I’m not sure what to do with this idea. Getting a CS degree on top of a mechanical engineering degree (so I could know enough to build this) seems like a good career choice for interesting work and high pay (even if/when this doesn’t work).
This assumes that you need to have all kind of technical skills to do a project like this. I don’t think that’s true. I think you would learn a lot more relevant knowledge by spending your time in a hackerspace like NYC resistor than by spending your time getting a CS degree.
The project is big enough that you couldn’t do it all on your own. It requires managing a team. If you want to do it open source, you need to interact with open source people who usually care more for your github than for whether or not you have a CS degree.
I’d like to find some partners for this project but it doesn’t seem convincing yet.
Yes, in general it seems like management is a good move for higher pay and impact.
Good point that the key thing I would need to demonstrate CS knowledge for this project is useful work completed, not a degree. (I’m not arguing against CS degrees in general.)
I know one person who has a company doing open source software for hardware and as far as he’s concerned a CS degree doesn’t give you the kind of skills that are important. When choosing whether to hire someone he looks at the code that the person actually wrote for real projects to evaluate the skill level of the person.
I’d like to find some partners for this project but it doesn’t seem convincing yet.
How much time do you spent in hackerspaces where you would find the kind of people with both the interest and the skills to do such a project with you?
Convincing people isn’t only about your domain knowledge it’s also about your communication skills. I heard people saying that Linus Torvald became as influential as he was because of good writing skills.
Bre Pettis is a great public speaker and not so much a person with great CS knowledge. He got his degree in Education. He leads MakerBot industries and is responsible for Thingiverse. He might be the person with the most influence in the Maker scene.
This assumes that you need to have all kind of technical skills to do a project like this. I don’t think that’s true. I think you would learn a lot more relevant knowledge by spending your time in a hackerspace like NYC resistor than by spending your time getting a CS degree.
The project is big enough that you couldn’t do it all on your own. It requires managing a team. If you want to do it open source, you need to interact with open source people who usually care more for your github than for whether or not you have a CS degree.
I’d like to find some partners for this project but it doesn’t seem convincing yet.
Yes, in general it seems like management is a good move for higher pay and impact.
Good point that the key thing I would need to demonstrate CS knowledge for this project is useful work completed, not a degree. (I’m not arguing against CS degrees in general.)
I know one person who has a company doing open source software for hardware and as far as he’s concerned a CS degree doesn’t give you the kind of skills that are important. When choosing whether to hire someone he looks at the code that the person actually wrote for real projects to evaluate the skill level of the person.
How much time do you spent in hackerspaces where you would find the kind of people with both the interest and the skills to do such a project with you?
Convincing people isn’t only about your domain knowledge it’s also about your communication skills. I heard people saying that Linus Torvald became as influential as he was because of good writing skills.
Bre Pettis is a great public speaker and not so much a person with great CS knowledge. He got his degree in Education. He leads MakerBot industries and is responsible for Thingiverse. He might be the person with the most influence in the Maker scene.