Please see my resume for a standard list of skills and employers. Primarily since I was working solo for while, I created this page to provide links to publicly available information about me and my work. I can be somewhat hard to Google since there are so many Jeff Blums in the world.

Microsoft Program Management

I have brief acknowledgements and mentions in a few Microsoft Windows CE books, including Inside Microsoft Windows CE (search for "Blum"), p.255, section written by Cathy Linn, one of my managers at Microsoft:

"We had a fairly technical PM [Program Management] team; it really does take technical expertise to gain the developers' respect. Jeff Blum was a key person, a very dedicated, intense, organized person with a strong technical background."

There were a number of fun Easter Eggs (hidden programs that usually display information about who worked on the project) in some of the products I worked on, including: Handheld PC PIM (where my name shows up in the calendar), and Handheld PC (everyone's name bounces around on the screen). In addition, I created one of my own. On the Pocket PC, there is a word prediction engine where you can start typing a word, and it tries to guess what you are going to spell and offers it as a suggestion. I ended up being the one to go through the built-in dictionary to remove any "offensive" words you wouldn't want popping up. While I was in there, I added my girlfriend's last name (Szuchmacher) to the dictionary, so if you typed "sz" her last name would automatically pop up. It persisted through many versions even after I had left the company. I only added it because I figured nobody would ever type "sz" on the device. Years later, I received an email from Sarah Zuberec, the usability specialist on the project, who signs her emails "sz". You can guess the rest. I have other stories about Easter Eggs gone awry that I won't repeat here, but suffice it to say I wouldn't add any again.

After I left Microsoft, the Pocket PC flew on the space shuttle, which I think is pretty cool.

Glass Lantern, LLC - programming

Glass Lantern, LLC was my software company in Washington DC. Although I created a number of products, PocketLoupe and Pixfer for digital photo display and transfer on Pocket PC devices were the bread and butter. These actually started out partially as personal projects for my own use, as in this article. Here are reviews and feedback you can find online:

Patents

My resume mentions a number of patents. Here is the complete list where I am an inventor:
5805164 Data display and entry using a limited-area display panel
6593949 Smart column for contact information on palm-sized computing devices and method and apparatus for displaying the same
6633924 Object synchronization between objects stores on different computers
6664991 Method and apparatus for providing context menus on a pen-based device
6727917 User interface for palm-sized computing devices and method and apparatus for displaying the same
6727830 Time based hardware button for application launch
6760696 Fast start voice recording and playback on a digital device
6819315 Soft input panel system and method
6901559 Method and apparatus for providing recent categories on a hand-held device
7411582 Soft input panel system and method
7533352 Method and apparatus for providing context menus on a hand-held device
7669208 Object synchronization between object stores on different computers
8066372 Binocular vision assessment and/or therapy

Speaking of patents, if you Google me, you may also come across a large amount of discussion for patent 6727830, which purportedly patents the double-click. Of course, it isn't nearly as broad as the sensational articles imply, but it did generate quite a bit of press nonetheless, including Engadget, Slashdot, Wired, Michael Gartenberg, New Scientist, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Seattle PI, and many others.