Who I am

I’m Ian, also known as laofahai. I was born in 1988, studied film advertising in university, and started programming in 2008. Before “full-stack” became a common title, I was already doing frontend, backend, deployment, business communication, and whatever else was needed to make systems work.

Over time, my work expanded beyond code. These days I spend more time dealing with real operational complexity: enterprise systems, logistics workflows, internal operations, process standardization, compliance, and how AI tools can actually fit into day-to-day software work.

Code is still my most familiar tool, but it is not the only answer. What I care about more is whether a system can run in a real organization, reduce repetitive work, make messy processes clearer, and keep evolving without falling apart.

What I work on

Recently, my work has centered around several threads:

• Enterprise software and Odoo implementation for logistics operations.
• AI-assisted engineering workflows with tools such as Codex and Claude Code.
• Personal knowledge and background systems that turn conversations, preferences, and project history into reusable context.
• Public tools and experiments around AI-native software, Obsidian data workflows, and physical ambient displays for coding agents.
• Long-term personal and family systems. This direction is still exploratory, but I want software to serve life and growth, not only work.

What I write about

This site is not only a technical tutorial blog. I write about real problems:

• why business systems become complicated;
• what hides behind apparently technical issues;
• where AI coding tools help in real engineering work, and where they do not;
• how information systems, standards, and governance grow inside small organizations;
• public projects, family projects, learning, and long-term personal thinking.

I prefer plain, concrete writing. If something is clear, I try to explain it clearly. If something is still uncertain, I would rather say so honestly.

Why this site exists

I have built blogs before and failed to keep them alive. This one is different mainly because I now need a place to keep track of the work, ideas, and systems that would otherwise fade into vague experience.

I want this site to be part portfolio, part notebook: projects, methods, technical notes, and personal reflections on working through real complexity.