How to Start Learning Code

BY Roger Huang

This open story on learning code was originally posted on Code.org’s blog.

It is about Gili Rusak, a girl who developed an Android app to help younger girls learn code. If that inspires you to learn, join our mailing list of coding and entrepreneurship resources.

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Earlier in her high school career, Gili developed an Android app called Codester which helps kids learn computer science. This year, the high school junior received NCWIT funding and partnered with Girls Inc. to host coding workshops for elementary- and middle-school girls!

Tell us about your app.

Codester is a level-based game app that aims to teach young students or novice programmers computational thinking and computer science concepts. I ran math outreach programs for several years and one day I thought, “why not computer science too?”

Why computer science?

The first time that I ran a prototype of my app on an actual smartphone was extremely rewarding! When you see the finished product it is sometimes easy to forget the hundreds of lines of code that go into making the app itself work. But when you develop the app yourself, you see the code and the outcome.

Programming is such a useful and empowering tool and I am so happy that I have gotten into it.

Programming is such a useful and empowering tool and I am so happy that I have gotten into it.

What is it like teaching younger girls computer science?

The younger students teach me at the same time as I teach them. I’m amazed when 7-year-olds are utilizing the app that I had made!

I found that at a young age, the gender and race barriers melt. This is a great age to engage girls and get their attention for the subject. They will grow up with the idea that computer science is for them. In my programs, the girls taught the boys, students interacted with one another, and the collaboration was excellent.

Learning with code(love)

Do you have any advice for students who don’t know how to start learning to code?

# 1 – Start simple: take an introductory course first, either through Code.org or other courses on the Internet. Computer science is a lot of fun. It’s very rewarding to get your first program working, even if all it does is read, “Hello World!”.

# 2 – Don’t hesitate to ask questions if you don’t fully understand.

# 3 – Know that computer science is very multidisciplinary. For example, when I first began developing Codester, I did not imagine how much art, creative thought and user consultation I would have to do. No matter what you’re into, understanding of computer science will help.

Technology and Society

It’s time to build a better web.

BY Roger Huang

“Revealing the previously unfathomable reach of U.S. spies has led, for the first time since 9/11, to Americans saying they are more worried about civil liberties abuses than terrorism.”

Thank you Edward Snowden, Thomas Drake, William Binney, Laura Poitras, Chelsea Manning, and so many others.

The Constitution of the United States begins with the three words that shook the world, and continues to write out its legacy throughout: “We the people”.

Faced with one of the greatest gifts for scientific innovation, and sustainable creation—an open and free web—the governments of the world have collectively failed where the people can succeed.

It’s time to stop venting about outrage after outrage—and time to take action. It starts with one click below. Protect yourself, and declare you belief in the transformative potential of an open, free web dedicated to a better world.

It is time to rebuild the web into what it always should have been: a place where the artist could build with the dissident who could build with the scientist—openly, and freely.

Reset the Net with code(love)

Open Stories

Why learning code is so important—and how I learned.

BY Roger Huang

Learning code is critical to understanding how the digital economy of the future will work. Much as we learn writing to instil in us the ability to relate to the perspectives of others, coding serves as a portal to understanding the logic that dictates the flow of information back and forth between different agents: the underpinning of the 21st century.

Learn code with code(love)

I began to learn code by working with a technical team at my previous startup ThoughtBasin. I’d say the process began with a natural curiosity towards peering at their screens, and then talks with them about the logic of code, and then applying that into practice with gamified platforms for learning code such as CodeAcademy.

The one piece of advice to all of those on the fence looking in I’d give is to start now. There’s no reason to delay.

Sign up for my newsletter for entrepreneurship and code resources if this inspired you to learn.

Life Hacking

The key to success: build simply.

BY Roger Huang

When I first built, the first thing that came to mind were the complex machinations of my vision all coming together at once. I saw the intricacies of everything I ever imagined come alive: and it was wonderful.

Wonderfully flawed.

If I were to go back to those neophyte days, the first thing I would’ve told myself would be to build simply.

You don’t need a grand platform to test out your basic business idea. You don’t need a full-service platform that helps your user from A to Z to start helping them out at A. In fact, the reason why startups in the digital age have succeeded so often is because they will choose the path of least resistance to test their ideas. Way before Netflix became an online behemoth, Reed Hastings was mailing people video cassettes to prove that people did want to rent videos on a monthly-fee basis.

This is what Facebook looked like at the beginning.

This is the basis of the lean philosophy that defines the startup movement: minimalize waste between point A and point B.

Had I known this, I would’ve saved a lot of time and money on my first failed startup. I think it’s a great philosophy to have beyond just startups: keep things simple for yourself and others. Build something out the easiest way possible, so you can learn, and experiment quicker.

A lot of people have commented on the fact that this blog is run on the default WordPress theme, and urged me to change it. I have adamantly refused to do so. I am using this as a platform to learn about how to display content, people are reading the content, and people are signing up to the mailing list. It is a perfectly functional platform that serves a very simple purpose, and serves it well. Why fix what isn’t broken?

You don’t win bonus points for building the most complex system, or for using more words when less would have sufficed. You win when you build something simple, iterate on top of it, and watch as your learning turns your idea from something in your head, to something used by millions.

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Open News

How to build a mobile application, through hell and high water.

BY Roger Huang

This is an open story submitted by the founder of Padel Tennis Pro. We’re always looking for stories like this: ping us at [email protected] if you have them.

Join our mailing list to learn how to build as he has.

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Padel Tennis Pro was intended to be a cheap, three-month endeavor to build a new mobile game. With gameplay mechanics not totally dissimilar to the early 2000s classic ‘Curveball’ – how hard could it be?

Padel Tennis Pro with code(love)

Nineteen months, five fired developers, one rushed Kickstarter campaign, one AppStore rejection, many sleepless nights and an international political crisis later…. and… it’s finally ready.

For the growing number of people who are planning to outsource the development of an app to a freelancer, let this be a warning. It is not as easy as it seems. Companies on freelancing websites such as elance and oDesk regularly tout example portfolios, which in reality they had nothing to do with. They make promises which they certainly don’t intend to keep. My first set of developers did precisely this; laying shoddy foundations that would continue to plague the project almost two years later.

Don’t be put off though. Plan your project carefully and with the right team, it could well become that huge success that you were hoping for. Here are some lessons that should help you along that dangerous path to achieving your grand vision, lessons I have learned the hard way:

#1: Fixed Price Contracts

A fixed price project is not anywhere near as safe as it may seem. In principle this seems like a great deal: you put funds in escrow and only release them when the code reaches certain milestones.

However, there is serious information asymmetry at work here and developers will frequently refuse to continue until you release early milestones. They will insist that they have done work “behind the scenes” that you can’t see yet. They will assure you that it is hidden in existing code. Obviously, the disputed work hasn’t been done, but by the time you find out, it is too late!

As the project continues to progress the power balance swings in their favour as your committed investment increases and their knowledge of the code becomes a unique asset. Developers are aware of this and some will leverage this fact. They will refuse to continue on a fixed price basis, and request that you switch to a pay per hour project— this happened to me three times with three separate developers throughout the course of this project. At this stage, you need to decide if the cost of paying someone else to get up to speed with your existing source code will be less than the additional likely cost of an hourly job. Not an easy decision to make.

#2: Sub-outsourcing

A company says it is based in a certain location, or even has an office in that location, but beware: it does not mean that your work will actually be carried out in that location. Twice during the course of this project, the company that I was paying to complete the app were little more than middlemen. They subsequently outsource the work of actually building your mobile application to freelancers that they don’t actually employ, usually based in other countries where the cost is lower. They take their slice of the fee, the outsourcing website takes a fee and you are left unsure who is actually doing your work, their level of skill and even in what legal jurisdiction they are operating in.

Without delving into exact detail, being subjected to several layers of outsourcing meant that my project crossed the Russian/Ukrainian border at a time of extreme political tension between the two countries. It was an interesting scenario and not one I would wish upon anyone else.

Maidan with code(love)

#3: Aim for a MVP

A common theme for those planning to outsource an app is to plan out a grand end-product. This is time consuming and expensive. Instead, I would recommend starting out with a clear vision of your minimum viable product (MVP) and aiming for that. This will allow you to get it out to market faster and cheaper, ultimately checking whether this mobile application is something that the market actually wants. If there is demand, you can add features at a later date.

#4: Learn some code

Having already released many apps, some of which I had made entirely myself, I was in a position where I knew about the technical process behind creating a mobile game. With that said, my knowledge of the game engine being used to create Padel Tennis Pro was next to zero. At one point, one freelancer spent three days, at $35/hr, adding a simple animated shark fin to the background of one of the levels. Had I known more code, I would have noticed he was ripping me off. Had I known more, I also would have been able to point out to him that the shark fin would also be moving in the wrong direction without having to wait three days to test the build to find that out.

Learn code with code(love)

There is no protection offered by the freelancing websites for outsourcers using an hourly pay method. If the developer spends his time badly building your mobile application, that is your problem and you need to foot the bill. You will note that the backwards shark fin did not end up making it into Padel Tennis Pro v1.0 🙂

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Overall, while the project clearly had its up and downs and was a great learning experience, it also took a lot more time and resources than I had expected. A rule of thumb that I now advocate is to triple your initial cost expectations and timeline and then halve the number of features that you want when you want to build a mobile application. That will provide a more accurate picture of how the project will likely pan out!

You can find the game here: www.georiot.co/padel

Open News

PrinttoPeer connects 3D Printing to the Web

BY Roger Huang

This is an interview with PrinttoPeer co-founder Tom Bielecki. Support them on Indiegogo! Learn to build like they have by joining our mailing list.

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What is the ultimate long-term vision behind PrinttoPeer, the moment where you begin to dominate your field?

It’s really about accessibility: making it easy for a consumer to use 3D printers, and building the vehicle for software developers to ship objects instantly from their app to any 3D printer.

Can you walk me through what the experience would be like of an average user using PrintToPeer? Do you have any particularly good use cases you’d like to bring up?

I was taking the train home from work one day and forgot my cufflinks, so I pulled out my phone and pressed print. It was sitting on the 3D printer when I got there.

My friend wanted to send me a surprise gift, so I let him share my account, and he started printing something on my 3D printer right away. It was like skype, or teleportation! I couldn’t tell what it was until the print was almost finished, it was an upgraded part for the 3D printer.

Why did the founding team choose this particular project, and what particular insights do they have that they think everybody else is missing?

We have been building 3D printers for three years and the print process has always been challenging. People were building hardware solutions to software problems, like using SD cards to transfer files. Because we’re software developers we knew that 3D printers needed networking ability because then you could print remotely, even from other apps.

What are some of the interesting developments with regards to traction?

People see this as the missing piece of the puzzle for 3D printing, so we’re really excited by all of the support from the community. On Indiegogo we launched a crowdfunding campaign on May 2nd, and we just passed our target of $15,000. Everyone has been asking if we will open source the software so we’ve decided to add this as a stretch goal for continued support.

Sum up why PrintToPeer is so cool—in one line.

It’s magic…science fiction in real life.

Print to Peer with code(love)

Technology and Society

Extreme irony, NSA edition.

BY Roger Huang

“[They] stole sensitive, internal communications that would provide a competitor, or adversary in litigation, with insight into the strategy and vulnerabilities of the American entity.”-The United States Department of Justice indicting five Chinese officials for “cyber-espionage” for economic reasons.

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“A new report based on leaks by Edward Snowden reveals the National Security Agency played a role in the monitoring of a U.S. law firm that represented the Indonesian government during trade disputes with the United States. The document notes the Australian agency “has been able to continue to cover the talks, providing highly useful intelligence for interested U.S. customers.”

Longform Reflections

Why startup founders should learn code

BY Roger Huang

This post was originally featured on The Coder Factory by Dan Siepan. They’re about evangelizing code just like we are, and they’re awesome.

If this inspires you, join our mailing list to get resources to code.

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It has been evident after building my own startup and reading so many resources that learning to code is an important skill to learn. Many people learn programming as a means of becoming a programmer, but I am going to tell you that learning to code isn’t just important for any web developer, but should be learnt by any person who wants to run a successful business.

Here are the three main reasons why learning code is vital for any business venture.

1. Save Money, Save Time

How much work is required to change the whole template of the website?

How much will it cost to re-do the men’s clothing page of the site?

These are all too common questions when someone wants to run a business. Such a big part of any success is the ability to have a great website application. Often startups hire a contractor in the aim to save time for the entrepreneur and say, ‘someone is covering all my technological bases’. This is a trend that needs to be re-evaluated. The power of being able to make any adjustments from slight to a big re-development of the site, costs big time and big money, for which you would need to pay your developer. And soon you will realise you have very little capital for anything else. Learning code, won’t just save you time and money, but will help you better understand your product or service.

Learn code with code(love)

2. Better problem solving skills and approaches

“The Programmers of Tomorrow are the Wizards of the Future” – Gabe Newell (Valve)

Whilst learning to program is very similar to learning a foreign language for the first time, it will soon become a universal language. Knowing how to code will not only enhance your skills but will make yourself the problem solver of tomorrow. It will put you ahead of the game.

I have come such a long way in learning to code. This was done through the process of building a social network for DJs (my startup) and loving every bit of learning and being in control of doing it. It’s so exciting to know that this little thing could go on to potentially change the world of DJs booking gigs and growing a fan base.

I have already been faced with a few challenges but knowing code helped immensely. I have implemented some changes, and do you know what the best part is? I didn’t pay anyone to solve the problem. The skills that you gain are yours. I will most certainly keep you guys updated with my startup and coding progress.

Learn code with code(love)

3. The ease and increased chance of raising capital

You won’t believe the amount of startup accelerator programs or investors asking whether or not you have programmers as co-founders of the business. If you don’t believe me, look up any startup accelerator programs or even network investors and they will most likely raise the question whether or not you know how to program.

Now that you’re thinking that you should learn code, or at least give it a shot, you should try out free online resources like CodeAcademy.

Whilst CodeAcademy is a great platform, to run a successful startup business you need to enrol in either a bootcamp or code intensive course.

Keep calm and learn code with code(love)

You should enquire at The Coder Factory where we run part-time courses, 6 hours a week, where it can fit around your schedule at any time, where you don’t have to put your social life or startup on hold just to learn code.

Until next time my rad viewers, Peace ☺

Longform Reflections

How to found a startup when you don’t know a line of code

BY Roger Huang

As a non-technical founder, I did the worst thing possible. I created a founding team composed of other non-technical founders.

I didn’t know it at the time, but it was the death knell for my startup. It wasn’t because we got into arguments or we essentially had overlapping roles: no, it was simply the fact that none of us knew what we were doing.

It’s a problem that resonates often with people who are struggling to get into the startup scene as I once was. I’ve seen so many startups drift because their founders had no clue of what to do. All of these drifters tend to search relentlessly for the programmer of their dreams, as if in one fell swoop their inability to understand technology will be okay because, from the first grunt they hire, a team of grunts will be able to replicate out and do all of the work for them—forever until some imagined IPO for their technology startup.

It’s a problem. 90% of all small businesses fail in the first two years, and I’d wager the high failure rate with technology startups is based on the fact that so many who start these companies don’t properly appreciate their role in building out their idea.

Having lived through the experience myself, I’ve managed to snag some insights that can change the situation for the better.

1– There is no programmer who will save you from ignorance.

The wunderkind who will take on your idea and do everything for you? You’re never going to be able to attract that type if you have no idea what you’re talking about. Engineers are highly attuned to the sort of “let’s change the fields for the registration process, it should only take ten seconds!” talk that implies you know little about technology.

Even if you do somehow find somebody who is good enough to understand your idea figments and is able to translate them into crisp, actionable code, your work process will be affected because you won’t really know how to communicate efficiently with them and vice versa. You’ll never get exactly what you wanted if you don’t understand the rudiments of what your engineer is working with.

You don’t have to become an expert overnight, but there’s no excuse for not trying to cover the basics. Here’s a list of 31 free resources to get you started, and a newsletter focused on learning code. Start now, it’ll help!

No, he’s not coming to save you.

2-You don’t even need a programmer to start testing your idea.

Surprise surprise! People get hung up on this notion that they need a bells-and-whistle online platform with all of the amenities for them to test their idea. That’s totally false. Lean and agile development have smashed that notion, and entrepreneurs have been testing their ideas out shoestring even before all that. Netflix started as a mailing service for DVDs that shipped your content physically—they only started to get on the Internet because they knew it was coming, but by then, they had already garnered a huge amount of subscriptions, so they knew their original hypothesis was correct: people would be willing to pay to access content on-demand and avoid dealing with video shops.

They didn’t need a web platform to do that. Figure out what your idea is actually testing, and test it yourself. Do you think people need an easier way to order dog food? Find forums where dog owners congregate, and ask them.

You don’t even have to mail them goods by mail. You can use a service like Unbounce: create a great landing page, and then collect emails to show that people care about what you’re selling.

A mailing list of thousands of people will help you spread your idea that much faster, and convince the star programmers you want to work with that you are their man. It will be the first sign of social proof and traction that your idea works. You’ll be the business man that can convince people to buy into an idea online, an invaluable trait engineers will be looking for.

An Unbounce-made landing page with code(love)

3-Get involved with the startup scene. Read, connect, and collaborate.

While you work on how to get a digital following, you should also increase your value as a startup founder by devouring as much as you can about startups and technology. Read through The Next Web and similar outlets, follow tech influencers such as Tim O’Reilly, read through Startup Communities, Lean Startup and Lean Analytics and other books on startups, just swallow it all up, and immerse yourself in this world. Go to the next meetup, meet the people in your startup community, and start building out a network.

The startup community works on the principle of “pay it forward”, so don’t be shy asking for help, and coffees from established influencers: more likely than not, they’ll say yes, in the hopes that you’ll do the same when you are faced with someone seeking advice. This is how a community grows strong: through collaboration. Embrace it.

Startup community with code(love)

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Founding a startup is already difficult. You can make it easier for yourself by learning what I have struggled through failure to appreciate. We all have the capacity to build something meaningful, with or without technical knowledge: now it’s up to you to step up, and prove you can build, while embracing the new knowledge and people who will form an integral part of your new venture.

If this inspired you to learn code, and build something great, join our mailing list.

Open News

A Million Meals Free for Children

BY Roger Huang

The following is an interview with I Can Go Without‘s Paul Rowland on their collaboration with OnexOne for the Million Meals Campaign.

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I can go without with code(love)

1-Give me a short summary of Million Meals Campaign and the OneXOne Foundation.

The Million Meals Campaign has been created to raise awareness about food insecurity in North America—there’s a lot of kids going to school without the necessary nutrition for them to start the day. In the Northern Territories of Canada, food prices are ridiculously high: bottled water can cost around $88 and a cabbage comes in at $28.

Onexone managed to create a solution to help solve this problem. They pulled together various sponsors that supply food and logistics, the money they raise goes towards this, so the actual cost to deliver a healthy breakfast to one child is one dollar.

2-What I Can Go Without do, and how are you helping with the campaign? What sort of impact do you see yourselves making?

I Can Go Without has been chosen as the official partner and fund-raising platform for the event and subsequent fundraising after the event.

We are the only organization that gives 100% of donations to the charity, no strings , no gimmicks.

We believe in projecting positive messages of success stories via our mobile application and web platform. We provide transparency and explain how your dollars are spent, keeping donors informed with updates. We strive to monitor and share open source knowledge about charities’ fundraising activities so we can gauge how efficiently they spend their money.

Our key message is that you can make a difference with tiny acts, like skipping a coffee or sharing a lunch. That small act can actually provide around one week of health breakfasts for a school kid who needs it most.

Our network amplifies the message via friends and colleagues, so that a solitary act of charity suddenly gets pushed by the micro-donation (butterfly) effect.

We hope to build positive habits into the every day lives of conscious consumers who wish to make a difference in the world, but had previously struggled to feel that their efforts made a difference.

I Can Go Without App with code(love)

3-What sort of engagement have you already gotten? How did you get Simple Plan and Kardinal to sign on?

Onexone have had support from major stars at their shows over the years including the likes of Larren HIll and Bono. Kardinal is a regular supporter of Onexone and their great causes.

For Simple Plan, we just reached out to friends and family around the music industry to search for possible acts and since I used to be in the music industry for many years, I was able to contact Simple Plan and pitch the Million Meals concept. So far we have had great support from Kardinal and Simple Plan, they are really doing their bit to talk about the cause. They have reached out to their fan bases and the excitement is building, tickets are getting few and far between, but we do have some special tickets available for your readers who are from Ontario. They can claim some at www.icgw.io/millionmeals.

Simple Plan with code(love)

4-Is this something you’re looking to replicate—any future plans along a similar vein?

Yes, we are currently in talks and actively working on some big concepts that are planned for 2014 and 2015, these shows will be major scale shows with crowds of up to 200,000 people. The main thing is you wont be able to attend the party unless you’re giving back or helping in some way—we’ll keep you posted on that.

5-Leave me with why I must read about this campaign.

You must read about this because the future of giving is evolving, and there will come a time when giving back is like doing recycling—it’s gonna be in our daily habits. We will be informed, empowered, and connected, these types of communities will be mobilized to solved problems via various forms of actions like advocacy, donations or volunteering.

We can no longer rely on governments or massive NGO’s to take on the challenge themselves, its our turn to all take responsibility, and I Can Go Without is the new wave of that conscious consumer action!