Edward Hesketh

A photo of Edward Hesketh, taken in August 2025.
A photo of me, taken in August 2025.

Introduction

Hello! I am Edward Hesketh. I am primarily a programmer, but I love working on both hardware and software projects, and I have a wide range of skills.

I can...

  • Architect, develop, and publish software - frontend and backend - for computers and microcontrollers
  • Design and assemble custom PCBs using KiCAD
  • Create 3D parts with CAD using FreeCAD, Autodesk Fusion 360, or OpenSCAD and manufacture them using lathes, mills, laser cutting, and 3D-printing.
  • Maintain multiple servers to reliably host services using NixOS.
  • Automate the building of software using the Nix language.

My favourite languages to work in when creating software are C and Go, but I have experience in C⁠+⁠+, C⁠#, Typescript/Javascript, Python, and a little Lua.

I enjoy learning about the "secret backend" to the world - finding out about the hidden systems that run everyday things - my favourites being well-made design rules, and interesting/useful datasets (such as National Rail train data). I also have a strong passion for NixOS, which I have used for multiple years on all of my computers and servers.

When I make things, I try to make them easily maintainable and avoid over-complicating them, after all

the best solution to a problem is usually the easiest one

-GLaDOS, "Portal 2" Valve Corporation 2011.

You can contact me at , and I will try to reply within 1-2 weekdays.

About me

Origins of a programmer

When I was in primary school, my dad introduced me to Scratch, and I loved it! I spent hours of my spare time making little fun games out of blocks to play and to show to my friends. I loved solving all of the tiny puzzles that programming brought with it, but I quickly ran into problems when I tried making some of my biggest ideas in Scratch - I came across all sorts of annoying strangeties in the engine, running into race conditions in a language that was clearly not designed for what I was doing with it. My dad noticed this, and decided to buy me a book about Python, to help me learn how to write real programs. I quickly set off making whatever interested me: (very) basic terminal chatbots, a drawing machine with the python turtle library, basic tkinter dialogues, all sorts!

As I got a little older, my dad helped me learn Go. I made a simple door alarm out of a Raspberry Pi Zero W with him, and tried out making a basic text adventure game with his help too.

When COVID hit around the end of my time at primary school, I started learning other programming languages with my dad's help too, making and publishing my first React Native app. But I started looking for more of a challenge. I had heard about an interesting game engine called Unity when watching YouTube, and wanted to try making more advanced games. I independently taught myself Unity through youtube tutorials and pure trial and error, and ended up teaching myself how to program in C⁠# too!

After COVID, I started writing small amounts of C⁠+⁠+; wrote games for the Playdate in Lua, then C (archery, lineman); continued making games in Unity; discovered the magic of Nix; made my first PCB; tried out making a texting device using long-range radio; started version 1 of my Slab keyboard project; and so, so, so much more.

All of this leads up to...

Where I'm at now

At the moment, I work on personal passion projects in my free time, and as part of Hack Club - an international community of teenage hackers. At my school/college I am currently studying for A-Level Computer Science in addition to my GCSEs.

Almost all of my projects since the start are open source, and can be found on my GitHub. I have made a wide range of different projects, with their quality improving over time as I have improved my skills.

Experience and Qualifications

Flagship projects

Events I took part in

In-person events

Other events

Contact

You can contact me at , and I will try to reply within 1-2 weekdays.