Show HN: C0D3 – A free, interactive site to learn coding

songzme | 261 points

Last year, I mentored a few students who are learning coding to become a software engineer from non-traditional backgrounds. Rather than encouraging them to leetcode and practice for interviews, I taught them software engineering practices and mentored them to build c0d3.com together as a team. c0d3.com will be a free learning site where other students like them can learn coding and then help improve the site. As a senior engineer, I made sure to not write any code myself and focused on helping them with code reviews, architecture questions, and holding sprint meetings every Monday at 9:30pm. We document our daily sprint updates here: https://github.com/garageScript/c0d3-app/wiki/Sprint-H1-2020

To get beta users for our app, we started a free coding group at our local libraries and got a few dozen active users: https://www.meetup.com/San-Jose-C0D3/

I am pretty happy with the outcome and the code quality. The students wrote unit tests with every pull request, listened to feedback, and achieved 100% code coverage in the codebase. Now, after some user feedback and iterations we are ready to give a preview of what we worked on. Any feature suggestions / feedback will become learning opportunities for the next generation of students.

Last month, a rec opened up on my team and I was able to hire one of these students. If I could hire all of them, I would. If anyone here is hiring, please consider hiring these awesome students who worked hard to make c0d3.com possible (I've listed their code contributions and linkedIn profiles): https://github.com/garageScript/c0d3-app/wiki

songzme | 4 years ago

As a student here, I can say the learning experience has been like no other!

I am a self-taught developer going on 5+ years of online self-study. After the virus and lockdown hit, I managed to find c0d3.

What makes c0d3 different from other platforms like freeCodeCamp, CodeAcademy, Udemy, etc.?

I feel that here at c0d3 we focus more on community and helping one another out than anywhere else. Learning to code (particularly as a beginner) can be a very daunting and lonely task at times.

The learning structure is very unique in that you are forced to get your hands on code immediately and use practical skills (using git, etc.) to submit challenges and continue down the curriculum path. After each submission, your code is then peer-reviewed by another student who has already passed that particular section you are on.

Among all these amazing aspects that c0d3 brings to the table, I believe the most prominent one is the ability to work on real-world projects (such as c0d3 itself) as a student, in an actual engineering team comprised of other students and learners such as yourself.

This experience has by far eclipsed any other I have had anywhere else during my self-studying journey!

coltonje95 | 4 years ago

All: much of this thread has been arguing about the definition of the word 'engineer'. That's not interesting in HN's sense of the word, and it's a shame not to be discussing the specifics of this project. Since that word 'engineer' seems to be so activating, I've taken it out of the title. Please comment out of curiosity going forward.

dang | 4 years ago

man, we definitely need more initiatives like this, the pandemic ended my small business and I no longer have a source of income. learning programming is my only hope at this moment and I'm sure there are more people in the same situation. A free and dedicated course to the community is all we need right now. Please count on me for anything you need and I can collaborate. Already signed up!

rmelhem | 4 years ago

shameless plug: If you want an editor/IDE for JS without installation and with Linux shell, try https://webide.se/ you get access to a dedicated server where you can run Docker, Android emulator, etc. Useful when you are on a Chromebook that don't have Linux support, or want to code on a mobile phone or tablet ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

z3t4 | 4 years ago

# Why Learn JS?

JavaScript is the only language that lets you do every aspect of technology.

This is misleading at best.

lquist | 4 years ago

I learned how to code using c0d3.com and it has helped me find a job. c0d3 gave me the fundamentals of full stack development both the technicals skills along with critical thinking skills. I was previously a developer on the c0d3.com team

saumya665 | 4 years ago

The best part about C0d3 is the community of supportive ppl you’ll meet. When faced with what might feel like a dead end, you’ll never feel like it’s time to give up because there’s always going to be either Song or someone else there to help guide you through it.

C0d3 was way more helpful for me in learning programming than a college room filled with hundreds of students, and only one professor and a limited # of TAs to help.

Thanks to Song & C0d3, I’ve developed the strong foundation of engineering I needed to land multiple Developer Advocate roles.

10/10 would recommend lol.

seemcat | 4 years ago
[deleted]
| 4 years ago

I appreciate the approach where you combine a text chat with an online course, though feels a bit strange that the content is on notion.so.

Contentwise, I have the feeling that there are at least 3 distinct skill sets with ~ 10% overlap for a swe career: Passing coding interviews, actual software engineering, climbing the corporate ladder. There is certainly a web comic for that.

crudgen | 4 years ago

This appears to be focused almost entirely on Javascript outside of the html/css/databases portion.

Curious if there are plans to expand it into python or other languages.

beckingz | 4 years ago

I was once a proud member of this community, learned all basics and built my career with help of this coding community.After one working and learning with all folks in this community I landed up with three job offers. Today I am a happy software engineer in Silicon Valley, I want to see more people changing there lives just like me. Proud of your work team.

madhusudhan1994 | 4 years ago

A link on the home page for how business can access your talent pool would be nice.

edoceo | 4 years ago

I was under the impression that the website was interactive, but it's asking me to install a node module. Is that how you submit the challenges?

lerie1982 | 4 years ago

I love the illustrations on the homepage. So beautiful.

xixixao | 4 years ago

This is a genius idea, I love it. Good job. Great work.

MoBattah_ | 4 years ago

Congratulations. I am going to get my family on it.

arvindrajnaidu | 4 years ago
[deleted]
| 4 years ago

Great curriculum to learn the basic fundamentals of web development and it’s free!

ecarson88 | 4 years ago

Excellent work and great idea. Where did you get the illustrations on the site from?

trevorhinesley | 4 years ago

Super great and really really good place to learn coding!

zjb421 | 4 years ago

This program is the true upward mobility. Good on you.

rshelans | 4 years ago

There is something wrong in the signing up process...

poma88 | 4 years ago

Really really great place to learn coding!

zjb421 | 4 years ago

This is a great idea!

rshelans | 4 years ago

replace "coding" with "javascript"

voldacar | 4 years ago

why does the tech industry need to solve problems of unemployment or why does it need to give jobs to people who do not know what they want to do?

b20000 | 4 years ago

Software engineering must be one of the few professions where individuals freely share their energy and expertise with others.

This isn't a criticism, neither of the "help others code" movement, nor more insular industries. It's just a very unusual aspect of our field and I wonder where it comes from.

For instance, can you imagine reading any of these?

Show LN (Litigator News): Learn employment regulations to become a paralegal

struct3r5.com: a free online curriculum for budding structural engineers

Paying It Forward: If You're Not Mentoring a Junior Mathematician, You're Not a Senior Statistician

dmackenzie/ipcurriculum: a curated list of resources to help students of Intellectual Property law

Introducing a new Programme of Mentorship with Veteran Cardiologists for Non Medical Students

jbreckmckye | 4 years ago

I’m always happy to see paths for more people to learn useful industry skills (most often not taught in universities).

But can we please not lower our hiring bars because the company partnered with bootcamp X or because there is a diversity (read: three groups) target to hit?

Yes it’s cheaper, and we save some money after tax incentives, but if I have to pass up a superior candidate due to an order from upper management one more time, I will pull my hair out.

I hope a program like this or freecodecamp offered at every new hire orientation will work wonders. Yes mentoring beginners is fulfilling, but its very taxing when they were hired on the basis of a few bootcamp projects plus a diversity credential when they’re still very green skill wise.

aparsons | 4 years ago

This is like saying "learn to read a schematic to become an electrical engineer."

There's a hell of a lot more to engineering than that. Couldn't they at least have said "learn coding to become a programmer?"

HeyLaughingBoy | 4 years ago

Software engineering is more than just software development. Writing requirements, drafting documentation, testing, verification, maintenance.

I hate to be hypercritical, but five weeks of javascript doesn’t make you a software engineer.

thomspoon | 4 years ago

Usually on this site we would talk about how software engineering covers several important skills, of which coding is only one. The real necessity is working with people to understand the details of their own problens and what they want to get out of it and then engineering an approach that effectively handles that going forward. Maybe that's not as relevant here.

Madmallard | 4 years ago

There is more to being a software engineer than coding.

mesozoic | 4 years ago

Hi

chesco711 | 4 years ago

[deleted]

M5x7wI3CmbEem10 | 4 years ago

I take titles such as "engineer" are not equally regulated everywhere in the world?

Can you really become a chartered engineer by going through this course?

627467 | 4 years ago

You lost me at JavaScript

bgideon312 | 4 years ago

That's because many Anglo-Saxon folk tend to equate engineering to coding. Many people find it demeaning

graham_paul | 4 years ago