The PeopleSoft Tipster Blog

I’m Sasank Vemana and this is how I work March 9, 2016

The next profile in our ‘How I Work‘ series is Sasank Vemana. Sasank burst onto the PeopleSoft blogging scene in 2014 with his Sasank’s PeopleSoft Log site, and has been adding entries at a ferocious pace since. He is probably best known for his series of posts on altering the PeopleSoft branding to make it match a corporate palette, as well as configuration and code changes related to UI/UX.

I met Sasank at OOW15 and he’s a lovely chap. He has given some great responses to the questions. I’d love to know how he persuaded his employer to give him 4 monitors and about his use of dual mice!

Name: Sasank Vemana

Occupation: PeopleSoft/Enterprise Technology
Location: Tallahassee, Florida, USA
Current computer:
Desktop: Dell Optiplex 9020 (Windows 7, Intel Core i7, 8 GB RAM)
Laptop: Dell LATITUDE | E6530 (Windows 7, Intel Core i7, 8 GB RAM)
Current mobile devices: Samsung Galaxy S4. Yes – That reminds me I need an upgrade!
I work: To solve problems.

What apps/software/tools can’t you live without?
Google is my friend and my portal to everything. I try not to overload myself with information, which I know I can find. Google search helps me find what I am looking for. On a side note, I use Whatsapp and FaceBook to keep in touch with my family and friends who are scattered in different parts of the world. I also use S Health app to keep track of my physical activities and monitor my health.

Besides your phone and computer, what gadget can’t you live without?
Not a big gadget fan! I can live without them as long as I have a good internet connection, which seems to be the most important thing for me these days. With that, I can do my reading, research and also remote to any of my computers (if needed) regardless of the device. Same goes with entertainment – Netflix, Spotify, etc.

What’s your workspace like?
Over the past year and a half, I have been using a standing desk at work, thanks to my current employers who were kind enough to allow me to rearrange my workspace. When I am at work and not in meetings, I try to stand as much as possible and use a bar stool when I tend to get tired. Occasionally, I also just sit down with my laptop wherever I find space. The four monitor desktop setup helps tremendously when I have multiple applications running. I also have two mice and try to switch between my left and right hand. I am ambidextrous so it works for me (I will not recommend this otherwise!).

Standing desk, 4 monitors and dual mice

What do you listen to while you work?
Usually, I am zoned into whatever I am doing and mostly oblivious to events around me. I don’t listen to music while I am at work these days. At times, I listen to live cricket or tennis commentary if anything I care about is going on. A set of Bose noise canceling headphones has long been on my wish list (in case Santa is reading!).

What PeopleSoft-related productivity apps do you use?
Oracle Virtual Box/PUM Images – My savior for evaluation, experimentation and proof of concept purposes.
Web Services: SoapUI, Postman (Chrome Add-On)
Web Development: Browser based Developer Tools (Chrome/Firefox/IE), DOM/StyleSheets/JavaScripts Explorers, Device Emulators, etc., Fiddler, Live HTTP Headers (Firefox Add-On)
Text Editors/Journals: Notepad++, Programmer’s File Editor (PFE), WinMerge, Evernote
DB Tools: Golden (for the most part since it is light weight and does not hog resources), SQL Developer (for some activities), OEM – Oracle Enterprise Manager
Screen Capture/Recording: SnagIt and Jing (short videos) are great for communication

Do you have a 2-line tip that some others might not know?
Tracing tip: Use PeopleCode – 2048 (Show Each), SQL – 3 (Statement, Bind). This gives us every line of code and SQL that executed in sequence without all the other clutter which is not always useful especially when we are just trying to understand the logic.

What SQL/Code do you find yourself writing most often?
Generally speaking, queries on PeopleTools metadata tables. E.g.: PSAUTHITEM (security related queries), PSPRSMDEFN (portal navigation queries), etc.

What would be the one item you’d add to PeopleSoft if you could?
I would add/implement a log aggregation and mining utility. I have spent many hours combing through log files distributed across different servers. It would be great to see something that aggregates all server logs and provides mining capabilities (regex and/or free-form search). After attending Oracle OpenWorld 2015, I understand that PeopleTools 8.55 has some new features – as part of Health Center – that might assist with logs. I look forward to evaluating this functionality!

What everyday thing are you better at than anyone else?
Probably exploring! Although, I would be careful not to say that I am better at it than others. I just find myself doing that a lot without worrying about getting lost. It might seem like a wasteful effort at times but it is a natural way of learning for me.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
These are not really advice received from someone but some of my favorite quotes that I can think of right now:
– Learn to profit from your losses.
– Don’t make decisions during a storm.
– A manager gets work done through people whereas a leader inspires people to meet shared goals.
– And miles to go before I sleep.