Dev Derby

What’s Next for Dev Derby?

Kevin Makice — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 21:28:21 +0000

By all accounts, our first go at running a Dev Derby was a success. While we didn’t emerge from the day with a production-ready application, no one involved thought that would happen. What we did do is meet a number of new developers (most local to Bloomington), highlight a need for technological intervention into the non-profit sector, and lay the foundation for doing this all again. (FYI, the 2010 Dev Derby Developer Challenge (PDF) can be found online.)

My thinking right now is that Dev Derby could happen 2-4 times a year, not just in conjunction with The Combine. It would intentionally make use of the artifacts from past events—submitted code, design documents, visual design, and marketing plans—to seed future events. In addition to generating and iterating code, we could have similar challenges for designers (to create research and grounded concepts) and marketers (to suggest plans for effectively implementing the creative and technical work).

Rather than getting everyone together in person to do a post-mortem, we’re going to attempt to solicit feedback here, through the comments attached to this post. The developers panel Saturday afternoon was a great start, revealing some preferences for more lead time with the challenge and some team building prior to the coding event. We are very interested in hearing from: Participants (Developers and Designers), Judges, Organizers and Volunteers, Fans and Observers, Businesses and potential sponsors, and Non-profit organizations and volunteers.

In particular, we are hoping to get some discussion going on any and all of these topics:

Should we do this again?
How often should this occur?
What is the ideal length for a similar coding challenge?
How much lead time is needed to prepare for the challenge?
How would design and business best be included in future challenges?
Are the monetary incentives needed to get participation?
How do we promote iteration of the resulting code?
How do we improve gender and cultural balance in participation?

We welcome open discussion here, as well as any additional input emailed to info -at- devderby.com.

What do you think we should do to improve Dev Derby?

Dev Derby Wrap Up: Java Wins

Kevin Makice — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 20:46:36 +0000

A belated thanks to all of the participants, designers, judges, and volunteers who helped the first Dev Derby be a success. At the end of the day on September 11, 2010, we had five sets of base code for future developers to get them started in addressing a key need for promoting volunteer connections with non-profits.

The judges awarded Team Java the winners of a $500 first prize. The group of developers, led by Lawrence McAlpin, had the most complete offering across the four areas of interest—Design, Technical value, Practical value, and Communications. Congratulations!

The other four teams also received awards of $100. All winning teams should begin receiving their awards this week. We hope to release the code as open source later this week as well.

Team Java:

Lawrence McAlpin, Team Lead
Adam Foltzer
Nicholas Bannister-Andrews
Zachary Struck
Brent Kievit-Kylar
Brenton Bostick
Marc Godard

Team PHP:

Chance Garcia, Team Lead
Dennis Rogers
Matthew Haralovich
Max Beatty
Grant Simpson
Ryan Dagey

Team .NET:

Eric Peters, Team Lead
David Smart
Colin Campbell
Marcus Reed
Gabriel Recchia
Dan Hiester
Adam Goss

Team Ruby:

Justin Ko, Team Lead
Matt Sacks
Allan Branch

Team Python:

Charles Brandt, Team Lead
Rajesh Gollapudi
Vijay Lulla
Josh Dolitsky

Design Team:

Jessica Falkenthal, Team Lead
John Wayne Hill
Beemish Chaudry
Jenny Hertel
Daniel Richert
Anna Eaglin

Judges:

Tara Bazler, Communication Judge
Marty Siegel, Design Judge
Lucy Schaich, Practical Judge
Jay Sissom, Technical Judge

Meet Justin Ko

Kevin Makice — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 14:29:06 +0000

This is the fourth in a multi-part series, “Better Know Your Team Lead.” Next up is Justin Ko, who will be leading the Ruby team in Dev Derby 2010. Taking a page from Marcel Proust, James Lipton, and now SociaLens, we’re asking the same series of thought-provoking questions to everyone we profile.

Justin Ko, Ruby Team Lead

Justin Ko’s entry to web development is not typical. He started out as a designer, with a couple years of experience, before becoming frustrated with the limitations of staying “client side”. He wanted to do it all. Many books and late nights later, he has become a competent Ruby and Rails developer. Currently, you’ll find him at Sproutbox practicing agile methodologies in a very cool “work” setting.

WHAT MADE YOUR FAVORITE WORD YOUR FAVORITE WORD?

I don’t have a favorite, but one word that humors me is pumpernickel.

WHICH FAULT DO YOU TOLERATE MOST?

Addiction. It goes much deeper than reason.

HOW DOES YOUR HERO OR HEROINE INSPIRE YOU?

I am inspired by people who push the curve. Progression (in a positive direction) is always an exciting thing.

WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF HAPPINESS?

Thinking happy thoughts. Satisfaction in the moment is usually the cause of this.

WHEN TWITTER TAKES OVER GRAVEYARDS, WHAT WILL YOUR TOMBSTONE READ?

I just tried looking up my “mentions” in the past, and got this: “Older tweets are temporarily unavailable.”

Meet Eric Peters

Kevin Makice — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:59:16 +0000

This is the third in a multi-part series, “Better Know Your Team Lead.” Next up is Eric Peters, who will be leading the .NET team in Dev Derby 2010. Taking a page from Marcel Proust, James Lipton, and now SociaLens, we’re asking the same series of thought-provoking questions to everyone we profile.

Eric Peters, .NET Team Lead

Eric has been involved with technology since a very young age, tinkering with electronics and computers since the 8-bit days. He studied Computer Science at IU, and has worked for several local startups over the years. Currently, he works with an incredible Agile development team in Bloomington writing C#, SQL, and JavaScript in an ASP.NET environment. In his spare time, he codes Project Euler challenges, reads about technology, and does an exceptionally poor job of playing chess.

WHAT MADE YOUR FAVORITE WORD YOUR FAVORITE WORD?

It would have to be its raw power, its elegance and succinctness, and its unusually melodic tone. Saying it is quite pleasing, but the rhythm of it draws you in like none other. It is truly a deeply magical word.

WHICH FAULT DO YOU TOLERATE MOST?

Finding fault.

HOW DOES YOUR HERO OR HEROINE INSPIRE YOU?

I am inspired by those who quietly do for others.

WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF HAPPINESS?

I went for a long walk in the woods yesterday. I had no electronics, was miles away from anything “modern”, and the loudest noise I heard for hours was my feet breaking fallen twigs. I think happiness comes from that kind of peace.

WHEN TWITTER TAKES OVER GRAVEYARDS, WHAT WILL YOUR TOMBSTONE READ?

I’m sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that.

Calling All Python Coders

Kevin Makice — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:12:24 +0000

Team Python Added to Dev Derby 2010

After some local inquiries about why Python wasn’t included, we have added a new team for those who want to participate using that language for application development. A Team Lead has been selected, and the application remains open.

Update on Dev Derby Teams

The invitations to developers began being mailed out on Monday. If you have not yet received confirmation, one way or the other, please contact info -at- devderby.com to prompt us to inquire with the appropriate Team Leads. Some of the languages are being wait-listed as new applications come in, but others—Ruby, Python, and Java—still have openings.

It isn’t too late to join us. Apply now!

Meet Lawrence McAlpin

Kevin Makice — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:30:45 +0000

This is the second in a multi-part series, “Better Know Your Team Lead.” Next up is Lawrence McAlpin, who will be leading the Java team in Dev Derby 2010. Taking a page from Marcel Proust, James Lipton, and now SociaLens, we’re asking the same series of thought-provoking questions to everyone we profile.

Lawrence McAlpin, Java Team Lead

Lawrence McAlpin has over fifteen years of experience with information technology. He holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. He refined his technical expertise working for some of the world’s most demanding clients: leading Fortune 50 companies. Currently, he makes a living as a software architect, enterprise Java developer, and project manager for a major Wall Street firm. He also spends his spare time as a technical advisor for a wine industry startup, when he isn’t too busy chasing his happily screaming toddler around the yard with a hose.

WHAT MADE YOUR FAVORITE WORD YOUR FAVORITE WORD?

Pamplemousse. It’s the funniest word in any language. This makes pamplemeese hard to eat because most people can’t help but laugh out loud when hearing their name. This is widely considered to be one of the more peculiar biological defense mechanisms that any fruit has ever evolved.

WHICH FAULT DO YOU TOLERATE MOST?

Laziness. As long as you get off your ass long enough to do it once, and do it right.

HOW DOES YOUR HERO OR HEROINE INSPIRE YOU?

Mark Twain was far more than a humorist, he was one of the greatest philosophers the world has ever produced. His love of progress and technology, his satirical wit, and his uncanny ability to condense complex issues into the simplest of phrases are traits that I strongly admire and aspire to emulate.

WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF HAPPINESS?

Afternoons: my toddler, smiling. At night: my toddler, sleeping. On weekends, in the morning: my toddler, sleeping in.

WHEN TWITTER TAKES OVER GRAVEYARDS, WHAT WILL YOUR TOMBSTONE READ?

Judging by past performance, it will probably show a failwhale and the somber text “Sorry, we are over capacity, try again later.”

Meet Chance Garcia

Kevin Makice — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 16:53:16 +0000

This is the first in a multi-part series, “Better Know Your Team Lead.” First up is Chance Garcia, who will be leading the PHP team in Dev Derby 2010. Taking a page from Marcel Proust, James Lipton, and now SociaLens, we’re asking the same series of thought-provoking questions to everyone we profile.

Chance Garcia, PHP Team Lead

The origins of Chance Garcia are shrouded in myth and mystery, but what we do know is that he wrote his first BASIC lines at the age of 5. It wasn’t until later that programming became a part of his life. Over the years, he has put skill points into Pascal, Java, C, C++, Scheme, Python, PHP, SQL and recently Objective C. During the last 5 years, his skill in PHP was leveled under the mentorship of Guyer, Trotzke, and Zon while working at Resite. Through his current job at Smithville, he gained the power of Self-Improvement, and with the help of PHP and social networks, he unlocked the TDD, MVC, and project managements traits. Today he continues to grind out his programming skills so that he can one day hit the fabled level cap. The Deb Derby trial is one of many that await our hero.

WHAT MADE YOUR FAVORITE WORD YOUR FAVORITE WORD?

I don’t know if I have a favorite word. I like words in general since I love reading and learning.

WHICH FAULT DO YOU TOLERATE MOST?

The inability or refusal to adapt. I usually associate this with unwillingness to learn. For me, there is no such thing as expertise and mastery. We are constantly learning and therefore can become better. I see life as striving to be better than you were before. We are all capable of doing great things, and if we want to achieve greatness, we need to stop asking for permission, stop making excuses, and stop clinging to the concept of tradition.

HOW DOES YOUR HERO OR HEROINE INSPIRE YOU?

My hero inspires me by showing me that anything is possible. He shows me that we all have within us the capability to be a force for good or evil in the world and that our choices define us as much as our nature.

WHAT IS YOUR IDEA OF HAPPINESS?

Happiness is my cats and the ability to live without regret, worry, or doubt to move on to the next great adventure.

WHEN TWITTER TAKES OVER GRAVEYARDS, WHAT WILL YOUR TOMBSTONE READ?

hm, i thought this place would be a lot warmer.

(\_/)

=^.^=

(“)_(“)

kthxbai!

(Photo courtesy Rob Allen)

Applications are still open

Kevin Makice — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 11:06:24 +0000

Team Leads are checking in to report on their recruiting success. They will likely be contacting applicants soon to either invite you to participate or encourage you to stay in the loop as a backup. The application will remain open, but realize that some teams may already have their squads finalized by the time you apply.

Our PHP, .Net, and Java teams appear to be shaping up, but we may still need some Ruby and ColdFusion developers to step up and participate in our September 11 coding event. We are also adding Python to our application, to see if there is enough interest to add a sixth team (no promises yet).

Get your Design On

Kevin Makice — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 17:52:10 +0000

Think Dev Derby is just about coders? Think again.

Our goal is to create applications that can be of real-world benefit to the local non-profit community. To that end, we are looking for a team of design researchers to lend some of their expertise into shaping the Dev Derby challenge.

We tentatively have a focus group of volunteers, non-profit organizations, and local organizers scheduled for the afternoon of Friday, August 27. That conversation will narrow down the scope of the challenge and allow our Design Team to craft an argument for various concepts, complete with wireframes and sample graphics. All of this is to support what the Developer Teams are going to do on September 11, to let them think more about the code.

There are a limited number (5) of “official” Design Team spots. Although all are welcome to help craft the design documents prior to September 8, the official members will earn the same $79 discounted price to The Combine that the participating developers can get. Selection will be based on a number of criteria, not the least of which is first-come, first-serve.

Interested in design and research for Dev Derby? Apply now: http://devderby.com/researchers/

Discounts Available for Dev Derby Participants

Kevin Makice — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 20:18:31 +0000

What? Helping determine which programming language is the best isn’t enough? Need another reason to apply for the Dev Derby? How about money?

All participants in the Dev Derby on Saturday, September 11, will get:

a free pass to BFlex the following day to learn how to use the software development kit for cross-platform rich Internet application, based on the Adobe Flash platform (plus, a free Sunday lunch);
a discount code to purchase The Combine tickets for just $79;
and, a virtual goody bag of various software, books, and other swag.

That doesn’t include the monetary prize we intend to offer to the winning team (more details on that to follow).

This deal is only for applicants who are accepted to participate in Dev Derby 2010. There are a limited number of spots available, so apply now. We will begin announcing teams next week.