Introducing Team Migraine
About Me
My name is Rocio Paez, I’ve been working in technology related logistics my entire professional life (I was very bored). And I always loved working with computers. In November 2013 I took a 3-month course in HTML, CSS and JavaScript, and I loved it. I discovered how a website is built, and the proper way to give styles to a page. It made me want to keep learning, so I quit my job and decided to learn Ruby and apply to the Rails Girls Summer of Code in 2014.
One of my hobbies is dancing flamenco, I’ve danced every night (Mon-Sat) since 2007, it’s my passion. At 32 years old I discovered that I have a second passion; programming. It came at a time in my life I felt discouraged because I did not love my job, and I did not know what it was that I really wanted to do in life. I know now that it’s programming.
My Project
I suffer from migraines, so I thought it would be interesting to develop an application for tracking migraines, and learn how to program by developing this application. The app attempts to help understand the causes of migraines more clearly. There are inputs and outputs. Inputs are what you put in your body (like food and beverages) or the way you feel (your mood, physical symptoms). You can configure your input types, too. Outputs are the headaches, with a way to measure a pain score and duration.
My Coaches and Supervisor
I have 2 coaches. One is my husband, Gustavo Beathtaye and the other one is Francesco Rodríguez. My supervisor is Susanne Dewein. Originally our way of working together was through Campfire, but we have now discovered Gitter. Gitter is very cool; it works with Github, and you can even write code in the chat window. I really recommend it!
This photo is one of the meetings (to talk about the plan for the app, in Barranco, Lima - Peru)
Framework
This app was initially made with Rails, but we wanted to try a different framework: Cuba. It was quite interesting to learn Cuba, and how it operates, but it has also given me a great interest in learning how Rails works (go figure!). So, after I finish my app, I’ll rewrite it with Rails.
My Training
I applied initially with a partner, but she had a problem and could not continue. This means I have completed most of the program by myself, but I would have liked a partner; I think would have been more fun and the app could be more complete.
I remember my early days, the slow progress I was making and posting about it. One of the things I loved was when I did my first pull request, it was pretty exciting to contribute to open source. I had to use a great deal of my newly learned CSS skills, dtoo. What has taken me longer to learn is to know the difference between class and instance methods.
While my Summer of Code ends next week, I’ll keep learning. I have heaps of plans in mind, and the skills I need to achieve them thanks to the program.
Thanks!
Take a look at my blog, and project repository