Driveway Encounter With Microsoft's President Led To $25 Million For Code.org 55
Long time reader theodp writes: At Monday's kickoff event with Melinda Gates for Computer Science Education Week 2018, Microsoft President Brad Smith revealed how a 2013 driveway encounter led to Microsoft's decision to commit $25 million to Code.org, whose CEO Hadi Partovi happens to live next door to Smith. "At the top of the hill, we share a common driveway," Smith said. "I can't even drive into the garage at night if he is standing in the way. Well, actually I can, but running him over is not the right path." Five years ago, Smith recalled, Partovi was in his driveway (King of the Hill-inspired artist's impression), "and he said, 'I have an idea [for then-nascent Code.org]. There is an important problem that we can help solve, because for too many people they look at these opportunities in computer science, and they don't appreciate that in truth anybody can aspire to be the next Melinda Gates or the next Bill Gates or the next Jeff Bezos or the next Sheryl Sandberg or Mark Zuckerberg. What they need, what they deserve, is the opportunity to learn this fundamental field.'"
Earlier this year, Code.org celebrated its 5th anniversary and thanked Microsoft and other tech donors for making it possible for the nonprofit to change U.S. K-12 public education. Smith also announced Monday that Microsoft would invest an additional $10 million in Code.org to help expand the tech-bankrolled nonprofit's work. "The renewed partnership," Microsoft explained, "will focus on ensuring that by 2020 every state will have passed policies to expand access to computer science and every school in the U.S. will have access to Code.org professional development."
Earlier this year, Code.org celebrated its 5th anniversary and thanked Microsoft and other tech donors for making it possible for the nonprofit to change U.S. K-12 public education. Smith also announced Monday that Microsoft would invest an additional $10 million in Code.org to help expand the tech-bankrolled nonprofit's work. "The renewed partnership," Microsoft explained, "will focus on ensuring that by 2020 every state will have passed policies to expand access to computer science and every school in the U.S. will have access to Code.org professional development."
Melinda and Sheryl? (Score:4, Insightful)
I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with Melinda or Sheryl's contributions to computer science, or their qualifications as software engineers? Can someone please explain those to me, before I continue reading this puff piece about two multi-millionaires and their happy little top-of-the-driveway accidental run in.
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But wouldn't it be cool if a 'driveway encounter' with TRUMP would end up w/ something productive & better for humanity?
It really would and I would be further curious to see if it would even be possible. I don't know if Trump is truly sociopathic or if he's just simply a dullard.
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But wouldn't it be cool if a 'driveway encounter' with TRUMP would end up w/ something productive & better for humanity?
It really would and I would be further curious to see if it would even be possible. I don't know if Trump is truly sociopathic or if he's just simply a dullard.
Maybe it would if he had money....
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I believe Melinda Gates' major contribution to the field was leading the Microsoft Bob product team. Way to go, Melinda!
Sheryl's contribution was writing an annoying book that led to millions of techies having to hear people use the phrase "lean in" in meetings across the industry for years to come. God help us.
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Came for this. Glad to see it is first post. What kind of SJW equality garbage are these people coming up with when you need to mention a wife of a billion tech giant and a CEO who's job is to make money for an advertising company. Can someone point me to 1 software package or application either of these people have developed that has contributed to their massive wealth. I am can't we honestly just give credit where credit is due and not look to make something so gender balanced that it is meaningless.
Re: Melinda and Sheryl? (Score:1)
Melinda's contribution was being a nobody 6/10 project manager at MS who Bill fancied and awkwardly approached in the parking lot. She resisted at first but eventually agreed to go out with him and the rest is history.
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Anyone can aspire to work in computer science. (Score:2)
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Indeed. If young children did not possess the audacious courage to believe they can do things untethered to any rational analysis, they would never learn to walk or talk without the support of professional physical therapists and professional speech therapists.
I am 99.9% certain that the first time a baby tries to walk they will fail. But they have more important things to care about than the likelihood of failure staring them in the face.
Re:Anyone can aspire to work in computer science. (Score:5, Insightful)
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"it takes a special kind of personality and family connections and seed capital "
And not just any family connections, but a father who was a lawyer that was able to train you to think like one.
Bill Gates did not get where he was by technical prowess. M$ products, to this day, are the definition of technical mediocrity.
Bill Gates got to where he is by legal manipulation of a nascent industry. Due to his upbringing, he had weapons at his disposal that his competitors did not even know existed. Due to his upbringing, he had a set of morals that allowed him to use those weapons with an u
And (Score:2)
What they need, what they deserve, is the opportunity to learn this fundamental field.
And ... some aptitude for it.
The extremely wealthy person... (Score:3, Insightful)
living next to the other extremely wealthy person talked to each other. this resulted in one of them donating a pittance, as a gesture, to the other extremely wealthy persons endeavour.
TLDR; for anyone too lazy to read the story.
code.org is great for JS (Score:2)
More evidence that it really is who you know (Score:2)
It's depressing, but the reality is that successful people generally come from successful families with enough connections to get them what they need. It is still possible (but highly improbable) to make it into top positions based solely on skill, but the path is well worn for those lucky enough to have connections.
This is why people of normal means who want a good future for their kids push them so hard to get into the Ivy League or similar private schools. The price of the degree buys them access to the
Yeah, I always negotiate multi-million $$$ ... (Score:3)
Ironic (Score:2)
How can you say that without any trace of irony when they just got their mediocre idea funded just by living along the rich. A chance some kid in a mid or low income area will never have.
Not training business leaders (Score:2)
Huh? (Score:3)
Free, preloaded programming environment (Score:1)
In the good old days, all Apple Macintosh computers came with HyperCard pre-installed. There were a bunch of books availaable on programming in HyperCard. Many people started programming this way.
If you buy a new tablet/ laptop/ desktop with Microsoft software, there is no learning to program software.
If you buy a n
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The confusion over which of the many choices for learning to program environments is a show stopper for most people.
And I'd bet that operating system publishers don't bundle one for fear of having to pay the sort of legal bills that Microsoft incurred when US and EU competition regulators investigated Microsoft for bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. But speaking of that, doesn't every new PC come with a JavaScript interpreter as part of the web browser?