Thursday, September 20, 2007
The problem could be a faulty wireless router or a complication with software — anything with computers and Sasha Kaun will likely have the solution.
Senior center Sasha Kaun has a passion for computers. Kaun had an internship with Perceptive Software, a Shawnee-based company, this past summer. Kaun said his love for computers comes from his dad, who was a developer in Russia.
Freshman guard Chase Buford said Jayhawk players direct all their technology questions to Kaun.
“He’s a wiz with computers,” Buford said. “From everything I know, he’s a smart guy.”
Kaun’s computer expertise helped him land an internship this past summer with Perceptive Software, a Shawnee-based company that develops a document-organizing product called ImageNow. Years of hard work and a passion for computers helped Kaun become a major contributor for Perceptive Software.
Kaun’s been around computers and enjoyed working with them for as long as he can remember. His love for computers comes from his dad, who used to be a developer in Russia. When the dean of Kaun’s department recommended him to Perceptive Software for a month-long July internship, Kaun was quite excited.
Immediately after he started working, Perceptive Software gave Kaun instructions for a project and told him to finish it by the end of the month.
Kaun had to load and search log files on Perceptive Software’s server to create a tool that would help the company’s researchers detect errors faster on the log files. Log files list actions that have occurred on a server.
Sound complicated? Not for Kaun. He found it easy, just like all his academic endeavours.
Few high-profile college athletes boast his academic achievements. He’s a two-time member of the Academic All-Big 12 First Team and a four-time member of the Athletic Director’s and Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Rolls. Kaun is on track to graduate in the spring with a degree in computer science.
His supervisor at Perceptive Software, Hugh Khan, quickly discovered Kaun was as good of a worker as he was an athlete.
“He never exhibited a hint of arrogance one might expect from a star athlete,” Khan said. “He wanted to be productive right away. He’s easily one of the best interns we’ve had. And yes, we are using the diagnostic tool he wrote for us.”
Kaun may not have wanted his fellow employees to see him as a basketball player, but he often thought of basketball while working. His boss and co-workers reminded him of Kansas coach Bill Self and his teammates. He had to sit through staff meetings just like he has to sit through team meetings for the Jayhawks.
The computer software business, Kaun said, was also all about victories.
“You still try to win and beat the market,” he said. “You have different parts working together to come up with different strategies.”
The Perceptive Software internship doesn’t mean Kaun is ready to give up basketball yet as a post-college career. As a 6-foot-11 center who’s only been playing basketball since the 10th grade, he’s attracted interest from the NBA as a possible second round pick. If Kaun develops consistency this season and improves last year’s averages of 7.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, his draft status could rise even higher.
“I want to stay and play as long as I can and make as much money as possible,” Kaun said. “All this developing stuff can come later. But I definitely want to come back to it.”
— Edited by Elizabeth Cattell
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October 2, 2007 at 10:14 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )