Who is Jeffrey Way?

I’m a web developer who has a small (okay, large) case of OCD. Overall, if you do know me, you probably know me as either the Editor of the popular web development tutorial site, Nettuts+, or as the manager of a code marketplace, called CodeCanyon, where we sell scripts, components, premium WordPress plugins, and much more.

Where and when did you start programming?

I envy the guys who got started in this field when they were kids. I, unfortunately, was not part of that group. I first started digging into web development in college, and immediately became both hooked and frustrated beyond belief. Looking back, and knowing how much work is required to stay up to date, I’m not sure that I’d be willing to do all of this over again. It’s a monstrously difficult field to enter. Luckily, my naivety worked to my advantage, because, if I had known…. :)

Do you have a personal Brand?

Not really. These days, 98% of my efforts are put into the company I work for: Envato. Though, with that said, I do like to think that I’ve built a modest name for myself in the community. I focus a great deal on education, whether that comes in the form of books, tutorials, or screencasts. Speaking of which, my next book, called Theme Tumblr Like a Pro, should be out by the time this interview is published!

So, if you’re referring to a company brand, probably not. But, personally, I hope that I’m known as someone who can take complicated concepts (generally web dev related), and make them as easy as possible to understand.

How do you find design inspiration and colours for a new project?

Not much of a designer here, I’m afraid. I try, but I’ve slowly come to accept that design simply isn’t a strength that I possess.

What does your typical day look like?

I don’t yet have children (knock on wood); so I’m able to work odd hours each day, which is fantastic. Generally, I’ll work a few hours on Nettuts+ or CodeCanyon early in the morning. At that point, I’ll take a few hours off, where I then grab lunch and handle any errands and such. Toward the evening, I’ll get back online, and finish up my shifts.

As for specifics, it really depends on the day. One hour, I’ll be editing a new tutorial for Nettuts+. The next, I’ll find myself “strategizing” a new category for CodeCanyon. There’s lots of variety from week to week.

What do you do in your free time?

I’m a bit of a nerd. This usually means that I’ll make my way from screen to screen! All kidding aside, I’m definitely a movie buff, and enjoy a video game here and there when I find the time. I most recently picked up the new Metroid: Other M — which I’m about half-way through. Speaking of which, Metroid game devs: Samus can reload her missiles by “thinking” about it…really?? :)

Other than that, I enjoy traveling, and have always loved the idea of spinning the globe, and moving to wherever my finger landed for a year or so. I haven’t yet done that, but it’s on my bucket list!

Current favorite apps?

I’m a recent Vim convert, so I’ve spent the last week memorizing as many keyboard shortcuts as my brain can find room for. I found MacVim to be the perfect fit, while I’m still getting the hang of Vim.

As for other apps that are always open…hmmm… well there’s Forklift, Snippets, Echofon, Gabble, and Quick Search Box (all Mac apps).

What OS do you prefer?

For my job, I need to use both; however, I’m answering these questions on my Macbook. I suppose that’s an answer itself!

Small picture for your Workplace?

Favorite: Color, Font, Language, JS Framework?

• Color: Dark purple
• Font: Oh I don’t know. I’m a dev, yo. :)
• Language: I have a love/hate relationship with PHP. It’s amazingly easy to use, and a huge mess at the same time. Lately, I’ve been working with JavaScript a whole bunch. I think that’s a huge one to get into right now, if you’re just getting started in this field.

Name something that has inspired you recently?

That’s an easy one. Envato recently held its first team meet-up. If you’re not aware, most of us, excluding the core team in Melbourne, Australia, have never even met each other. This meet-up allowed all of us to spend a week together in Chicago, USA. It was the first time that I realized just how ridiculously intelligent all of my coworkers are. It pushes me to keep up with them!

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

I think I have the best of both worlds right now. I no longer take on Freelance projects (well, maybe one per year), yet, I’m still afforded the ability to work from home for Envato. This way, I don’t have to deal with office politics, or bosses looking over my shoulder!

What are your projects and goals for 2010?

I’ve already completed a handful of them, since 2010 is almost over! Wow, this year went by quickly, right? Let’s see…

• Wrote and published my “Theme Tumblr Like a Pro” book for Rockable Press.
• Helped write a book on WordPress for SitePoint, called “Build your own Wicked WordPress Themes.“
• My company recently launched our new education marketplace, which I’m very excited about. I have a handful of tutorials and screencasts for sale there, with more to come.
• I, just a week or so ago, finished up a custom Picasa gallery that I’d been working on.
• What’s next for CodeCanyon? Well…we’re about to take the mobile development world by storm!

Who is Ryan Bates?

I host and produce Railscasts, free Ruby on Rails screencasts which are released every Monday. Teaching is my passion, and I love doing it through screencasts.

Why Rails?

I got started with PHP but found I was quickly creating spaghetti code which had no structure. A large site became nearly unmaintainable so I looked for alternatives. Rails was a rising star at the time so I looked into it skeptically but was very impressed by the speed and ease in which I could create complex apps. I haven’t looked back since.

What does your typical day look like?

I work for my dad’s company, Artbeats, as the sole web developer. The rest of the time I usually spend working on Railscasts and open source projects.

What do you do in your free time?

I enjoy playing video games, bowling, tennis, movies, and spending time with my family.

Current favorite apps?

On the OS: TextMate, Terminal and Safari. I find it to be a fantastic
trinity for web development.

On the web: GitHub, Gmail and Twitter are what I find most useful.

What OS do you prefer?

Mac OS X.

Small picture for your Workplace?

Favorite: Language (PHP, Python …), JS Framework?

Ruby and jQuery.

What are your personal projects and goals for 2010?

I have something big in the works for Railscasts but I cannot speak of it yet. Shhh.