shepbook
Elm is a nice functional frontend language that compiles to JS, which you'll need for web apps.
Elixir is a very good and solid functional backend language that is good for general purpose programming, as well as web app programming (via Phoenix) and embedded (via Nerves).
Both of those languages are functional and focused on developer productivity and have some very good tooling around them.
There is also something to be said for building a v1 MVP to prove product/market fit, and then build an entirely separate v2 that is refined to what you have learned.
Also, many sailors on industrial boats that I've seen have beards, so I'd suspect that it was a consideration in it's design and probably why the tube is there, instead of just a mask, like the yellow plunger thing.
On the back office side, we collect information from the travelers that the advisors can use to help them start discussions and not waste time with multiple exploratory meetings.
Keep at it. The feeling when it's finally over is great.
For responsive layout, I highly recommend Gridism. It's simple and lightweight.
1) The logic/functions needed in each "black box" still need to be written. How is that handled? Is that where the line of "programmer vs non-programmer" is crossed?
2) Programming is, more or less, the skill of breaking down a problem into the parts needed for its solution and providing the solution. The value of a programmer isn't the ability to type in code, so much as the ability to logically break down the problem and solve it. How would such a programming paradigm actually solve that problem?
A Wholly Immersive Dev Environment
As for the "gap", this is simple. Start a business. If you're going to be making and selling mobile apps, you'll want a basic corporate entity behind you anyways. Now, instead of being "unemployed guy building apps" you're "Founder of Mobile App Development Consultancy" or something along those lines.
Given what you stated about not liking the corporate world, that's completely understandable. I certainly prefer smaller companies, even startup, bootstrapping level ones. J2EE and .NET aren't strongly used outside of the big enterprise-y corporate world. Given your experience with Java, I'd say you might find Clojure to be a great move and still be able to leverage your Java past.
Go for it! Get yourself an LLC or similar and build some apps. If you have 5+ years of financial runway, you should certainly be able to find something self-sustaining in that time. :)
Jump and don't look back!
Ask HN: What Git features would you like to know more about?
Hey HN!What parts of Git do you wish you knew more about? Anything from things you've looked at but not grokked to cool things you've heard about and you'd like to know more about.I've done Git training (on-site and web-based live classes) and I'd like to create some tutorials and such that are more asynchronous.So, what would you like to learn more about?
Grid(ism) - robust, practical, and easy-to-grok responsive CSS grid.
I taught myself Rails in about a month and then joined a Startup Weekend event. It made me realize just how much I _could_ do.
I too went the "freelance" route. I didn't have the experience of taking it on as a "side project". I was fired from my job and, rather than do the job search grind, I found it easier and better to do contract work on a "freelance" basis.
I'm still figuring it all out, but the important part is that I've learned just how valuable and capable I am. All it took was making that leap and pushing myself outside my comfort zone.
Unlike most people, it seems, I actually do suggest quitting your job. Get a handful of months of savings (if possible) first, and then make the jump. It's hard work, but it's worth it.
I liken a diverse company to what we see in biology. Diverse colonies of organisms tend to be far more resilient to hardship than homogeneous groups and lead to far greater overall success.
Diversity - More than meets the eye.
Then again, maybe that's just me...
Ask HN: What is the greatest pain point you feel when hiring someone?
I'm interested in what the worst part of the hiring process is, from the employer's side. What's something you wish could be changed?I've recently heard about how finding talent is one of the most important, yet difficult things a startup has to face. I'd like to investigate how technology might be leveraged to help this. So...What pain points do you need alleviated to make your hiring life...
"Allowing the standard of quality to be set by the buyer, rather than the builder, is what we call the flight from excellence. A market-derived quality standard seems to make good sense only as long as you ignore the effect on the builder's attitude and effectiveness.
In the long run, market-based quality costs more. The lesson here is,
Quality, far beyond that required by the end user, is a means to higher productivity."
Github: $7/mo for 5 repos, unlimited collaborators.
Bitbucket: $0/mo for unlimited repos, 5 collaborators max. Then, it starts at $10/mo for 10 collaborators and continues at a tiered rate of $1/mo per collaborator until you hit $200/month. Only then is it unlimited on collaborators.
I, for one, applaud Hacker Monthly's response and actions. Had they pointed out their sending a DMCA takedown notice, I would have lost respect for them. You're doing the right thing. Stay the course! We're behind you all the way.