u/GuideEither9870 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Thanks for sharing. I mean, I feel like the hostile undercurrent of this sub that Don is referencing is largely directed at Codesmith, so it's interesting to hear your experience. I can even see you comment below is gettin some downvotes just because you said you went to Codesmit
u/michaelnovatireplied·
That commenter has a pretty fair read on things imo. Things can be good and bad and don't have to be only or the other.
Bootcamps serve a slice of the population and if you are one of those people I hope you read critically and rationally and figure out a good path.
Most people aren't and those people.
u/Successful-Divide655 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Codesmith bots are downvoting you to garner sympathy for Codesmith. You can't fool me!
u/michaelnovatireplied·
Codesmith's team account was just suspended from Reddit so I would watch out for all kinds of weird behavior right now.
u/GuideEither9870 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Thanks for sharing. I mean, I feel like the hostile undercurrent of this sub that Don is referencing is largely directed at Codesmith, so it's interesting to hear your experience. I can even see you comment below is gettin some downvotes just because you said you went to Codesmit
u/michaelnovatireplied·
Codesmith has since lost most of the staff they had back then with a number of departures this week. They are pivoting to an untested AI immersive hybrid.
I would value Vic's opinions and they are super reasonable. Just do your homework and decide if Codesmith of today is right for you.
u/GuideEither9870 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
I mean most new things (like AI) are gunna be untested at first, doesn't necessarily count against it, gotta begin somewhere, right?
Also, I looked up your program and it says "The world's only AI-powered dynamic interview prep platform", so, does that mean you've tested AI in t
u/michaelnovatireplied·★ FEATURED
To clarify, I'm concerned about any program that is trying to TEACH Gen AI stuff right now. I did a survey of top tech engineers and around 90% of people said they don't look for Gen AI skills in engineers. So I'm not sure how you can invest in a curriculum yet, or know what to teach. What I'm seeing is that anyone with broad engineering skills is expected to learn how to use Gen AI without the need for explicit training.
Formation doesn't offer any kind of mentorship, practice with Gen AI at this time. We will add it when companies interview for it.
We USE AI to build our platform, make mentorship better AND more efficient. We use AI to help you figure out what to practice next, and to schedule hundreds of dynamic sessions every week. Very different!
u/GuideEither9870 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Right, I see. But it is right or fair for someone like that to be a mod, like if they're a dominant contributor? It feels like if a soccer referee started playing the game themselves, and taking penalty shots haha, doesn't seem liek there's any point to a sub so unbalanced
u/michaelnovatireplied·
I'm human and not perfect, but I didn't just show up and become a mod. I've been here for a long time, contributing consistent information. Demonstrated a strong ability for critical thinking.
Making assumptions or conclusions because of biases is dismissive of what someone can do as an individual and I hope my actions demonstrate that I can wear many hats well to justify my positions.
I completely see the point though, and I hope we can work on positive discourse (not necessarily positive sentiment, but good discussion that gets into nuances without assumptions and without listening to each other).
u/GuideEither9870 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Fair enough and thanks for responding! It's good point.
What would your thoughts be on perhaps replacing the other two (pretty inactive) mods for two users that regularly engage here?
u/michaelnovatireplied·
So I think both mods are actually fairly active and around, they just don't take action as often. I'm very active so I'm around to cover the day to day more.
This sub hasn't had much structure, or community management. Which has pros and cons.
u/Successful-Divide655 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
Too much lore regarding the battles Michael has been in on this sub have been lost to the sands of time. Many former bootcamp grads with good intentions fought the good fight against him, but he's beat everyone into submission with 20 page torts to every comment. Without all of t
u/michaelnovatireplied·★ FEATURED
You might not like my style but critical thinking is important for engineers. Others apply it was well and those are good discussions, but if people are coming here with holes in their arguments (which everyone including myself will have) and they respond defensively or with even worse rebuttals then those responses won't stand up.
Is it not possible that everything I'm writing about Codesmith is strong arguments and there just aren't strong counter arguments? I've heard of a number of staff who left/leaving/plan on leaving this week (4).
It might be sad and come across doom and gloom, but I don't have a goal with, I just want us to have really nuanced and detailed critical arguments.
When confronted with a strong argument, like data backed analysis of the resumes of most grads show an average of 11 months of experience on their 3 week long projects, and the response is "well what about you", "you are a biased competitor", ""codesmith changed my life", like those aren't good arguments for the situation. Like if you notice patterns, talk about them openly, look at the sources and potential problems or weaknesses or explanations, qualifications and be open to critical thinking.