Ask the Programmer

Hosted by asktheprogrammer

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Episodes

100

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Oct 2026

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About the show

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss topics relevant to AV programming, programmers, and those who work with audiovisual control systems. To join the conversation or ask a question to be featured on a show, reach out to @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on Twitter.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

October 25, 2026Episode 29519 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 289 - Missed Programming Estimate - What Would You Do?

James King and Steve Greenblatt play a game of "What would you do," sharing each of their takes on the following scenario: You've estimated 40 hours for a programming project. Halfway through, you realize the work will require at least 80 hours because of complications you didn't anticipate. The customer approved a fixed price based on the original estimate. What would you do? This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

October 18, 2026Episode 29427 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 288 - Guest Jeff Ashachik Discusses His Commitment to AV Programming

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome guest Jeff Ashachik, Senior Programmer at Almo LinkLab, who discusses his career evolution and return to AV programming. Jeff Ashachik can be reached on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffashachik/ or via email at jeff.ashachik@almo-corp.com. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

October 11, 2026Episode 29326 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 287 - Guest Jeff Ashachik Shares His Desire to Help People

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome guest Jeff Ashachik, Senior Programmer at Almo LinkLab, who shares his AV journey and ongoing commitment to helping people. Jeff Ashachik can be reached on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffashachik/ or via email at jeff.ashachik@almo-corp.com. his podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

October 4, 2026Episode 29223 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 286 - True/False/Depends Programming Effectiveness, Cost, System Testing

James King and Steve Greenblatt debut a new episode format called True, False, or It Depends. They pose a common statement or belief about AV programming, and James and Steve respond with whether they think it's true, false, or depends, and explain why. Here are the topics: - A successfully programmed system shouldn’t require user training or a manual. - Simple and straightforward means lower programming cost. - Working programming is required to properly test the system installation. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

September 27, 2026Episode 29126 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 285 - True/False/Depends:Progamming Impact & Programmers' Effectiveness

James King and Steve Greenblatt debut a new episode format called True, False, or It Depends. They pose a common statement or belief about AV programming, and James and Steve respond with whether they think it's true, false, or depends, and explain why. Here are the topics: - Good programming can make a poorly designed system successful - Programmers are more effective onsite than remotely - Programming is a programmer’s most important skill This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

September 20, 2026Episode 29024 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 284 - Guest Tim Albright Shares His Framework for Overcoming Failure

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Tim Albright, Keynote Speaker, Author of Building on Ashes, and Founder of AVNation, to discuss his framework for overcoming failure and personal OS by which he lives his life, achieves results, and accomplishes goals. Tim previously discussed his book, Building on Ashes, on episode 283, and his AV journey, passion for control programming, and insights on how to market yourself and programming in AV in episodes 103 and 104. Tim Abright can be reached on his website, timalbright.com, and on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tdalbright/. Tim's book Building on Ashes is available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4raiHlQ. AVNation can be found at avnation.tv. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

September 13, 2026Episode 28926 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 283 - Guest Tim Albright Talks About Authoring Building on Ashes

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Tim Albright, Keynote Speaker, Author of Building on Ashes, and Founder of AVNation, to discuss his recently published book, Building on Ashes, including what it was like to write a book, what motivated him to write it, and what he hopes readers will gain from reading the book. Tim previously discussed his AV journey, passion for control programming, and insights on how to market yourself and programming in AV in episodes 103 and 104. Tim Abright can be reached on his website, timalbright.com, and on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tdalbright/. Tim's book Building on Ashes is available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4raiHlQ. AVNation can be found at avnation.tv. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

September 6, 2026Episode 28835 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 282 - Guest Jarad Spencer Shares the Value of Programmer Community

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome back Jarad Spencer, AV Programmer/Owner at Spencer Code, to discuss the importance of collaboration among AV programmers, attracting new programmers to the industry, and how AV programmers find support in one another. Jarad Spencer previously appeared as a guest on episode 281. Jarad Spencer can be found on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jarad-spencer-8b052a13/. Spencer Code can be found at https://www.spencerco.de. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

August 30, 2026Episode 28732 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 281 - Guest Jarad Spencer Discusses His Unique Approach to Remote Support

James King and Steve Greenblatt welcome guest Jarad Spencer, AV Programmer/Owner at Spencer Code, to share his AV journey, how he approaches programming differently, and how his remote support helps AV field techs work more effectively. Jarad Spencer can be found on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jarad-spencer-8b052a13/. Spencer Code can be found at https://www.spencerco.de. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.

August 23, 2026Episode 28623 min

Ask The Programmer Episode 280 - Handing Off Code to a Client

James King and Steve Greenblatt discuss how programmers can approach projects when they are asked to hand off code to the client for future updates and reuse. This podcast is supported by Control Concepts, the industry leader in AV software development and API integration. Control Concepts develops the building blocks programmers use to seamlessly integrate products or add functionality to their systems. To learn more, visit controlconcepts.net and ccisupported.net. To join the conversation or have your question answered on a future episode, join the Ask The Programmer group on LinkedIn and post a message, leave a comment, or reach out to us @AV_JamesKing or @stevegreenblatt on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, or Bluesky, and be sure to include #AskTheProgrammer. The Ask The Programmer podcast can be found at @AVProgrammerPod on X/Twitter or on Bluesky as @asktheprogrammer.