Handmade Seattle FAQ

How do I find out about tickets?

Subscribe to the newsletter! Tickets will become available sometime this second quarter.

When’s the conference?

Handmade Seattle is officially taking place Saturday November 16th, 2019 at the Seattle Center Armory Lofts.

How many software projects will be demoed?

There will be a minimum of twenty different project booths. Handmade Seattle is working year-round to ensure the space is filled with interesting low-level work. There may also be a submission process to fill up several spots.

Will there be live panels?

Yes! There will be two discussions, one in the morning and another late afternoon. Industry veterans will discuss pressing issues with software engineering. The panelists shall be revealed around the same time as ticket announcements.

What is meant by the word Handmade?

Handmade Seattle uses the term to reference a particular way of creating software. It was popularized by Handmade Hero, and then fleshed out by the Handmade Network manifesto. Although Handmade Hero, Handmade Network, and Handmade Seattle are independent of each other, we all share the same approach to writing software.

Is this all a big rant about performance?

Not necessarily. The trailer video uses the term “sluggish” to characterize software, meaning something is unresponsive. Your mobile app may be blazing fast, but if it’s stuck on a network request and doesn’t alert the user in a timely fashion, they’ll just see a spinning wheel. Other slugs involve fending off cryptic errors, random crashes and dark patterns.

We’re all in the same boat and although low-level programming alone can’t solve these problems, it helps us tackle them productively:

A conversation about the nature of the universe is generally more useful when those talking are scientifically literate. Similarly, a discussion on programming benefits from everyone reaching a certain threshold in computer literacy. Indeed, there are enduring ideas giving life to computer systems, and programmers ought to value them. If we call ourselves professionals, we have a real responsibility to learn the underlying concepts behind computers. It protects us from unreliable sources of knowledge, and it shows us the things we should pay attention to.

A Look Into NASA’s Coding Philosophy (source)