varied interests in...