Poopman
Poopman is the username of a user who was actively involved in the online community known as Your World of Text (YWOT). He joined YWOT in 2013 and quickly gained recognition for his unique approach to user interactions. While his username may raise eyebrows, Poopman's journey within the community is one of transformation and growth.
Early History
Before adopting the username Poopman, this individual was an anonymous user who engaged in questionable behavior on the YWOT main page. During this period, he would manually spam the word "poop" across the main page and replace others' words with the same term. Although he lacked programming skills at that time, he later acquired a basic word spammer tool, which he utilized for several hours each day.
His Name/Title
Due to his persistence in spamming and the ubiquity of the term "poop" associated with his activities, Poopman earned this unique moniker within the YWOT community. Recognizing the widespread association of his actions with this name, he decided to adopt it as his official username when he joined YWOT. By embracing the name, he solidified his identity within the community.
Interest in Programming and Mentorship
Around the time Poopman joined YWOT with his chosen username, he developed an interest in programming. Initially, his programming endeavors were driven by his desire to create spamming tools and scripts. However, this changed when he crossed paths with two influential figures within the YWOT community: Infraraven and Codefactor.
Codefactor, in particular, played a pivotal role in Poopman's development. He acted as a mentor, spending countless hours teaching Poopman the intricacies of JavaScript on private pages. As Poopman's knowledge grew, so did his investment in YWOT. He shifted his focus from spamming to anti-spam efforts, seeking to combat the disruptive behavior that plagued the platform.
Transition to Enhancing the Community
Poopman's transformation within the YWOT community was marked by a shift in his scripting approach. Instead of engaging in battles with spammers, which only exacerbated the issue, he turned his attention to creating tools and games that would enhance the YWOT experience for all users. He aimed to contribute positively to the community, rather than simply regulating it.
Temporary Departure and Contribution to Our World of Text
At a certain point, Poopman's involvement in YWOT took a hiatus due to the actions of another user named LOL007, who engaged in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks on the site. Poopman chose to prioritize his education and temporarily stopped visiting YWOT during this time.
During his break from YWOT, Poopman conceived the base concept for an HTML canvas-based website, departing from the traditional table-based design. He created a proof of concept and shared it with Infraraven, who then collaborated with FP on the development of Our World Of Text using a canvas-based approach.
Recent Activity
In 2022 and 2023, Poopman reengaged with the OWOT community, becoming a more active user. His renewed presence brought fresh ideas and perspectives to the platform. Poopman's contributions continue to focus on creating games and tools that enhance the overall user experience within YWOT.
Despite his unconventional start in the community, Poopman's journey exemplifies personal growth, the power of mentorship, and the potential for positive transformation within online communities.
Poopman has also recently created many artworks using the MS Paint script, showing he is quite proficient at art.
Games and Applications
Throughout his involvement in Our World of Text (OWOT), Poopman has showcased his creativity and programming skills by creating various games and applications that have added value and entertainment to the community. Below are some notable examples of his contributions:
Games
- Spacefighters: A player-versus-player (PvP) space game. In Spacefighters, users engage in intense space battles, controlling their spaceships and competing against each other for supremacy.
- SuperMario: Inspired by the iconic Super Mario franchise, Poopman created a game platform that allows users to experience the excitement of Super Mario and Mario Builder. In this platform, users have the opportunity to create their own custom worlds and levels for others to enjoy, fostering creativity and collaboration within the OWOT community.
- Minecraft: Poopman's programming skills were put to use in creating a self-generating 2D Minecraft world within OWOT. This game allows players to mine resources, build structures, and explore the virtual landscape, all within the confines of the OWOT platform. This was done be creating two separate scripts, one that acted as a client and the other that listened as a server. This would have prevent users from getting access to code that could be used to spam.
- Lilt Line?
Applications
- Chat Filter: Poopman recognized the importance of maintaining a pleasant and spam-free environment within OWOT chat. To address this, he developed a useful tool called the Chat Filter. This application assists in filtering out unwanted spam from the chat by providing options to filter based on the user's name, ID, or message content. The Chat Filter contributes to a more enjoyable and focused communication experience for OWOT users.
Poopman's dedication to creating engaging games and useful applications showcases his commitment to enhancing the YWOT community. Through his programming skills and innovative ideas, he has successfully brought additional entertainment and functionality to the platform, further enriching the overall user experience.
Autobiography (Written several years ago but edited recently)
Growing Up Poor
I remember growing up in the ghettos of the Alief area of Houston, TX. I was dirt poor, sometimes
eating "sand-crackers" (crackers with sand on them) or "wish sandwiches" (bread with a condiment ,
and wish you had meat.) or I would just swallow air in order to get rid of some of the hunger pain.
It was not uncommon to see people who were dead in the alley way of my apartment complex or in
their car, usually caused by gang related problems or drug overdoses. I could see their dim, sunken
eyes and pale cheeks. I could smell the distinctive, pungent stench of rotting flesh. When I think back on
this, I am reminded how lucky I am to have escaped this dark place.
School Was An Escape
School provided a somewhat temporary escape from the dangers of my neighborhood and the troubles at home.
I tried my best to learn anything I could. Learning was a distraction from the hunger pains I would often
feel in the pit of my stomach. I equated success in school with the potential for success in life.
Although I focused, I was still very young and made silly choices. For example, In kindergarten, I took my mother’s
engagement ring and tried to propose to a girl who I thought was beautiful. The ring was intercepted
and stolen by a teacher and so, I never proposed.
Although the day started out problematic, a kid from my class saw what happened to me. He was able
to console me with something unexpected. He took his binder out and handed to me, on a piece of
notebook paper, a drawing of an amazingly detailed dinosaur. I immediately forgot about the woes
of my love life and found a new love. That day, I learned that I wanted to draw, and I wanted to draw well.
This event began my fascination with tracing. I traced the dinosaur picture I was given. I proudly showed
the little boy what I had accomplished but was disappointed when I saw what he accomplished; he created
many more amazing images. I was only able to reproduce his original drawing.
Becoming an Artist.
I was determined to draw something of my own. I imagined a dragon with a long, snakelike body, whiskers
on both sides of its mouth that flowed down its face, and short, stubby arms with large claws for hands. I tried
to draw the image that I imagined. Much to my disappointment, the drawing did not look like a dragon.
The drawing was unrecognizable.
It was not until second grade that I finally had my “a-ha” moment. Mr. Baker was a substitute who would
often replace the art teachers who were absent. Instead, he substituted my English class. He told everyone
to get out a pencil and a piece of paper. He asked the class to emulate every stroke he made on the chalkboard,
consisting of curves, lines, and ovals. Mr. Baker guided me to make my first drawing; I made the character
Fred from The Flintstones. I realized that I did not need to look at an entire picture to draw. Instead, I copied
each line until the image developed itself.
When the school day ended I went directly home. I was an excited eight year old who wanted to share the
news with my mom. When I got to my apartment, the burglar bars surrounding the doors and windows were
locked. I knocked on the doors and rattled the metal bars. Eventually, my mom opened the door.
“Quite, the kids are sleeping.” She said with an angry face. I paid no attention to her warnings. I walked in,
kicked my shoes off, and threw my backpack into the middle of the living room. I pulled out my English
folder and showed her the drawing of Fred. “Mom, come over here!” I whispered. She looked and began to smile,
and she whispered back, “When I was your age, I wanted to draw too.” Her smile faded, and she continued,
“I would show Grandpa and Grandma my drawings, but they always told me it was a waste of time, and I
wouldn’t be successful.” She regretfully listened to my grandparents. Without any motivation for learning,
she dropped out of high school and ran a children’s daycare without being licensed. My dad also had a knack
for the arts but could not keep up with the technology. He eventually stopped pursuing art and got a job as a
pizza delivery driver.
Technology
When I thought of my parents, I thought of their failures. I would feel embarrassed for them, and I felt ashamed.
I wanted to be as different from them as I could. I worked hard to master my craft. In middle school, I learned
about different art techniques such as drafting or perspective. When I reached high school, technology began
to boom. I had to learn how to adapt my art from freehand drawings over to computer graphics.
I struggled to adapt to the ever changing technology; it felt awkward to draw with a mouse. I started to feel like
I was following in my father’s footsteps. Although I knew I had talent with paper and pencil drawings,
I lacked skill in computer animation and design courses. Losing confidence, I turned to video games. I began to
play on my computer during classes. The teacher was furious when she noticed what I was doing. After being
scolded by my art teacher, I began drawing on the computer again. Ironically, the hand-eye coordination from the
video games helped me become less awkward with my mouse.
By my senior year, I became the “go-to” student when it came to computer design. On Fridays, I would stay after
school to show my teachers about the new tools and techniques that I learned using the Adobe drawing programs.
My teachers and I became friends; they mentored me and nurtured my drawing skills. My educators may have
seen me as a great student. I saw them as family, and they encouraged me to pursue higher education.
KungFu and Lion Dancing
Throughout my time in high-school, as a way to stay away from my house, I would attend a Kungfu and Lion-dance temple
called "Teo Chew Temple" in Houston. The temple was free, but they were very strict and did very traditional practices.
I would often stay way past closing because i realized if i was there long enough they would feed me. As for lion-dancing
that was one of my favorite things to do. It was challenging, and being one of the few to use the competition
stands was a source of pride. Going here often is how I ended up learning some Cantonese (a dialect of Chinese)
College
In 2007, Graduating high school was a great accomplishment, but I decided not to walk during graduation. I felt that I
would deserve to walk as soon as I graduated from college. My parents did not encourage higher education.
I confessed to my parents that I wanted to attend college. I was their first and only child of ten to pursue higher education.
They felt that what I learned from college would not be worth the costs. I offered to pay for college myself, so they
agreed. We had no experience with searching for colleges, so my parents pulled out the yellow pages phone book.
The first art college listed was the Art Institute of Houston, so that is the school we chose.
The school was private, and it was expensive. Even though I received many grants for living in a low-income house,
I still owed monthly payments to the school. I found a job across the street from my college at Hollister. I was five
dollars short on tuition every month, so my dad graciously helped me with the payment.
Although tuition was paid for, I did not realize how expensive all of the art supplies, food, and bus fare would be.
In order to finish assignments, I would go into the paper cutting room at my school to find scraps of paper to use
for my projects. Most days, if I was lucky, I could find change and buy a loaf of bread from the gas station to eat
on the five mile walk home. The Art Institute also had a culinary school; the school threw away all of the baked food
for the weekend. On Fridays, I feasted on all the thrown out baked sandwiches, pastas, and cakes.
The Art Institute nefariously added $10,000 to my debt over night and kicked me out of school until I paid it back.
They would also hold all transcripts from me until that happened.
Diana
Around the same time, I met my fiancée Diana through a mutual friend. Diana grew up in a low income household
with many siblings, so she related to my struggles. Unfortunately, she lived in Cincinnati, OH. After a one year, long
distance relationship, I decided to move to Cincinnati in hopes of a better life. I have had a lot of help along the way
while living here. One of Diana’s friends helped me get a better job as a registration associate, so I paid off my debt
to the Art Institute. They were eventually investigated and found guilty, but instead of needing to pay me back all they
had to do was transfer the stolen money to the state. (That's like if someone robbed you, and the police took the money
that was stolen and left without giving it back to you.) Anyways, Unlike my parents, Diana urged me to go back to school
at DAAP because she saw my talent and potential, just like my high school art teachers.
Back To College
At twenty-four years old, I began my freshman year as a college student again. My major would be The Science of
Communication Design. Or in other words: graphic design. In comparison to my childhood apartment complex,
my current apartment sits on a safe, quiet street in Clifton. Because I was older than most of my peers, and I struggled
to get back into college, I took my education a lot more seriously than the fresh-out-of-high school students. I think that
was a blessing, which helped me stay focused and vigilant.
Full-Time Employee
Fast forward a few years, and my focus within my Major was chosen as Interaction Design, which would be a mix between
User Interface design, User Experience deign, and coding. After a few more years (it was a 5 year degree) I graduated
#1 in my college at DAAP. During my years there, we did a few Co-ops and one of those co-ops was an engineering firm
which ended up hiring me as a full time employee.
Machine Learning and Inventor.
in 2016/18 The engineering firm branched out to Virtual Reality, with me as the main artist and level designer. The firm was
only using Unity at the time and Unreal did not have VR capabilities yet. I learned Unreal and had the firm start to branch out
into Unreal as well. A few years later, The firm got further into Machine Learning and placed me into the newly built machine
learning group. The purpose was to find ways to generate synthetic data. At the same time, one of the directors wanted me to
work on making a "product viewer." I went to them with the idea of creating a Machine learning based product viewer, where
you could take a few products, have them randomize their positions, rotations, colors textures, lighting, background etc and
use that with some JSON data to train machine learning models. I developed the product for about a year. It was patented and
I became a named inventor of the first synthetic data generation platform.