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2 month hackathon on a remote tropical island
- AdamTReineke 14y agoBesides being excessive, why?
- Foy 14y agoThere was an article on HN not too long ago about the merits of having the startups office in Hawaii. Something about the beaches... and team building. :)
- keithpowers 14y agoYup. If anyone is interested in hacking and joining a start up incubator on MAUI, please sign up here. Trying to nail down dates. More details soon. http://www.startupmaui.com http://www.startupmaui.com
- hkolk 14y agoI think you mean this one: http://blog.simplehoney.com/how-to-build-a-startup-from-a-beach/ http://blog.simplehoney.com/how-to-build-a-startup-from-a-be... I was looking for it as well :)
- walterheck 14y agoWell, I decided to organise this because I have loads of experience in location independent living and communal living. I have experienced how great it is when you are in a place that makes you feel good, surrounded by people that are smart and motivating. In a luxurious villa on a tropical island, there is no distraction. By having a cook and housekeepers as well, you really don't have to worry about anything but getting shit done :)
- criveros 14y agoThis all sounds amazing, but why only 12 people?
- walterheck 14y agoBecause finding a bigger house is not easy :)
- criveros 14y agoThat's cool, I'll bring my own tent.
- danielharan 14y agoGiven your experience, what locations do you have in mind?
- walterheck 14y agoLooking at Phillipines for now, but any SEA country is in the running. Might end up in Bali or Thailand, who knows..
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]
- jwuphysics 14y agoYou spelled "hackathon" wrong in the title. EDIT: unless it's meant to convey that you "hack a ton" but I'm really not so sure...
- walterheck 14y agoouch! Correcting asap :) EDIT: if only I could get a hold of the guy who has the logo source..
- BlackJack 14y agoThat's a really obvious thing. Did you guys proofread? It's the little slips that make people doubt an organization i.e. "if they missed this tiny detail, then how will they perform on the big things?" I don't mean to be a jerk. Best of luck with your event and everything, but if you're going to plan a 12 week hack vacation for people, then details matter.
- walterheck 14y agoAgreed, and it's pretty dumb. Then again, we weren't aiming for big exposure like this. Also, both of the people involved in this are not native English speakers, can I put that up for a valid excuse? :P
- Inbaraj 14y agoThat's what happens when you design a site at 4am in the morning. But otherwise, we have performed on big things here before so no worries. already corrected the typo :-)
- alextebbs 14y agoIf you're still unable to get a hold of the source, maybe this would help: http://i.imgur.com/u2nVg.png http://i.imgur.com/u2nVg.png I just moved around the pixels in the .png. Working off the native file would probably produce a nicer result. Cheers!
- 14y ago
- wasd 14y agoWhat's the catch? Equity? Price? There isn't such a thing as a free lunch.
- walterheck 14y agoWe're looking into either getting the whole thing sponsored or charging a fee that will cover cost. Our target is not to make a profit, it is to have a great time working with inspiring people.
- bilbobaggie 14y agoWhat's your selection algorithm?
- walterheck 14y agoIt will be partly personal interviews, partly skills. In my previous experiences with communal living i have learned that even the most skilled people can be a total pain in the butt to live with. I wanna avoid that at all cost :)
- reustle 14y agoI'm looking forward to it :)
- JoeCortopassi 14y agoBesides being at the top of HN, what sort of validation does this have as an actual viable event. I mean, can I get a tropical picture with some water, make a simple one page website, and just start harvesting your guys emails to? I'm not trying to be overly negative, it just seems like there is sooo little information being given to be making the top of HN
- walterheck 14y agoYeah, I wasn't expecting this. It's an idea that is in my head that I want to make a reality, but only if there is enough interest. I can promise you I won't do anything with those emails except keep you up to date on what happens next. Now that it seems like there is enough interest, we can go to the next phase: figuring out wether it would be a paid thing or a sponsored thing. Opinions welcome...
- ricardobeat 14y agoYou should offer more than just the trip. Preferably have some mentors/advisors available to the group. There is no point in spending thousands going to a tropical island to do exactly the same you can do at home, that's just spending money on a fake vacation.
- ajasmin 14y agoPaying these mentors would bring up the cost though. Travelling to a remote island and renting a villa doesn't sound cheap to start with.
- walterheck 14y agoYeah, well, that's where things get interesting. These villa's are pretty decently priced, for 500USD/person/month you have something very nice.
- walterheck 14y agoThat is exactly what we hope to achieve, but that all depends on how we shape this idea next..
- bieh 14y agoHey, I'm also trying to hire coders to work on a remote tropical island [1], although for a little longer term than you. Where is this located? I can recommend some places in the Seychelles if you haven't yet decided on a spot :) [1] http://www.reddit.com/r/jobbit/comments/x2x1w/hiring_mobile_app_developer_in_the_tropical/ http://www.reddit.com/r/jobbit/comments/x2x1w/hiring_mobile_...
- walterheck 14y agoMost likely it will be in the Phillipines, but right now that is just a first idea..
- doublec 14y agoHow about Pitcairn Island? You can't get much more remote. Two months fits in fairly well with the supply ship coming and going for transport to/from the island. 12 people would increase the local population by almost 25%!
- terpua 14y agoMy startup is based in PH. Email me if you need help with anything.
- walterheck 14y agoThanks, will do!
- rlocke 14y agoMy company is based in the Philippines. I won't be applying but I'd love to take you and the crew out if you're laid over in Manila for any stretch of time.
- walterheck 14y agoThanks for the invite. We might come to PH to explore our options soon...
- 14y ago
- gruvald 14y agoIf I was on a remote tropical island, that last thing I would want to do is turn on a computer.
- walterheck 14y agoWell, no one's forcing you to come..
- gruvald 14y agoFair enough -- and do know, that I wish you the best, and expect that this will be a lot of fun, and that you will probably produce some cool stuff. It's just that, speaking for myself, I am now Old, and have gone from having a love/love relationship with computers, to a love/hate relationship. Meanwhile, my level of interest in plants and birds and bugs has increased tremendously. So if I were in on a tropical island, I would really want to spend a lot of time with the bugs and the birds and the plants.
- Inbaraj 14y agoYeah I usually go to tropical islands to dive. Walter does the same but for this event, there will be lots and lots of computers! :-)
- adamhoward 14y agoDiving?! 2 months of coding and diving? YES
- i_s 14y agoSounds like a great idea. What is your timeline?
- walterheck 14y agoMost likely we'll aim for late 2012, early 2013. Depends on how things develop from here..
- tferris 14y agoHow is the Internet there?
- walterheck 14y agoSince 'there' isn't defined yet, I don't know yet. But rest assured that it will be one of the primary things we base our choice for a house on..
- mr12 14y ago12 weeks on a remote tropical island, luxurious villa, 12 geniuses... a cook and housekeeper.. airfare.. time away from current projects... that sounds like a pretty hefty price tag per genius if it's a paid event. I think you may have trouble finding hackers to sign up when the reality sets in. I'd recommend you get to work finding serious sponsors because right now it sounds like a nice dream. Good luck good sir.
- walterheck 14y agoThanks. We are fully aware it might be too expensive for people to cough up all the dough. Preliminary research show that a house for 12 people doesn't have to cost more then 500USD/person/month though. With a bit of smart marketing it should be possible to find some people interested to sponsor this..
- TimJRobinson 14y agoI was thinking it'd be just like a startup incubator but instead of getting paid $20k for 5 to 10% you get to go here and get paid $10k
- walterheck 14y agoI want to try to stay away from the incubator model. Find a way to get there, hack, go home with good memories.
- lukego 14y agoI've done some tropical island hacking (solo) and it worked really well for me. The longest I did was 3 weeks on Koh Phi Phi in Thailand. I had a nice discrete problem: write Forth drivers for all the interesting hardware in a little ARM SoC. Blog at the time: http://goo.gl/V9qGx http://goo.gl/V9qGx I can say that: Finding a place to sleep, entertainment (snorkel, scuba, etc), and food were all easy problems. Finding a place to work can be harder: power, internet, quiet, table/desk all in one place. (Maybe you need to borrow a house?) Three weeks was enough for me: then I wanted a dose of civilization and city life, hard though this was to imagine on day #1. Maybe it's different with more people. Can you start simple, with just a few people and lasting until they get bored, and scale it up gradually perhaps?
- walterheck 14y agoWe'll see. I did a three month thing like this, and was sad when it ended. That was all about the people we were with though, that made the world of difference. And we had time during the weekends to get away.
- suyash 14y agoWho is going to take care of my day job..another idea #fail!
- walterheck 14y agoor you should grow a pair, quit and follow your dreams ;)
- kahfei 14y agoHave you consider Penang island, it is not really isolated or exotic, but we have beautiful beaches here, and when you need a dose of civilization, it is just within 30 minutes driving distance, there are quite a few big companies here like Dell, Intel, Motolora. Standard of living is cheap. The island been ranked by Yahoo! Travel as one of the "10 Islands to Explore Before You Die". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penang http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penang Hope I didn't sound too much like a salesman already.
- walterheck 14y agoPenang is an option for sure.
- Inbaraj 14y agoNoooooooooooo Walter! It's too close to my parents :-p
- deepGem 14y agoPenang is definitely a good option. Though I haven't been there heard a ton of good things and it's just a stone's throw from the mainland. +1. Accommodation and food is relatively inexpensive in Malaysia.
- kahfei 14y agoThanks for the +1. And I haven't mentioned the great food in Penang, Penang Laksa ranked 7th in the 50 most delicious foods in the world...http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/worlds-50-most-delicious-foods-067535?page=0,1 http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/eat/worlds-50-most-delicio....
- dualogy 14y agoAlso famous for housing the Hacker Monthly magazine headquarters :)
- tedunangst 14y agoSad. OpenBSD popularized the term hackathon, but OS developers aren't invited...
- walterheck 14y ago_everyone_ is invited, as long as you can make it clear that you won't be slacking off, and you are a nice person :)
- Inbaraj 14y agoJust sign up and include your expertise in the "additional info" box. We just wanted to quickly put up a simple form. If you can hack something, you can join ;-)
- keithpowers 14y agoGreat to see the interest. If anyone is interested in hacking and joining a start up incubator on MAUI, please sign up here. http://www.startupmaui.com http://www.startupmaui.com
- milep 14y agoIs this only for singles and those who are willing to be apart from spouses for 2 months? I'd love to go to some remote location to work for few months, but I need to take my better half with me.
- walterheck 14y agoIf he/she can make themselves useful, you're welcome to sign up both of you. But rest assured that competition for this will be tough, so it might not be easy. Just that it's not excluded from being an option, that's all :)
- Inbaraj 14y agoBy the way guys, there's nothing set in stone yet. We're trying to put together an awesome event for all of us to benefit. Please send in your ideas/suggestions :-)
- crdoconnor 14y agoI've did this (alone) for a while. The things I discovered: * Mosquitoes really, really suck the fun and productivity out of sitting on a tropical beach coding. * To a lesser extent, so does sunburn. * Finding somewhere comfortable to sit in shade is crucial, and harder than you'd think, and lying is out (appealing though it may be). * The ideal place to work was a beachside bar, without standing pools of water close by (attracting mosquitoes), that was quiet, serving coffee and wifi. Often hard to find, though. * Lack of wifi was sometimes a plus, provided it was never too far away. It's easier to focus on coding without Internet access. In the end, my favorite tropical location to write code in was Singapore. The beach is overrated :)
- renas 14y agoSimilar concept here but for a business model instead of a hackathon: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4306223 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4306223
- willish 14y agoDue to the level of publicity around this, a crowd-funded approach could be pretty successful. Backers could also help vote on project ideas etc. What is the goal, to have everyone hack on a single project? or just provide a space for people to work on their own stuff? All in all a very cool idea, hope you can make it happen!
- davewasthere 14y agoWow. You guys made the news here in the UK. http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19018930 http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19018930
- maebert 14y agoI'm actually very intrigued, I just booked a flight to Indonesia to spent a month or so hacking / designing for myself in Bali, but doing this with others sounds like a much better plan. Any details on the schedule yet?