Updated Oct 5th 2015 to add fifth cohort / cohort[4] application window details:
Quick facts:
One of my biggest concerns about getting into [Ada Developers Academy][ada] was the technology requirement: a late model MacBook. I've been a staunch Windows and Linux user for years, and I enjoy working with basic tools like keyboard shortcuts that behave the way I expect them to. Until the switch, I had considered keyboard shortcuts as solid and standardized as screwdrivers.
The keyboard shortcuts between Windows and Linux are pretty similar, perhaps because I've always run Linux on computers that were built for Windows. I could swap between computers easily, using the same keyboard shortcuts over and over. Ctrl+V here was the same as Ctrl+V there, Alt+Tab was Alt+Tab. Happy sigh. That is not what happened when I opened my MacBook!
In one application, Ctrl+V hid the mouse pointer. In another, it hid the pointer and acted like Page Down. A few of the keys had similar names but different behaviors, and some keys were missing entirely. I caught on pretty quickly that I could u
Because I thought I wasn't going to get into Ada Developers Academy, I did a few informational interviews with graduates of more traditional 8-12-week coding bootcamps (eg, General Assembly, Hackbright). I was hoping to go to my #1 bootcamp choice after I got my rejection letter from Ada, but I was overwhelmingly surprised to be accepted instead. The people I interviewed mostly had the same few things to say about preparing and living through these programs.
Dude, I took four pages of notes at @lizmrush's talk last night. She is a hilarious and engaging speaker, and I really enjoyed her talk. Please enjoy this more concise and heavily bulleted summary:
Find out how other people with your experience are describing themselves. Then research how people who already have the job you want are telling their stories.
