Ask HN: Hackathon project: Show skill or work on a simple project that I like?

2 pointsCCoffie11y ago3 comments

So the situation is that I have an idea of the project that i'd like to work on at a Hackathon. The problem is it might be too simple for me. The idea is fairly simple and I believe many people will really like. I know I will create it even if it's not at the Hackathon. The problem I'm facing is that I don't think it will challenge me enough or show off my technical skills. I'm currently a college student and I'm looking for a job. I feel like this would be a great way to network with possible employers especially if I can show my technical skill. So I guess the question would be, Should I go with a project that can challenge me and show off my skills or the simple very useful project that I really like?

3 comments

ISNIT11y ago

There will always be at least one thing that was more complex than expected.

Even finishing a project looks good to employers.

This post explains that even adding a word counter can be complex. http://blog.intercom.io/there-are-no-small-changes/

"Do we crop the string, or display an error message to the user? If we display an error, where does it appear? What does it say? Who is going to write the error message? How do we explain to the user why we’re limiting them to 140 characters? How will these errors look? Do we have a style defined? If not, who is designing it?"

aggronn11y ago

In the few hackathons I've participated in, interesting ideas have always trumped technical ambition in terms of winning. If you're only participating for the atmosphere, then I would say go ahead and challenge yourself.

bigredtech11y ago

Life is short. When you do get your job, sometimes you'll code and do things you like, and sometimes you won't.

Right now you have the choice - do what you like. Have fun.

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