The Publishing Technology Engineer is responsible for O’Reilly Media’s complete print and digital publishing stack. The PTE maintains the various pieces of this technology stack, and identifies and implements improvements. The PTE acts as a liaison between the publishing division and O’Reilly’s central information technology group and leads technology-related integration efforts between the two groups. The PTE architects and directs Publishing Tools staff in software development for enhancements and additions to existing infrastructure.
This position is based in Cambridge, MA and reports to the Director of Publishing Operations.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
* Plan, develop, and maintain complex software systems spanning departments, groups, and geographical locations, often involving research into existing systems.
* Work closely with Director of Publishing Operations and Tools staff to maintain and improve all pieces of existing publishing technology stack for creating print and digital books.
* Provide rapid development solutions in support of new initiatives, one-off projects, and experiments.
* Liaises with central Information Technology and software development teams to ensure integration between publishing technology stack and centralized data stores.
* Assist production staff in automating batch editing tasks.
* Assist and respond to support queues (for authors, editors, and other internal staff) when necessary.
* Advise on, and script/automate manuscript conversion among multiple file formats.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:
* Expert Ruby or Python programming experience, including building web services (AtomPub) clients and servers and re-usable libraries.
* Ability to work with HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript.
* Ability and desire to learn new technologies, particularly related to print and ebook publishing and distribution.
* Strong knowledge of XML-programming and manipulation (preferably DocBook) experience, including the use of XSLT 1+2 and XQuery on manuscripts.
* Experience with DocBook-XSL and XSL-FO.
* Strong understanding of version control software (svn, hg, and git).
* Familiar with the digital publishing landscape, particularly around ebook trends and predominant ebook formats (especially EPUB).
* Some familiarity with RDF, SPARQL, and the semantic web helpful, but not required.
* Excellent oral and written communication skills.
* Ability to prioritize and multitask under tight deadlines.
For more information, contact Andrew Odewahn (odewahn@oreilly.com)
