The Geek Talk

Who is Steve Klabnik?

I’m a software craftsman, accidental teacher, and budding student of the digital humanities.

Where and when did you start programming?

I started when I was 7. My grandparents got me one of those computers that hooked up to your TV from the back of a Sears catalog, and it had a BASIC interpreter on it. I read the manual, started coding, and just figured it out from there.

You favorite Languages/Frameworks? And why?

My current favorite language is Ruby. I also really enjoy programming in C and Haskell. As far as frameworks go, my favorites are Shoes and Sinatra.

What does your typical day look like?

I wake up, check the Hackety Hack site, check Hacker News, check my email, then go to either class or work, come home, read a little or maybe play a game, and then code or read.

What do you do in your free time?

Mostly programming, though lately I’ve been reading a lot more. I’ve still managed to fit in some video games on occasion as well.

As far as programming goes, I maintain Hackety Hack, which is a program to teach programming. I’m also on Team Shoes, who develops the Shoes toolkit that Hackety is written in.

With reading, I’ve been catching up on my philosophy. Foucault was two weeks ago, Nietzsche was last week, this week is Marx… I recently read “Protocol” by Alexander Galloway, and really enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to making time for its other half, “The Exploit.”

Current favorite apps?

Just give me a terminal, and I’m good. vim covers about 80% of what I need to do, and Safari or Chrome picks up the rest.

What OS do you prefer?

I’ve been a lifelong Mac user, and I still like OSX the best. I like Arch Linux almost as much, though.

Small picture for your Workplace?

It’s kind of hard to take a picture of half a dozen coffee shops. Nothing special.

Name something that has inspired you recently?

I’ve gotten a few emails from people saying that their kids are now enjoying programming by playing around with Hackety Hack. That’s probably the most inspiring thing.

What do you prefer (and why)? Freelance work or full time employment?

Freelance, for sure. Or entrepreneurship. I dislike the idea of working to make someone else wealthy, I’d rather work for myself.

What are your personal projects and goals for 2011?

• I want to work for other people 2 days per week on average for the year.
• I want to write something every day.
• I want to keep building on the initial success that Hackety Hack’s 1.0 launch has brought. I’d like to get a new release out every month or so, with a 2.0 for Christmas 2011.
• I want to start exercising again. My current lifestyle is still too sedentary for my liking.
• I want to eat better.
• I want to start logging my activities every day.