It’s clear that hackathons have benefits for the enterprises that sponsor them—companies get new ideas, test their APIs, generate buzz and get a look at talent they might want to hire. But why do developers come? Dr. Dobb’s asked two winners of a recent hackathon why they participated.
“I was looking for a day of something different,” said developer Steve Perry. “Working full-time for a company, you’re always on the same products. When I saw this hackathon advertised, I thought it was an opportunity to work on different ideas, new concepts.”
“Hackathons also give developers a chance to learn about new or popular open source frameworks, APIs, and plugins,” added Areion Azimi, one of Perry’s team members. “It also gives them a chance to apply their learning in a collaborative and supportive environment.” He continued, “Developers also benefit from the perks! Free food, free clothes, free vouchers (subscription trials, etc.) form the bulk of the goodies at hackathons…not to mention, big cash prizes and invitations into accelerator programs.”
