I went to the TriPython meetup in Chapel Hill. I’m not an outgoing person and I would normally try to avoid this type of situation. That said, it was a good experience.

I’d learned a bit about machine learning in a database class, but Zach asked a question about it and a few of the other members talked about it. One went into how his company was using it for customer service tickets. It wasn’t relevant to my current work, but it was interesting to hear about. While I talk to some coders, I don’t know any that work primarily in Python, so it was nice to hear about it being used in a practical setting rather than as an intro to programming concepts. The willingness of the group to talk was good, but there was no pressure to stop working and join a discussion if you were in the middle of making some good progress. If I wanted to ask questions about my project I’m sure someone would have given me some help. People were gracious with their time and helping the less experienced people out.

I liked the environment as a place to get work done. Away from the responsibilities and distractions of home it is a place I could see returning to if I ever had my own project I needed to work on. Excluding the INLS contingent, the experience level was almost universally higher, and I could see it as a good place to find assistance or talk out a coding challenge. It’s nice to know the group is out there.

That said, I don’t think I’d become a regular member anytime soon. While I’d like to continue developing my ability, I need to try and do so at my job when possible. Between other obligations, I don’t have the time for coding as an evening out. If coding was a part of my job or I didn’t have grad school I’d want to go with the hope of learning from the more experienced members. After class I’ll probably need to rely on a few friends and colleagues if I need to talk out a problem.