The PeopleSoft Tipster Blog

I’m Kyle Benson and this is how I work July 12, 2019

I’ve not blogged on this site for a while so it takes a special post to break the hiatus. I’m delighted to finally be able to share the “How I Work” entry for Kyle Benson, one half of the all-conquering PSAdmin.io duo. Kyle and Dan are super-busy, splitting their time between PeopleSoft consulting and the PSAdmin.io slack community, their Podcast, their conference and their website.  I’m thrilled that he has added his profile to our ‘How I Work‘ series.

Name: Kyle Benson

Occupation: Independent PeopleSoft Consultant and Co-owner of psadmin.io
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Current computer: Dell Precision 5510
Current mobile devices: Pixel 2
I work: To keep from getting bored. I have a ton of fun solving tough problems and optimizing things.

What apps/software/tools can’t you live without?

• Beyond Compare
• Virtual Desktops
• Phire
• psadmin-plus
• My own .bash_profile

Besides your phone and computer, what gadget can’t you live without?
Saying I “can’t live without” this is overstating it, but I love my home automation gadgets. I have been slowly adding more and more to my home. Lately my pace has slowed down so my family can keep up with my craziness. I’m currently using a SmartThing Gen. 1 HUB and I’m liking the ecosystem.  That reminds me, time to upgrade!

What’s your workspace like?
I split time between client sites and my home office. I like to use a standing desk and keep it rather tidy. I love my ultrawide monitor and have a “studio” step for creating psadmin.io content.

What do you listen to while you work?
I love to put on mellow, ambient, downtempo style music. I often listen to the same playlist on repeat for months. Something about the relaxing, repetitive sounds helps get me in “flow” faster. The artist Blackmill really started me down this road. The current playlists I’m listening to on Spotify are ‘Atmospheric Calm’ and ‘Soundscapes For Gaming’.

What PeopleSoft-related productivity apps do you use?
I love Phire for development and git for DPK/admin scripts. Having the history and flexibility to migrate is so nice. Using psadmin-plus helps a lot, too!

Do you have a 2-line tip that some others might not know?
Make sure you are using aliases so you aren’t wasting time typing! Here is a short list of aliases I use often, mostly related to changing directories.

• cddpk
  • Change to the DPK base directory
• cdcfg
  • When using multiple $PS_CFG_HOMEs on a server, change to the config homes base directory
• cdweb $domain_name
  • Change to the PORTAL.war directory of a domain
• pupapp $environment
  • Run puppet apply for an $environment (ie. production)

What SQL/Code do you find yourself writing most often?
Currently I’ve found myself living in the browser development tools. I’ve been exploring some of the new JavaScript that Fluid and Unified Navigation introduces. I do a lot of debugging, playing in console, etc to find out how some of these features work. This is all pretty complex stuff and you can really get lost down the rabbit hole.

What would be the one item you’d add to PeopleSoft if you could?
Current CPU archives in DPK.

What everyday thing are you better at than anyone else?
I love riddles and puzzles. I’ve been really into escape rooms this past year, too.

How do you keep yourself healthy and happy?
Getting outside with the family year round is key. Living in a place like Minnesota, you learn a lack of vitamin D and cabin fever is no joke. Walking, hiking, biking in the summer. Biking and cross country skiing in the winter. Also, the family heads up to the North Shore of Lake Superior every few months. These weekend getaways are always a great recharge.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.