I'm self taught, have a technical high school degree in electronics and computers, and an AA that I meant to use to start a CS degree back in the east coast before we moved.
My work is a mix of App support with light software dev. I mostly support and update old apps written using ASP.NET (of which I know almost nothing), Nintex workflows that should've never been, make little scripts for ServiceNow virtual agent, and we have a series of low code apps that I also support, modify, etc. I replaced a guy who was also self taught and had no best-practices checks.
I'm solo in this endeavor since my product owner is not a developer and my other peer mostly deals with the red tape and administrative stuff like dealing with InfoSec's recurring paperwork and vendor licenses. Happy to have him, but I can't skill up in my field.
I'm now much closer to all the tech brain power of the country, and I'm trying to figure how to leverage my stay to improve my skills. I work 5AM to 1:30PM and so I have the whole evening open to feed my brain.
Are there any groups, meetups, schools, apprenticeships, or whatever else I could use to become a better dev? I know I could enroll in a CS degree and I do want that, but I already know of that answer.
I'd love to work on tools for people outside of the field that maybe boosts their productivity or makes their lives easier. A few months ago I worked with my GF to make an app that helps her identify cyanobacteria automating a process they used to do in MS Word and it was super satisfying, but I know it can be much better if I had someone to work with.
Anyway, any idea will be very appreciated, even if you are in the same position I'm in and you'd like to meet to work on something.
Thanks!
To be honest, your post is a bit of a mess in both what you are doing (and have done) and what you are seeking. You clearly have some skills since you are getting paid to be remote and work on technical projects. I would consider taking a step back and figuring out a way to package that.
Next, what sort of external engagement do you want? I think Meetups are great. I'd also look things like Super Happy Dev House and similar events to meet with other people across a mix of interests / skillsets.
Most importantly - what do you want to do / achieve? You have a job paying you, where you feel like you need to grow, but they are letting you be remote. Keep that until you grow more. Those saying join a startup are bat shit stupid. Startups are a walled cage to deliver on the goal of the company and investors. They are great for learning and opportunities for growth, but you need to first narrow down what you want to work on. And most importantly, do not give up that remote option you currently have.
And, honestly, do not idolize the "brain power of the country". There are many in Silicon Valley that will push others under the bus to maximize total comp/etc. Look for those wanting to build and discuss ideas not just push a particular thing.
Good luck. But also, I don't know your age, it sounds like you are in your early 20s, make sure to allow time for you and your GF in addition to your working hours.
If you see a startup saying "we work hard, we play hard, we are a family" RUN THE FUCK AWAY. They just want cheap labor and all your time. I've been to multiple YC "work for a startup" days where companies say this and ... people there were not happy unless they had no GF/other life.
Edit: Also consider looking up Hacker Dojo in Mountain View and events there.
San Francisco Public Library (Main Branch) has a pretty great collection of CS books. Fourth floor (or fifth... can't remember), 000 on Dewey Decimel System. You can place a hold on any book in the SFPL system and have it delivered to whatever branch is most convenient for you.
Definitely make a pilgrimage down to the Computer History Museum in Mountain View. And walk around the Google campus since you'll be right there anyways.
I also find it inspiring to read up on all the stuff that was created at Stanford and Cal and then walk around those campuses. There are a lot of physical locations around the Bay Area that were the physical birthplaces of important developments in the computer industry.
Last and most importantly... welcome!
If your goal is to get a tech job, you're in the right city -- and it'll be easier for you to go on job interviews (than someone who's not actually living here). For what it's worth, you'll probably also have an easier time attending some Bay Area tech conferences. They're expensive, but they're also good ways to network with people in your industry and potential employers.
Last piece of advice: upload code to GitHub. They're ultimately samples of your work, which tech employers will want to see. So it's good to have a lot, and to have it spread out over time (so start now). If there's not enough, you might consider volunteering for an open source project. (Maybe even one that meets in-person from time to time here in the Bay Area.)
If this is really what you want to do -- you're in the perfect city. Just put yourself out there, and have faith that things will eventually start to happen.
Deal with the start up business after getting money and a fall back. You'll learn more all round stuff at a start up, but that's not what matters atm, only pure dev does.
Tech meetups are cool.
Big +1 to the meetup, hackathon and conference scene.
There is no city with as many events as SF. Follow this other local with a pulse on the local meetup scene:
https://twitter.com/michelleefang/status/1675997093989842944
+1 to building up a GitHub profile. Find something interesting at a meet up or hackathon to explore in your free time and do it out in the open on GitHub. Learn by doing. And a good GH profile with good code samples helps tremendously when applying for jobs.
+1 to eventually finding an in-person job. Remote has huge advantages as you know, but being in an office with a few people you really gel with has massive advantages for learning, getting things done, and building life long personal connections. I’m fully remote now but consider my SF office days the glory days of career growth and fun.
My advice on this is to look for the right people to work with… A manager that is a good mentor and peers that are fun to work with. Id work at a boring company with a great boss and colleagues over the most exciting startup pitch or growth any day.
Since you’re gainfully employed and have some free time, take your time with all of the above!_
I truly believe all of the above is easier to find in SF than most places by getting out and about in the city.
I would have loved to stay and lived the millionaire tech dream I thought was achievable.
Loved the scenery, Marina to Sausalito was a great run.
"Someone to work with", yes that is a local strength - but it's also not very accessible. Not quickly. Noisebridge is a small crowd for example - but yes, it's right there in SF and very easy to visit.
Several of these tools you work with may have local developer groups or conferences. That might work.That might be the right intersection between these things.And both googling and Noisebridge might be ways to find them.
Search linkedin for people doing work you are interested in and say you'd like to learn about what they do. Offer to buy them coffee or a drink. But be very clear you are not recruiting or trying to sell anything. Expect maybe 1 in 10 to actually respond. But you will meet some interesting people and get to know some good coffee places (or bars). People are generally happy to talk about themselves as long as they feel like there isn't a catch.
I am not directly in development but I do work in Biotech software in SF. I am happy to chat, probably not directly relevant to your goals but maybe a starting point.
If you know nothing about software development, it will help to go to a bootcamp.
Good luck.
The reason I'm saying this is that, if you are only going to be around until January, that's not long enough to upskill on anything meaningful. Sure, you could get some good keywords on your resume, and if that's what you want, that's fine. But if your goal is to improve in a meaningful way, that's not going to cut it, unless the startup is truly exceptional with amazing people. Most startups aren't like that.
But then again I'm mentioning that here because I probably only heard one side of the story there. And also, it's all about who you know, so I guess that sort of a culture makes sense in a discomforting way.
there is nothing comparable to working as a professional though
Do all you can to get back into school. Unless you focus exclusively on making that happen, it won't.
The future in tech is for highly-educated specialists who can also generalize: PhD's in statistics et al. And the people that can help those people.
How Perl Saved the Human Genome Project
https://bioperl.org/articles/How_Perl_saved_human_genome.htm...
Skip down to "I think several factors are responsible:" for the TLDR list.
Now, this is not to say that perl is your ticket: just to say that organizations often have many "glue" chores that require scripting skills.
From experience. Oh, and from experience, you may be able to pick up contract work to build skills and your CV.
Launch School is great if you want more in depth learning compared to a coding bootcaml but not a 4 year degree.