My First Year of Coding • Hacker News Board

Re: My First Year of Coding

#31

Post by jonahx » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 10:01 PM UTC

marincounty wrote: post #26

I think Jennifer is truly inspiring. I wish I thought anyone over 10 years old using words like yum was still cute though. I'm sorry, but I sat next to a group of extremely privileged twenty something people last night-- and had to listen to how yummy their food was, and oh the picture taking. I get it, you enjoy your food. Just stop describing it in public; some of us just want to eat. And yes--I do think of all the…

Jennifer, ignore the haters. The name is every bit as yummy as artisinally crafted scones, freshly unpacked macbook airs, and the carefree days of a well-fed youth.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#32

Post by nostrademons » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 10:10 PM UTC

marincounty wrote: post #26

I think Jennifer is truly inspiring. I wish I thought anyone over 10 years old using words like yum was still cute though. I'm sorry, but I sat next to a group of extremely privileged twenty something people last night-- and had to listen to how yummy their food was, and oh the picture taking. I get it, you enjoy your food. Just stop describing it in public; some of us just want to eat. And yes--I do think of all the…

Somebody should tell this to KFC/Taco Bell/Pizza Hut:

https://www.google.com/finance?q=YUM

Re: My First Year of Coding

#33

Post by stickperson » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 10:14 PM UTC

I started to learn how to code back in August and got my first job as a developer at the end of February. I went through a bootcamp and didn't see anyone besides my girlfriend for 10 weeks.

It's definitely tough not having a mentor, and I struggled a bit for a couple months after classes trying to figure out what I should spend my time learning. I still struggle with it when working on personal projects and often worry I'm not doing things the "best" way.

I sometimes get overwhelmed because there's so much I don't know, and deep down I know I'll never be as good/desirable as someone with a CS degree. That being said, I'm very happy where I am and wouldn't change anything.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#34

Post by ascendantlogic » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 10:25 PM UTC

marincounty wrote: post #26

I think Jennifer is truly inspiring. I wish I thought anyone over 10 years old using words like yum was still cute though. I'm sorry, but I sat next to a group of extremely privileged twenty something people last night-- and had to listen to how yummy their food was, and oh the picture taking. I get it, you enjoy your food. Just stop describing it in public; some of us just want to eat. And yes--I do think of all the…

What does this have to do with the discussion about Jennifer learning to write software and doing the 180 sites in 180 days? This sort of commentary is best left on Reddit.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#35

Post by mbesto » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 10:47 PM UTC

"Most importantly, I’ve been able to overcome the fear of being judged. Whether you are making a piece of artwork, teaching yourself something new or building a business you’re bound to encounter some negative energy. People will say some pretty weird or just plain mean things to you when you’re doing something kind of crazy. Those comments sting a bit, but they’re most dangerous when you let them feed your self doubt. Battling your own self doubt is incredibly formidable."

This is above and beyond, the greatest lesson I've learned as an entrepreneur. Kudos to you Jennifer for finding the same.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#36

Post by ericabiz » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 10:55 PM UTC

stickperson wrote: post #33

I started to learn how to code back in August and got my first job as a developer at the end of February. I went through a bootcamp and didn't see anyone besides my girlfriend for 10 weeks. It's definitely tough not having a mentor, and I struggled a bit for a couple months after classes trying to figure out what I should spend my time learning. I still struggle with it when working on personal projects and often wor…

> deep down I know I'll never be as good/desirable as someone with a CS degree.

I stopped working to write this comment--that's how important it is to me that you know this is a belief that will only hold you back.

I could cite any one of thousands of articles that talk about dropouts who made it, but I suspect you know about those articles and it hasn't affected your belief.

So I'll just say this: If I had graduated with a degree, I would have never been able to bootstrap a tech company when I was 20 and sell it for over a million dollars when I was 26.

Don't look at yourself through the eyes of others, because you'll always find yourself wanting. I'm sitting here about to launch my new company (we're doing final testing of our new website right now.) I have no idea whether our site (which is kind of wacky) will convert. I don't know if we'll get any sales. And I've got everything riding on this company--I've put all my chips in.

There's enough in this world that will kick your ass. People haven't believed in my companies for the past 13 years I've been running them. People have laughed in my face, investors have turned me down over and over again, customers have quit, money has been lost (and, on a brighter note, much money has been made!)

Sometimes the only thing you can count on is your internal belief that you WILL make it, no matter what. That's what got me through my last company during its darkest hours. That's what's getting me through now. Enough people will throw shit in your face. Don't be one of them. You are better than that.

The world is full of possibilities. Don't count yourself out. Jennifer sure didn't. ;)

Re: My First Year of Coding

#37

Post by readymade » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 11:13 PM UTC

It's worth revisiting the original HN post from last year:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6097155

IMHO she deserves kudos not just for accomplishing her goal (which really is impressive enough on its own) but doing so in the face of a community with such deeply ingrained sexism that some people thought it "suspicious" at the outset.

Obviously she's a strong enough person that this kind of stuff didn't derail her project, but one can only imagine what a different world we'd be in if projects like these were met with more encouragement and less derision.

Not that the haters are getting any satisfaction today.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#38

Post by jenniferDewalt » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 11:42 PM UTC

ericabiz wrote: post #36

stickperson wrote: post #33

I started to learn how to code back in August and got my first job as a developer at the end of February. I went through a bootcamp and didn't see anyone besides my girlfriend for 10 weeks. It's definitely tough not having a mentor, and I struggled a bit for a couple months after classes trying to figure out what I should spend my time learning. I still struggle with it when working on personal projects and often wor…

> deep down I know I'll never be as good/desirable as someone with a CS degree. I stopped working to write this comment--that's how important it is to me that you know this is a belief that will only hold you back. I could cite any one of thousands of articles that talk about dropouts who made it, but I suspect you know about those articles and it hasn't affected your belief. So I'll just say this: If I had graduated…

This is so true. Coding is about more than typing some things into a text editor. Even if you don't have a CS degree or a ton of experience you can bring a lot to the table from good UX decisions to fresh perspectives to contagious hustle and drive.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#39

Post by theflyingkiwi42 » Wed, Apr 02, 2014, 11:58 PM UTC

stickperson wrote: post #33

I started to learn how to code back in August and got my first job as a developer at the end of February. I went through a bootcamp and didn't see anyone besides my girlfriend for 10 weeks. It's definitely tough not having a mentor, and I struggled a bit for a couple months after classes trying to figure out what I should spend my time learning. I still struggle with it when working on personal projects and often wor…

There's a big difference between being a developer and being somebody with a CS degree. In my experience with hiring developers, I always value people being self-taught. This means you made things work!

To me, that's the difference between a developer and a programmer. A programmer might write technically better code, but often gets stuck when something does not work as intended as is often the case in web browsers. A developer will find a way to make it work, and make it work well for the user.

So don't sell yourself short and keep on learning. You may in fact be more desirable than somebody with a CS degree.

Re: My First Year of Coding

#40

Post by pjmorris » Thu, Apr 03, 2014, 12:01 AM UTC

stickperson wrote: post #33

I started to learn how to code back in August and got my first job as a developer at the end of February. I went through a bootcamp and didn't see anyone besides my girlfriend for 10 weeks. It's definitely tough not having a mentor, and I struggled a bit for a couple months after classes trying to figure out what I should spend my time learning. I still struggle with it when working on personal projects and often wor…

Bill Gates doesn't have a CS degree. John Carmack doesn't have a CS degree. Mark Zuckerberg doesn't have a CS degree.

I bet they all wish they knew more than they do... and work at removing that lack of knowledge for themselves.

I am a big fan of education, even of the CS variety, but a degree is one way to get an education, not the only way. And 'change the world' isn't in the textbooks.