Eddy Garcia, a self-described “UX nerd” got his degree in Economics and was working in property management when he first moved to Palm Beach County. His love of technology led him to join some tech Meetup groups, where he created a network of like-minded individuals looking for fulfilling careers. After teaching himself to code and attending a 48-hour Hackathon, he said goodbye to his property job, and decided to pursue a career in Coding. He is now a successful App Developer.
Eddy has created a number of Android and iOS apps including the popular VividArts. He is also on the faculty at Palm Beach Code School. He has worked with students on responsive design and BootStrap, and will now introduce hybrid app development through a new language called Ionic Framework in our next Web Developer program.
Congratulations on the success of VividArts. Can you tell us about the app?
Thank you. The app basically allows you to find local art and culture around you, wherever you are. You can discover local artists and stay in the know about local art events and news. We feature a clean and easy way to connect with local murals, sculptures, live music and performance. We hope that our app will help people find great art and also connect the artists to the community.
Tell us about the development process for the app.
When I first got the idea for the app, with some folks I met at a hackathon, we did not have the funds to hire a developer. App Developers typically charge around $10K-50K or more. I have always loved the idea of building and creating things, and anyone can learn to code with all of the resources available now. I learned HTML, Javascript and CSS and decided to develop and program the app myself.
We built the app as a hybrid first, using HTML, Javascript and CSS to test things out. Now we are developing a native app, which is available to download on Android and will soon be available on iOS.
Your experience will certainly be valuable to our students in our developer programs. I know that you will be teaching them about Hybrid Apps, using Ionic Framework. Can you tell us about that?
Ionic is an open source HTML5 mobile app framework that lets developers build native-feeling apps using web technologies, like HTML, CSS and Javascript. Ionic Framework makes it easier and faster to develop apps, because the learning curve is smaller. It is also great because it allows startups to test out different things on their app without spending a lot of time and money.
Recent Comments