HN meetup: Waterloo, Ontario(meetup.com)
meetup.com
HN meetup: Waterloo, Ontario
http://www.meetup.com/hacker-news-meetup/
12 comments
Very cool will see if I can make a trip from TO
Hm, I'm tempted to go to meet other HNers in the area, but I'm not really interested in the topic you've chosen...
Any suggestions on a better topic? wanna come present something? :)
We just picked it because we have a couple of Djange and App Engine experts and so it seemed like a good idea.
We just picked it because we have a couple of Djange and App Engine experts and so it seemed like a good idea.
Personally, I'm not a very technical person, so I'd probably not attend events like this. I'd definitely be interested in a general HN meetup, though.
I'm in whatever the topic is. Completely by accident I'm quitting my (cushy, working for the Man) job today and moving across the country to be back near dear old UW.
So it puts a smile on my face to hear that there's still a Hacker scene for me to come back to :).
So it puts a smile on my face to hear that there's still a Hacker scene for me to come back to :).
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Since we're talking Waterloo, what are local hackers' opinions on how a downward slide for RIM will affect the area/scene? I've been wondering this lately, especially since I've been considering looking for work in the area.
It's going to be brutal. I've been telling everyone I know in Waterloo for years not to buy any real-estate (especially those trendy lofts) because the prices will crash once RIM falls apart.
On a related note, we're hiring at Top Hat Monocle! http://jobs.startupnorth.ca/job/insanely-smart-web-developer...
On a related note, we're hiring at Top Hat Monocle! http://jobs.startupnorth.ca/job/insanely-smart-web-developer...
There's a lot more to this town than just RIM. I work, for instance, at the Institute for Quantum Computing, which is just one of the things that UWaterloo is pushing forward with. I'll grant you there's probably going to be some real-estate price crashes, but I don't know if it'll be as bad as all that.
You can probably add up all of the big, non-RIM, high-tech jobs in the area and still not beat RIM in sheer employment numbers.
Granted, last time I was in Waterloo was 2 years ago - but all of the (admittedly very cool) things going on there are little cakes compared to the hulking behemoth that is RIM - or soon, was RIM.
It's a little like Redmond - there are startups in the Bellevue/Kirkland/Redmond area, but if you remove MSFT none of that means terribly much.
Granted, last time I was in Waterloo was 2 years ago - but all of the (admittedly very cool) things going on there are little cakes compared to the hulking behemoth that is RIM - or soon, was RIM.
It's a little like Redmond - there are startups in the Bellevue/Kirkland/Redmond area, but if you remove MSFT none of that means terribly much.
My wife and I will definitely be waiting a few more years before purchasing a house here.
Some perspective on the houses... have you noticed how bad 85 is every day? That is all the RIM employees that live in Milton or further away. Most of them did not move to town.
Sure RIM laying off all employees would kill Waterloo but they have a lot of cash in the bank ($8 Billion?) and have been ramping up R&D -- they aren't going anywhere for a while.
Sure RIM laying off all employees would kill Waterloo but they have a lot of cash in the bank ($8 Billion?) and have been ramping up R&D -- they aren't going anywhere for a while.
There are a fair number of people that live in Mississauga/Toronto as well.
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I'm not a developer - but if there is interest in a general meetup, I'm in!
After attending one of these... you will be
This is pretty neat...
Wouldn't it be more wonderful if could organize our own hacker dojo (where people just drop by and discuss what they are working on OR brainstorm about cool stuff to build).
Wouldn't it be more wonderful if could organize our own hacker dojo (where people just drop by and discuss what they are working on OR brainstorm about cool stuff to build).
Let me introduce you to our local hackerspace, Kwartzlab: http://www.kwartzlab.ca/
We don't have as many members or as much space as the Mountain View Hacker Dojo, but we put on a pretty good open house (if I do say so myself) every Tuesday from 7 to 10!
We don't have as many members or as much space as the Mountain View Hacker Dojo, but we put on a pretty good open house (if I do say so myself) every Tuesday from 7 to 10!
I didn't know this existed here. Looks awesome!
Hard to believe there will be an event like this in Waterloo, I am really interested. Hope you are okay with some newbie uw co-op students.
I'm sure it sounds silly, but I never realized that there were so many other HN readers from Waterloo, so I can definitely relate to your disbelief. I was quite surprised to see "Waterloo, Ontario" pop up in Google Reader.
You don't get better unless you attend these events! I found it really useful when I was a student (and still do) at UW. You get to meet a lot of interesting people and see how people make things.
We are going for a fun hacker ethos---come, build, be merry. Everybody is welcome :)
Sweet!
Lots of other events in Waterloo too:
http://watcamp.com/calendar
...for those unaware of how much more awesome Waterloo has become.
http://watcamp.com/calendar
...for those unaware of how much more awesome Waterloo has become.