May 2020 – Notes & Codes

There is always a time when I don’t feel like coding. Those are the times I don’t understand a single line of code on my console. The language in my computer screen feels like a stranger. I get distracted easily, and there’s this longing to get as far away from my computer as possible. It’s a time where coding doesn’t make any sense.

This is also the time where music comes in. I would feel a sense of longing to sit on my piano, and to play the songs on my sheet music collections. I would also pop in my earphones and scroll through YouTube to listen to classical, Celtic, or modern music (depending on my mood). It’s a time where my musical side “awakens”.

After spending a huge amount of time (and days) playing my piano and doing music-related stuff, I will soon come to a point where I’ll lose my interest on those musical notes, and longed to see my black IDE, with its colorful lines of codes. I wouldn’t know what songs to play and to listen to. It will be the time where I want to code again.

And the cycle goes on.

I guess liking both programming and music is perfect. They “balance” each other. While programming exercises my brain and helps me become more analytical, music gives me rest and keeps me sane from the ever-overwhelming lines of codes. Although I chose programming as the main career path to take, I can never leave my love for music behind.

Music also keeps me from burning out my passion for programming. I found that I can easily think of solutions to problems in my code after playing my piano. It makes me feel refreshed, and it “de-clutters” my mind, thus giving it space for new ideas and solutions. Music doesn’t take my attention away from programming; rather, it brings back my interest and love for it.

I may focus more on harnessing my programming skills and knowledge, but somehow, I still need a moment to stop, chill, and play the piano. I’m lucky to have these two interests as a part of me, and it’s hard for me to imagine my life without both of it.

Well, I better stand up and head over to my piano, I’ve been in my computer for too long! 😉

Google Code-in was in it’s 10th year in 2019 and had been epic in every regard, no doubt about that. It was unlike any other GCI competition I had before for the reasons that, first, I finally won as a Grand Prize Winner! Yay! . . . Second, it was the first GCI where Google had cancelled the US Trip for winners. Yay again! ( You can read about this here from my previous post )

Despite of that, I still want to encourage teenagers ages 13-17 to participate in Google Code-in. It could be a fun and wonderful experience where you will not just be introduce to the world of Open Source but you will also get to talk to fellow developers and most importantly will be able to contribute to something that could help people.

It took me 3 years to finally become one of the Google Code-in Grand Prize Winners. Although the winning moment was not what I had in mind, I did enjoy my GCI experience and learned a lot of new things.

So, for future GCI participants, here are some helpful advice that I can give which helped me in winning the GCI 2019:

Do your advance research about GCI. Know what GCI’s purpose is, and what is it all about. Moreover, research on its guidelines and contest rules, to make sure you are playing fair. You don’t want to get kicked out in the middle of the competition. By researching, you will get to know what you will be dealing with, as well as gain additional tips from previous winners
Focus on one organization. Each participating organization chooses the students that greatly contributed to them. Jumping from one organization to another lessens the chance of winning. It is also a plus to choose the organization you want to contribute to before the competition starts, as you get to have some time to familiarize yourself with how your chosen organization operates, as well as with their guidelines for contributors, programming languages used, etc.
Balance “Difficult” Tasks & “Easy” Tasks. Google stated in the contest rules that quality > quantity. It’s true, but you also need to get enough completed tasks to be able to proceed to the top 20 participants with the most tasks completed, as the organization will review the works from those who have made it to the leaderboard in choosing the winners, finalists and runner-ups. A good balance between doing easy and difficult tasks is helpful, as easy tasks add more count on your tasks list while difficult tasks are mostly quality contributions to the organizations.
Show that you are genuinely interested to learn. The whole point of this contest is for teenagers to learn more about contributing to Open Source technologies. It is good to ask mentors relevant questions when you need help, or to clarify things that you don’t understand. Keep in mind, however, that mentors are human beings that have lives outside GCI, so don’t bug them when they don’t answer instantly.
Be active in the community. Organizations have their own IRC or chat group. I encourage you to join in it, as this is the place where you can ask questions and talk to fellow participants and mentors. Being active in the community could also be the way to help other students when they get stuck or by answering their questions.
Bonus: Do Beyond What is Required of You. A week before the competition ended, where most participants were cramming to get additional tasks and finishing them, I decided to stop taking anymore tasks after I reached my own task count quota, and just solve open and unfinished issues on my chosen organization for honest and real contibuting. Doing this shows that you are interested, and really want to help in the open source even beyond the competition.

I hope you find the above tips useful. Google Code-In is a great competition and a good way to get acquainted to fellow developers and students. Good luck to all future GCI participants!

Month: May 2020

Music: The Part of Me that Keeps Me Sane

Helpful Advice to Google Code-In Future Participants