February 8, 2016 Topcoder Members of the Month – January 2016
It’s time to announce our Members of the Month! Each month, members from our community are spotlighted for their accomplishments. Please congratulate the following winners for the month of January, winning for their accomplishments in November!
Development Rookie: thomaskranitsas
Won first place in his
first two challenges!
Design: f0rc0d3r Three first place wins in |
Development: vvvpig Eight first place wins in |
Algorithm: grumpy_gordon Rating increase of 316 pts in |
Learn more about some of our winners below, and be sure to congratulate all of the winners in this forum thread.
f0rc0d3r: January’s Design Member of the Month
How did you first get started with Topcoder? What was your “beginner” experience like?
I remember my first project, I started in Topcoder Studio with the TCO-14 t-shirt design contest and then I participated in some idea generations. Thanks to this first contest I learned something about the TCO and this made me want to be there 🙂
What challenges have you enjoyed working on lately, and why?
I enjoy every challenge, each one means a new day full of possibilities and I enjoy having to imagine new things all the time.
What design project types do you consider yourself to be an expert with? (web design, wireframes, UX, etc) and why do you like those?
In design projects I think that I’m good with wireframes and user experience but also I think that there’s still a lot to learn!
Tell us about your hometown or country. What’s the one thing a visitor should see if they traveled there?
I live in Barcelona, there are good beaches, good drinks and food and good weather! If a visitor comes here just walk along any beach, enjoy the sun, take something at any bar… just enjoy!
vvvpig: January’s Developer of the Month
How did you first get started with Topcoder? What was your “beginner” experience like?
I knew Topcoder when I was in college. I started to program in Topcoder with Component Development. It just provided great opportunities to learn from others and knew the best practice of programming in Topcoder.
What challenges have you been interested in lately, and why?
I have been interested in Bluemix related challenges by IBM. It is cloud platform as service for future and still progressing, you can participate in challenges and contribute to the development.
What languages/platforms do you consider yourself to be really good at and why do you like those?
I am good at Java language with all platforms. Java is the first language I used in Topcoder and has great open source communities to learn from. Even I have been using other languages recently it provides me basic ideas to program.
Which industry (Financial, IT, Healthcare, Entertainment, etc.) do you have the most experience developing for both within Topcoder challenges and outside Topcoder?
My most experience is IT industry. Client just wanted to use IT solutions to solve the problems with low cost, high speed.
Tell us about your hometown or country. What’s the one thing a visitor should see if they traveled there?
I live in a small town of China. There are many world famous feature spots here and you cannot miss the foods here.
thomaskranitsas: January’s Development Rookie of the Month
How did you first get started with Topcoder? What was your “beginner” experience like?
I was looking for something more than just algorithmic competitions, something more like a real job where I can develop real projects and then I found TopCoder. My “beginner” experience couldn’t get any better! I won first place in my first two challenges!
You won your first two challenges! Do you have any tips to share with other new members?
As a coder I have learned that you can only write quality code if you love writing code. In TopCoder, the key to success is asking copilots to answer all of your questions to avoid any kind of misunderstanding.
What challenges have you been interested in, and why?
I’m always interested in any kind of challenge where I have the required knowledge and experience to compete in but I prefer code challenges because writing code is fun for me!
What languages/platforms do you consider yourself to be really good at and why do you like those?
The language depence on the project I have to develop. The languages I like to work with are C++, C#, JAVA and for web applications I like PHP, Javascript, JQuery, AngularJS.
Tell us about your hometown or country. What’s the one thing a visitor should see if they traveled there?
I’m from Greece. I’m living in Karditsa, Thessaly. Karditsa is a great travel destination for whoever wants to relax and enjoy the nature. The best place to visit someone who travels to Karditsa is Plastiras Lake. Plastiras Lake is a human intervention managed to unite the artificial with the natural element. A magical place with forests, in which Fairies and the Sleeping Beauty found their shelter. A place for visitors who seek peace and serenity, but also for those who look for adventure, combining mountain and lake activities.
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