Social Media Week New York: Day 3 Recap

by | Feb 21, 2014 | Uncategorized

Social Media Week New York: Day 3 Recap

Can you learn how to code in one month? Which apps should you download if you like to stay organized or if you’re a gamer? These were the questions I set out to answer on day three of Social Media Week (New York).

Master Class: Programming for Non-Programmers

Admittedly, I thought this class was going to be more about learning some frequently used HTML tags and understanding language basics and less about what programming is, but the speaker—Chris Castiglione of One Month Rails— was enthusiastic and entertaining enough to keep my interest.

The premise of One Month Rails is that they can teach you how to code in a month. Eventually they want to be able to teach people how to do a lot of things in a month. Waiting in line, the girl next to me was telling me she’s planning on signing up for the service. I asked her if she had tried free resources like Code Academy, and she said she had but never really followed-through because “it’s always there” so she’s not motivated to go through the program. Whereas a service like One Month costs $100 and is only available for 30 days, giving the education a sense of value and urgency.

Although the class didn’t actually walk through any code, there were some things I wrote down:

  • Information architecture: Hey! That’s a cool way to describe what I do!
  • Comps: I’ve always referred to these as templates
  • Front-end Web Design: Really the only front-end languages are HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (didn’t know that last one)

Tap That App: Get Turned On by Mobile Innovation

One of the more engaging events, Tap That App brought different creative people onstage to give demos of their favorite apps—from time-saving apps to time-killing apps to gaming apps to dumb apps. Here are some of the best:

  • Thinglist ($1.99): An upgrade to your generic task list, Thinglist allows you to keep track of the things you want to do and categorize them, all with a beautiful interface.
  • Traktor DJ ($0.99): For DJs or wannabe DJs who want portable production software on the iPhone.
  • Penultimate (Free, iPad-only): For sketching out all your great ideas. Includes easy export to social networks and Evernote. Created by Evernote.
  • Dots (Free): The premise of this game is easy, connect same-colored dots. Simple. Fun.
  • Badland ($3.99): Don’t be deterred by sticker shock, Badland is eerie, adventurous, and has a beautiful, award-winning design.
  • Herps and Purps ($0.99): Give your friends (or enemies?) black eyes. And herpes.
  • Songkick (Free): “Track your favorite bands so you never miss them live.”
  • Venmo (Free): An extension of PayPal, this app lets you send money to people you know for free! So the next time your friend tells you he’ll “get you back next time,” you can pull out your app and make “next time” now.