Upcoming Hackathons:

It’s about time we kick into civic overdrive and get some new projects on the table. Which can only mean one thing—a hackathon or two. The Transportation Hackathon has been postponed until June when there will be even more data to inspire those creative brain parts. But that doesn’t mean we need any less help with organizing the events! There is still plenty to be done for the Transportation hackathon as well as the two other hackathons coming in the months before: Apps for Democracy in late March and Apps for Philly Health in early May. To get involved, contact Chris Alfano at calfano@codeforamerica.org or Dawn McDougall at de@dawnmcdougall.com

Projects Highlight: SEPTA.mobi v3

Transit is a big issue in Philly. Who doesn’t think SEPTA could be better? We’re still using tokens, people, c’mon. What’s up with that? Our team member Bill agrees; he loves the idea of public transit and being able to get around places without having to hop in a car. the septa.mobi site helps encourage more use of public transit by providing riders real-time information about where their bus is at. The site was already in its third iteration when Bill joined the project, but he jumped in. Now working fixing bugs and making small tweaks, Bill is getting more familiar with the framework and learning what other possibilities there might be for transit projects. Check out the project here, and don’t be afraid to reach out to work on projects that are more developed!

Looking for Impact Stories:

Philly has an impressive civic tech scene. Just about anyone here would argue that we’re the best in the country—whether it’s true or not because, after all, we’re from Philly. With that passion and pride is a story. How did you get involved with the civic tech community? How did life change after that? Our friends at Open Access Philly want to hear and share your “impact story” to inspire even more great work in the civic tech sphere. Share a brief story with OAP by emailing Yuriy at yuriy.porytko@live.com

Civic Hacking 101:

If you’re reading this it’s probably not you’re first time at Code for Philly. BUT you may have friends or other acquaintances interested in checking us out. This week we brought back Civic Hacking 101 and will continue to regularly have the mini break-out session at 5:30 pm. Whether you’ve never touched tech before, just started learning, or a seasoned vet come early to hear about what Code for Philly is all about and meet some of our core team members. We’ll talk about your interests and potential project pairings, creating new projects, or even just leading topic sessions. Have feedback or ideas on making Code for Philly better for newcomers? Contact Dawn McDougall at de@dawnmcdougall.com or Ben Novack at bennovack@gmail.com

N3rd Moments

Our co-captain Chris Alfano and city regulars Tim Wisniewski and Lauren Ancona literally raced to see who could type faster. Lucky for us, we’re all in the same nerd boat. Moral of the story, Chris Alfano can type freakishly fast. Here’s the video to prove it. I’m pretty sure his fingers aren’t even moving.