Can I build enough of a technical foundation in 3 months for YC?

1 pointsfadisaleh7y ago2 comments

I've been learning how to design and code over the last couple weeks and was wondering if I can pick up enough coding knowledge in 3 months to call myself technical from YC's standards/perspective or if that's super unreasonable.

My background: -Worked with a brilliant developer in 2015 to build video search/clip tech for my YouTube channel, proven understanding of business/technical logic when building code (aka: understanding what is and isn't possible with code) -Strong design/content background, picking up this side has been a cinch -Foundations of code learned but very little on-the-ground coding experience

I strongly believe in the power of knowing how to build on your own and am applying to YC as a solo founder. I've been in this position before and believe it's smart to build on my own, but I wonder if I'd be ready enough with 3 months of intensive learning, because otherwise I can't really call myself a technical founder and would need to find a cofounder. I'd be building a video editing tool.

What do you guys think?

2 comments

2 comments · 2 top-level

rktkrnfbjrkdkd7y ago

Honestly depends what you are building. If it is just a website then stick to Ruby on Rails or nodejs. Don’t worry about patterns or writing correct code. Just get it working. After that hire someone to help you host it online. It’s doable but best if you have someone more advance to help you out. It’s a full time job for a reason.

As a entrepreneur though, I would say don’t do it. It’s obviously not your strength, so focus on task that you have impactful value.

Alex39177y ago

It takes about 6 months to be technical enough to get a first job as a developer, and then another 18 - 24 months of working full time as a developer to learn enough to have the basic skills necessary to build a product. So no, 3 months probably isn't enough.