jeffpersonified

Better. Taking the advice. Thanks.

"It shouldn't take too long until you start hating ruby..."

Hahaha one of current project leads has been telling me the same thing. He's suggested learning everything I can on javascript, and staying focused on the front end once I get a server-side language under my belt. I've heard great things about Python.

Thanks for the suggestions, fein!

That's fair.

The title (and I did hesitate on using it) grabs attention -- enough for you to be reading the article.

I stuck with it largely because I think the decision to learn to program is a culmination of my journey over the past 23 years.

And, I have actually learned to program over the last 3 months. Maybe I should have stated that in the article. I'm currently doing freelance front-end development.

I tend to agree.

That statement is a conflation of a YC/PG mantra, "make things people want" (http://paulgraham.com/good.html), and that of Dev Bootcamp "build beautiful, meaningful things." They may be opposing things, but I tend to think that meaningful things are those that have impact on others. You're right, even if it has meaning, people may not want it.

Although, I think the end of a great start up/company/person may be an achievement of both.

It's so funny: I just saw an article on the Turf Geography Club and was wondering this very thing in their own design. Thanks for the post!

Congrats Jon and Co. A phenomenal team, with a phenomenal product, and humility and focus to boot.

Thank you!

I've spent the better part of the last 2 months learning how to code with Codecademy, and though there are some issues that need working out (yes, answer feedback can be erroneous and the crowd sourced tutorials can lack flow) I've found it a phenomenal resource. I didn't want to read a book. I didn't want to be deterred by configuring and downloading new software. I wanted to learn basic syntax and be able to go to my browser, pick up where I left off, and feel like I was building something, and toward these ends (oh... and it's free) I've found it extremely helpful.

In short, I am the ideal user of Codecademy and have really enjoyed the experience relative to other resources available.

All dependent on context. In the context of a team, one can rarely solve all problems by herself. More importantly, it can cause greater disfunction when work isn't coordinated/communicated appropriately. The whole point of working in a team is to get more work done more efficiently because the work load is shared and each member focuses on her specific skill, and doesn't do everything.

All is dependent on audience.

The liberal arts need to be valued more highly. 'Nough said.

As a guy currently in the midst of learning how to code, and doing so with Codecademy (it's been a fantastic tool, and made the process far less painful), I really appreciate this viewpoint. More than that, it's encouraging.

I don't intend to get a job as a developer. I don't convince myself that I'll ever get hired because of my capacity with RoR. I do, however, hope that I can continue to become a better communicator with the developing community, understand the basic parameters around different languages, and hopefully build some things myself... and have fun doing so.

Indeed, as PG has said in the past, learning to code may be more valuable in the coming years than having an MBA (in certain fields). Code isn't going away. It's a language that my kids will grow up bilingual in, and I hope to help guide them into it as the first generation immigrant that I am.

Hell, my skills are elsewhere, and I'm more than fine with that.

Creative name. Not interested.

Here here.

Let's be clear, though – hoop jumping isn't relegated to the university/educational system today. It's ubiquitous in hiring, promotion, and general staffing practices in corporations. It's typical in society.

Rare are the people who constantly ask "why do we do what we do," and "how could we do this better."

William Deresiewicz's address to West Point, "Solitude and Leadership" (http://theamericanscholar.org/solitude-and-leadership/) remains the best piece on leadership I've read to date. Ironically, as pointed out by Deresiewicz, the address is given to newly minted officers in the US military.

The address was requisite reading in this year's Venture for America application process, and is more than just a guide in becoming a better leader, but a phenomenal exposition on why our educational system has calcified into "hoop" jumping.

Tech journalism is broken. Someone fix it. Please.

It's hard to imagine we won't get there eventually though. For the time being, there really aren't great options, but that will certainly change in the coming years. Mobile remains in its infancy.

As much as I enjoy Counting Crows (did?) I hardly think Duritz is the best indicator of industry trends.

Where's 'Merica? This photo is biased.

It's interesting that both this and raspberry pi's intent are to be educational in nature. And fun at that.

This is why I'm a libertarian.

Bucket system needs into three categories (large, medium, small) and find three routers that best manage those needs. Hire a full-time government worker to facilitate categorization of each installation location and manage the installation. Replace upgrade as needed.

It hardly seems like managing gear would be all that difficult at this kind of margin. Hire someone full-time at 100K annually who manages the systems and upgrades when necessary.

At least you'd be creating some value with those tax dollars.

So this is what the Occupy movement is so upset about!

Beyond pushing Google further out of their device and perhaps creating a more accurate mapping system, what do you think are the "strategic" points for bringing cartography in house? It's not like Apple would be interested in unmanned vehicle nav, or something... right?

I myself can't think of any strategic reasons beyond competition with Google.

That's what I thought of as well. Twine's, though not as robust, seems a more simple and elegant design. The question I'd like to know is who will take these systems and implement them in applications that have a greater "wow" factor for the consumer. Nest is a great example.

There are so many applications, especially when one considers location sensitivity relative to a phone.

Too rare are blogs/posts in the Valley about the "trough of sorrow." Even rarer are the ones that don't leave on an upbeat ending. This is life. This is what it is really like to build something people want... or to try to.

Thank you for writing this. The euphoric prose that plagues TC and ilk can often do a real disservice to those trying to build the seemingly impossible, and your honesty and humility are refreshing.

To say that the "No Idea" round is bad for Silicon Valley is to give an overly simplistic view of the "entrepreneur."

However, the interesting thing here may not be one of whether an idea is necessary to initially catalyze a great company... or not. That seems like a chicken or the egg kind of question. (Do great companies breed great ideas or do great ideas breed great companies?)

Instead, I think the focus on the individual may be the most pertinent from this article. For some, those who are great at building within a company, being engineer #100 at Facebook is perhaps the greatest place of impact that person could have. Of course the converse can be true as well, which is the story we're all too used to. The underlying assumption is that a person's greatest placement is proportional to her natural inclination and disposition, and I'm inclined to agree.