Adrian Bisek
Practicum Number 1
Summer Semester
Bardel Entertainment
No Permission
This Simon Fraser University Co-Op work practicum was the first opportunity to step out
into the real world I have received. I am lucky enough to have joined a company called Bardel,
named after the fantastic founders, Barry and Delna. After being employed by Bardel there
doesn’t seem to be another place that would have been so welcoming. Bardel Entertainment is
a wonderful company to work for, better yet to earn early real world experiences. Since my
first day on June 16th, 2008, I have learned more than expected. The company is very friendly,
flexible, and lenient towards dress codes, and work hours. I didn’t feel like an employee as
much as someone who was just hanging out with a crew. The company has several clubs
similar to SFU like a book club, a running club, and after hours gaming. Along with a full
kitchen, TV with an Xbox/Wii and a pool table in the community area, this place provides
excellent alternatives to just having a sandwich for lunch. As well as the Stadium Sky Train
station about 30 seconds from the front door of Bardel, commuting downtown everyday is
reasonable when napping to and from work. Although one may find this too good to be true,
nevertheless overall, the days contain plenty of hard work which can involve some long days
and late nights.
From the day I walked in for my interview and my future supervisor told me to take off
my tie, I knew this was the place for me. I have been given the title Web Developer for
Interactive which is a brand new branch in the Bardel Company called Kid Riot.
During the first few weeks we underwent some intense research about our
development which involved marketing and technical aspects. Not being much of a researcher
myself, I feel I have gained some skills finding interesting, and often surprising, information
online. There are heaps of technical information which I have never heard of or looked into
before, for example, technologies like socket servers and interactive online browser virtual
worlds. This was all new to me as I only have had static experience with web design. I spent
countless hours during and after work trying to explain ideas flushed out from multiple
resources. This is where I really began to understand that work experience can be more
valuable than school experience.
Once that dust cleared on all the primary researching, we finally got into creating
prototypes for our development. This is where I really enjoyed working and learning. I got the
opportunity to use tools I’ve been using for years in a completely different way. I’ve been
creating interactive games, web applications, and a substitute for a virtual online world using
Adobe Flash. I’ve also been able to jump into PHP and mySQL which I’ve always wanted to
learn more about. Using databases to toil through PHP script in browsers to parse information
back to Adobe Flash creating possible multiplayer activities and character customization is quite
rewarding. What I found out at Bardel, which I never did at school, is that researching is always
a priority. Like I’ve said earlier - the researching dust cleared, but researching remains an
important part of the prototype – on going secondary research is constantly refreshing new
ideas during the process in designing. Throughout our prototyping thus far, we’ve changed
approaches and ideas due to constant research. We’ve started in one direction, and then
completely went another way. We’ve paper prototyped and walked through ideas along with
meetings with consultants as well as with executives. There’s so much that I’ve never
experienced before and am happy to have done so at Bardel.
Working with a group of artists and programmers, I feel like I’ve entered a family which
supports everything I do. Looking back over the last few weeks, I see a lot of improvement in
my already hard working personality. I think when my contract expires, I can take everything
that I’ve experienced here and use it to move forward in my life. Some things that I could
improve on are getting a little more sleep. As dull as it sounds, working 7-9 hours daily is a
huge difference than going to school for 3 hours - minus a long commute which can extend
nearly an hour each way. I had some groggy days, and when I look back at it, I could have
delivered additional products. I expect more of myself now. I also have a tendency to joke
around and can take others off task with non related information. That seems common during
the long days. However, jokes and grogginess aside, I feel like I’ve tried my best and provided
some of my best work for the company.
The most relevant courses from SFU that I’ve thought to have prepared me for this work
term was CMPT 125, CMPT 165, IAT 201, IAT204, IAT 265, and IAT 452. These courses involve
some basic web, java, and action script programming along with learning new technologies in a
short period of time using cognitive thinking skills. After taking a work term in this specific area
of web programming, I’ve realized that I enjoy other areas of study more. For example creating
films, and working with editors splicing clips together using my creativity in a different way. It
may be too early to judge, but overall I am very satisfied with what I’ve experienced and
accomplished working for Bardel Entertainment.
Adrian Bisek