Frequently Asked Questions
Wait, what actually is a hackathon?
A hackathon is an event where teams of people come together to work on a shared project inspired by an event-provided theme. Mountain Madness will have 24-hours of development time allotted, during which teams will start from scratch and try to make the coolest thing they can before the time is up.
Where is Mountain Madness?
TASC 9204 on SFU's Burnaby Campus (but you can attend remote too).
Why should I participate?
A hackathon is a great way to get experience with some new technologies and to work as a team to accomplish a goal. Hackathon projects are also a great addition to a resume!
I am in my first year/don't have much experience, should I still participate?
Yes! This hackathon is free and it is a great learning opportunity for people will less development experience.
Do I need to stay up during the entire event?
No! You are welcome to spend as much or as little of the 24 hours as you wish. Even though it is reading break, sleep is important so try to get some.
How do we declare teams?
We do not need to know your team until the event begins. When you give us your submission github/gitlab link you will declare your group.
Will there be food?
Yes! We will be providing food for in person attendees.
Can I have Non-SFU people and Alumni join my team?
Yes! We will allow groups to be made up of non-SFU students however we want a majority of the team to be made up of SFU student. So a group of 5 can have up to 2 non-SFU participants. Teams do not need to be be declared until participating at the event.
Can I work on my previous projects?
No, the goal of the event is to see what awesome things you can make in a 24 hour period of time. So to start from an existing project is against the spirit of the event. Existing open-source libraries and frameworks are fine, of course. Ask an organizer if you are unsure if you can use some code.
What size should my team be?
Teams can have no more than 5 members; beyond that organizing yourselves becomes a nightmare. You can work alone if you really want to, but you'll have a worse experience. Don’t worry if you don't have a team before the event, we help all the single people form teams. From past experience groups of 3 often work quite well!
How much does it cost?
The event is free!