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My Story as a Homeless Developer

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Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#301

Post by Ahmed90 »

starwatch wrote: post #255
Ahmed90 wrote: post #228

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not Syrian, I'm Iraqi, and I can assure you the issue is bigger than that around here (most middle east) The only positive(ish) thing I know of is a Bootcamp they do in northern Iraq for Iraqi(ISIS crisis) and Syrian refugees that teach them how to code, but it's most basic stuff that bearly qualify you for an interview but no more. The problem with these international organization is that they sponsor local educ…

Learning a new language (english) is difficult enough, but to learn to program a computer at the same time seems a lot to ask of children. If software engineering is a sensible way out, would something like Qalb be a better starting point for learning core fundamentals? The reason for asking the question comes from a "what can I do to help standpoint". Throwing money over the fence is often the only answer I receive…

English is not the problem, this is a huge misconception at least in Iraq, the girl I mention? shes a CS college student who already studied C++, C# and whatever they teach... in English, her students? the are CS graduates or even already employed women with interest in tech. they know English they already watch tutorials on Udemy and youtube etc... in English

Qalb and Noor languages etc.. are only good to help kickstart the logical thinking for poor kids with next to 0 education.

In Iraq, for example, the TOEFL, IELTS, CISCO, and Microtek entry-level certificates are the most common "resume fillers" all English

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#302

Post by zrobotics »

randomdata wrote: post #199
komali2 wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The implication is that the majority of homeless are just lazy, yea? Just pick apples! I've been exactly there. You're not making minimum wage when you show up to the farm to pick apricots all day. Bars - need a bartender license. Yes, you do, nobody is risking it in 2018. Restaurants, sure, but again, you're not making minimum wage, and if you whiff of hobo you're not working front of house and getting tips. Cleanin…

> I've been exactly there. You're not making minimum wage when you show up to the farm to pick apricots all day. While not Iowa, the farms around here will easily pay you $20-30/hr. if you are willing to work on equipment. Which, anyone who is capable of software development, also has the mindset required to work on equipment. They're pretty similar activities when you get down to it. I'm not sure there is any reason…

Speaking as a former mechanic--no, you can't just walk up to a piece of machinery and fix it. That is a career, and takes quite a lot of time to learn. The mindset is similar, sure, but would you expect an average mechanic to be able to develop software as well?

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#303

Post by Ahmed90 »

laythea wrote: post #246
Ahmed90 wrote: post #228

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not Syrian, I'm Iraqi, and I can assure you the issue is bigger than that around here (most middle east) The only positive(ish) thing I know of is a Bootcamp they do in northern Iraq for Iraqi(ISIS crisis) and Syrian refugees that teach them how to code, but it's most basic stuff that bearly qualify you for an interview but no more. The problem with these international organization is that they sponsor local educ…

Thats not ideal, off course, but surely better than no education?

The traditional education is the problem, most of the students in the activities I mentioned above are university students or already graduated. the majority are not uneducated refugees as you think.

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#304

Post by TheCoelacanth »

chrisseaton wrote: post #175
holtalanm wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's in Iowa. In these midwest states (Nebraska for me), public transportation is very scarce. Most jobs out here require we own a car, or have some way to reliably get to work. Most of the time that does not involve public transportation in any way.

So how do for example blind people who cannot drive find work?

Less than 20% of people who are partially or totally blind are employed[1]. The vast majority simply don't.

[1] http://www.afb.org/info/blindness-statistics/adults/interpre...

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#305

Post by ryanwaggoner »

acheron wrote: post #131
loco5niner wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

simile often involves hyperbole.

Turning “less than 50%” into “99%” is not hyperbole, it’s being incorrect.

It’s also not even simile, since the “like” here signals lazy approximation, not comparison.

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#306

Post by danjoc »

int_19h wrote: post #221
danjoc wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here's a few choices, https://www.amazon.com/SOKOO-Portable-Efficiency-Reinforced-... https://www.amazon.com/Foldable-Waterproof-Efficiency-Cellph... https://www.amazon.com/Balight-Outdoor-Foldable-Powered-Char... 28W basically gives you an fourth panel, but your backpack is probably 3 panels tall.

Most of these don't provide anywhere near the advertised wattage. And when they do, it's usually in direct bright sunlight (i.e. depending on where you are and what season it is, it can be that efficient only for a few hours, and sometimes none at all). If you want a decent portable solar panel, get the non-flexible monocrystalline one.

Any suggestions on models?

I like the flexible one because it's lightweight and not easy to break. I'd be open to other options though if you have suggestions.

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#307

Post by watwut »

watwut wrote: post #272
leke wrote: post #239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do many Landscape companies not supply work vehicles or pair you with employees who do have them?

Often not. I would not be even sure they could afford leet of company cars given how seasonal work is. The pairing may happen on individual basis, basically when most of work is teamwork and they don't need you to go around alone anyway. A lot of work is single person work. Or when boss is nice and willing to help you out and organize more. So I guess that depends on what exactly the company needs you to do. Plenty r…

I am really curios about downvotes, because that is how landscaping works here. It is a business not a charity and it is tough business with low margin. They don't give out cars.

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#308

Post by qwerty456127 »

austenallred wrote: post #140

Hey Jesse, I'm also formerly homeless, and now the cofounder of https://LambdaSchool.com (YC S17). We have a nonprofit fund designed specifically to help out homeless software engineers looking for a job. I'd love to put you in a cheap airbnb or apartment, hook you up with Lambda School's career services team who will help review your resume, get your github and portfolio in shape, practice interviewing, and help you…

Cool! But... I've taken a look at the curriculum and the question popped up immediately: what if a person already knows a fair portion of the subjects like basic HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python, C/C++/C# and Java and has even developed some simple websites using pure vanilla HTML+CCS+JS+PHP in their past (and has experience in building and fixing PCs) and just has no skills in computer science and in how the things are cooked together in modern-day production coding? You say you teach from absolute zero, is it possible to skip "this is a HTML tag", "this is a variable" and "print 10 even numbers in the console in a for loop" parts?

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#309

Post by austenallred »

qwerty456127 wrote: post #308
austenallred wrote: post #140

Hey Jesse, I'm also formerly homeless, and now the cofounder of https://LambdaSchool.com (YC S17). We have a nonprofit fund designed specifically to help out homeless software engineers looking for a job. I'd love to put you in a cheap airbnb or apartment, hook you up with Lambda School's career services team who will help review your resume, get your github and portfolio in shape, practice interviewing, and help you…

Cool! But... I've taken a look at the curriculum and the question popped up immediately: what if a person already knows a fair portion of the subjects like basic HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python, C/C++/C# and Java and has even developed some simple websites using pure vanilla HTML+CCS+JS+PHP in their past (and has experience in building and fixing PCs) and just has no skills in computer science and in how the things are…

Yes. That stuff all happens in our pre-course work, which you can test out of.

Re: My Story as a Homeless Developer

#310

Post by chrissnell »

justaaron wrote: post #257
chrissnell wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed. I'm sitting here at a cafe in my small Kansas town. There's a landscape company across the street with a sign offering $12/hr. They are desperate for people. I know this because I've hired their competitor to mow my grass and they can't get it mowed often enough because they are understaffed. This is a small town, probably about the same size as OP's. You can walk or ride a bike anywhere, so transportation is…

try being homeless and getting that landscaping job. Getting out of homelessness is extremely difficult. You smell, you can't keep your stuff safe, you can't keep your devices powered on, you can't get constant internet, you may not be able to find a place to sit and work in peace, etc. It's a catch 22: without a job, no apartment. without an apartment, no job. you need a phone, an apartment/living space, internet, a…

These guys don't care what you look like or smell like. They only care whether you will do the work and show up sober. Given than OP doesn't want to do manual labor and his sobriety is unclear (he mentions "more bad decisions"), I'm not so sure.

Like others have mentioned, this is a stepping stone job. I mentioned in my post that I, too, had a rough time as a kid and young guy. I failed out of Vanderbilt after my first year and had to take a job assembling trophies to get back on my feet. Believe me, it doesn't feel good to go from playing frisbee on Alumni Lawn to being back home in my crappy town, making $4.25/hr screwing nuts onto threaded rods for eight hours a day alongside people who never even went to high school. It was humbling but it paid the rent on my shitty apartment and paid for my dialup internet connection, which led to my first tech job at an ISP in 1994. It's been pretty amazing since then.

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