5 ms·

I don't doubt your experience but you've attended one event and are telling people to avoid it despite the fact they organize hundred of events all over the wor

by ohashi 14y ago

I don't doubt your experience but you've attended one event and are telling people to avoid it despite the fact they organize hundred of events all over the world. Each one has it's own organizers and compositions. They even focus on different topics (edu/gov/general/maybe more?). I've attended Startup Weekends and been an organizer (so you know my bias). But I've met lots of good developers at these events. Startup Weekend is more friendly towards non-technical people than any other hackathon I've been to. But that's also part of the appeal. It could be detrimental if any group isn't represented well enough or is over represented. But don't let that dissuade people from trying it out. If you're really worried, bring a technical friend, worst case scenario, you get to hack on something with a buddy for a weekend. You seem a bit disappointed because of the outcome instead of focusing on what you got to do during the weekend. What did you work on? Did you learn anything? Did you make any new friends/connections? Did you get some new ideas that translate to something else you're working on?

guelo 14y ago
Why the hell do they call it a hackathon if it is not a hacker-only event? The only thing that happens at a marathon is running. They should come up with their own description and stop trying to trick hackers into showing up.
- dickeytk 14y ago
  I was the one that referred to it as a hackathon, not them. They call it an 'event'.
- adam206 14y ago
  That's funny. I work at Startup Weekend, and one of the few bullet points in our "Core Values" doc is: "We are not a hackathon."
pnathan 14y ago
Hackathons don't happen in my area, but I can assure you, I am not particularly interested in hacking on biz-dev ideas. I'd far prefer to put together a booting OS or a minimal VCS or ... (other technical idea not salable).
blhack 14y ago
Well, anecdotal evidence, but plenty of my friends who have experienced startup weekend summarized it as follows: "Seeking technical cofounder!"
adastra 14y ago
Please see my comment above. The event was run by the CEO of Startup Weekend, so I don't think I'm misrepresenting the organization.

by ohashi 14y ago

guelo 14y ago

Why the hell do they call it a hackathon if it is not a hacker-only event? The only thing that happens at a marathon is running. They should come up with their own description and stop trying to trick hackers into showing up.

dickeytk 14y ago
I was the one that referred to it as a hackathon, not them. They call it an 'event'.
adam206 14y ago
That's funny. I work at Startup Weekend, and one of the few bullet points in our "Core Values" doc is: "We are not a hackathon."

pnathan 14y ago

Hackathons don't happen in my area, but I can assure you, I am not particularly interested in hacking on biz-dev ideas. I'd far prefer to put together a booting OS or a minimal VCS or ... (other technical idea not salable).

blhack 14y ago

Well, anecdotal evidence, but plenty of my friends who have experienced startup weekend summarized it as follows: "Seeking technical cofounder!"

adastra 14y ago

Please see my comment above. The event was run by the CEO of Startup Weekend, so I don't think I'm misrepresenting the organization.