About

I'm Dan Hulme, a computer scientist, musician, and occasional videographer in Cambridge in the UK. Here are some things that I care about, and if you care about them too, you might find something of value in this site.

Software development

I've been writing software for about 30 years, commercially for the last 20. I've worked for myself, I've worked for startups, I've worked for big tech, as both an IC and as a hands-on leader, across a lot of product domains.

I used to do a lot more open-source development when I was younger, but today I just have a couple of projects.

I like to bring leadership and collaboration lessons from my hobbies to my teams, and to bring the self-discipline and focus on scope from my work to my hobbies.

Music

As a schoolchild, I learned flute, and my dad taught me a bit of piano. Later in my teens, I got into orchestral percussion and taught myself on piano, playing the music I was interested in instead of a teacher's programme of music. Then in my early twenties, I joined a brass band (still as a percussionist), and eventually took over conducting the youth band. Conducting was an experience in itself: not just the mechanical aspects of waving the stick, but also the work to select repertoire to suit the skills of the players and assemble a concert programme from what was working well, seeing where each player needed encouragement, keeping the kids motivated, and so on.

After moving on from brass, I wanted to try an instrument that works as both a soloist and part of an ensemble, so I taught myself accordion. Learning accordion really deepened my understanding of music theory, and gave me a platform to gig as a solo musician and to start writing my own songs.

I've also always been interested in the engineering and signal processing around audio, so at the start of 2020 I bought my first synthesizer and started to turn my book-learning about synthesis and sound design into practice. I started scoring gaming videos for YouTube, and as a pandemic hobby, sticking to a schedule taught me a process around being creative and finishing work to a timetable, skills that some hobbyists never learn. In 2026, this resulted in my first charity album, Music to Escape Mars by.

Through a friend who has a side gig doing sound and lighting for local events, I also got into the live side of sound engineering, and I regularly do front-of-house for local charity events.

Swimming and watersports

My spirit is only happy in the water. As a teenager and student I sailed dinghies for about 7 years, but when I graduated I didn't have any opportunities for a few years. In 2012, a friend got me into swimming and I swam 5 km in the Swimathon to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care. Since then, I've become a regular at Cambridge's Jesus Green lido, a 100-year-old outdoor swimming pool 100 yards long. I also like to try other watersports when I get a chance: kayaking, stand-up paddleboard, wake-boarding, and even scuba diving once. I've never tried surfing or windsurfing though.

Conventions

I go to several furry and brony conventions each year, and I've been volunteering at them since 2021. Of course, I bring my other hobbies along with me. For the last few years I've done sound engineering and vision mixing on main stage at the UK's largest two MLP conventions.

In the character of Tufty Indigo, a colourful and mischievous urban red fox, I've played accordion and done stand-up at several different conventions; and I've given talks about swimming and other topics.

Cycling and road infrastructure

As a Cambridge resident, of course I cycle a lot. As I'm also a bit of a rules lawyer, I like to learn and talk about road infrastructure, design and transport planning, and public policy.

I have a lot of friends who are into trains, but it's not a topic that excites me.