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Collaborative Culture for Software Developers

Every sixth Saturday or so, dozens of young software developers a small mansion somewhere in Silicon Valley. There they share technical tips, collaborate on the coding of pet projects, and debate the data models underlying popular startups like Facebook and Twitter.

This informal gathering that’s open to the public flows from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. with free energy drinks and innovative ideas. It’s a tech party known as SuperHappyDevHouse. The gathering has lured employees of Google, Oracle and dozens of independent entrepreneurs. This swapping of ideas and tricks of the trade across company lines has given Silicon Valley an innovative edge unseen since the ‘70S. Today’s version has been attracting techies by word of mouth for two years, allowing SuperHappyDevHouse to a collaborative culture for a new generation of inventors.

Why DevHouse is different

This 12-hour programming party was the brainchild of now 21-year-old Web developer Jeff Lindsay, who bypassed college because he was eager to tackle real-world tech challenges rather than sit in classrooms solving problem sets. Lindsay said Microsoft offered to host the party at its Mountain View campus, but he turned it down. Working in cubicles would ruin the fun, collaborative atmosphere.

While Silicon Valley is cluttered with tech clubs, DevHouse is unique in that attendees churn out technical projects rather than just swap business cards. It’s most successful creation has been PBwiki, an online template for creating Wikipedia-type collaboration websites. It received $2 million from Mohr Davidow Ventures in February.

Who comes?

Typical DevHouse gatherings have five men for every woman. Most are in their 20s and 30s, although a teenage girl has shown up as well as a man with a full head of gray hair.

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Vocabulary Focus

collaborative(adj)--- -involving two or more people working together for a special purpose

tricks of the trade (idiom)--- clever methods that help you to do a job better or faster

word of mouth (idiom)--- information heard from other people, not based on fact

churn out (phr. v)--- to produce large amounts of something quickly

Specialized terms

pet project(n phr)--- 基于興趣而做的研究計(jì)劃 a favorite activity done for its enjoyment, rather than out of necessity

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