Will Little @wclittle Subscribe

Partner at Prota Ventures.
I'm a bioengineer-turned-software-developer and venture builder/investor. Learn more about me professionally on LinkedIn, personally here, and check out my podcast, Ventures.

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 Will Little

Dec 15, 2020
Startups Startup Fundraising Ventures Podcast Kickstarter

The Bird Buddy story, raising over $2m on Kickstarter, and growing an IoT company :: with Franci Zidar and Kyle Buzzard

In this episode of Ventures, my guests Franci Zidar (https://mybirdbuddy.com) and Kyle Buzzard (https://protaventures.com) discuss the Bird Buddy story from an idea to a successful Kickstarter campaign. Bird Buddy is a smart bird feeder that notifies users of visiting birds with a live stream and AI-assisted photo capturing features. We discuss many aspects of the story to date, including early validation work, design interactions, and the incorporation of feedback from interested customers. We also dive into practical advice for aspiring hardware/IoT entrepreneurs considering a Kickstarter campaign as part of their marketing strategy.

Will Little

Dec 13, 2020
Software Development Ruby on Rails JavaScript

Course update Dec 13, 2020: Learning to code (plus, office hours / class session **this Thursday** Dec 17)

A quick update about some questions and answers that I have been discussing recently with students.
Will Little

Dec 9, 2020
Software Development Will's General Newsletter

Web development, rockets, startups, and noninertial reference frames

In this newsletter I talk about my podcast episode on web development and thoughts on the analogy of startups as rockets.

Will Little

Dec 8, 2020
Software Development Redux Ruby on Rails React Ventures Podcast Stimulus.js

Web development for startups vs. enterprises, StimulusReflex vs. React, and New Magic with Ruby on Rails :: with Joe Clarke and David Parrott

In this episode of Ventures, my guests Joe Clarke (TaskBill.io) and David Parrott (ProtaVentures.com) and I dive deep into the world of web development. We discuss its history over the past few decades, languages and frameworks, tools for entrepreneurs, tips for those learning to code, and thoughts about the upcoming “New Magic” from the Rails and Basecamp communities.
Will Little

Dec 2, 2020
Software Development Will's General Newsletter

Design, the future of work, and learning to code over the holidays

Is this newsletter I talk about my podcast with Joel Fariss, and the 7 posts I published over the weekend helping students learn to code.
Will Little

Dec 1, 2020
Startups Ventures Podcast Future of Work Design

Design, innovation, work, and the future of humanity :: with Joel Fariss

In this episode, Joel Fariss - a design research and strategic futures associate at Gensler (https://www.linkedin.com/in/joelfariss/) - and I discuss the nuances of the word “design” in light of 2020 and the future of work and innovation. Based on his experience at Gensler and in the nonprofit world, we dive into the connection between design and value for humanity, the need for time and space for humans to innovate, and the role of grief to create a more equitable work environment.

Will Little

Nov 30, 2020
Software Development Redux Ruby on Rails

Redux, Rails, and ActionCable :: Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs: Part 7 of 10

This post is part 7 of a 10-part series within a series that is designed to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. Here we’ll dive even further into Redux by wiring it up with ActionCable from Rails.
Will Little

Nov 30, 2020
Software Development Redux React

Sending form data with Redux and React :: Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs: Part 6 of 10

This post is part 6 of a 10-part series within a series that is designed to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. Here we’ll dive even further into Redux and React, which we introduced in part 5.
Will Little

Nov 30, 2020
Software Development Redux React

Redux and React :: Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs: Part 5 of 10

This post is part 5 of a 10-part series within a series that is designed to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. Here we’ll begin diving into Redux and React.
Will Little

Nov 30, 2020
Software Development Ruby on Rails JavaScript Stimulus.js

Stimulus.js, StimulusReflex, and CableReady :: Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs: Part 4 of 10

This post is part 4 of a 10-part series within a series that is designed to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. Here, we’ll dive into Stimulus.js and StimulusReflex with CableReady.

Will Little

Nov 30, 2020
Software Development Ruby on Rails JavaScript

JavaScript and Ruby on Rails :: Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs: Part 3 of 10

This post is part 3 of a 10-part series within a series that is designed to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. Here we’ll dive into JavaScript and introduce Ruby on Rails models, migrations, and PostgreSQL.

Will Little

Nov 29, 2020
Software Development Ruby on Rails CSS

Shell Scripting and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) :: Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs: Part 2 of 10

This post is part 2 of a 10-part series within a series that is designed to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. Here we’ll dive into Shell Scripting and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS).

Will Little

Nov 29, 2020
Software Development Ruby on Rails

Full-stack web development "Hello World" tutorials for entrepreneurs with Rails, React, and Turbo :: Part 1 of 10

This article kicks off a 10-part series of “Hello World” tutorials to teach full-stack web development for entrepreneurs. We’ll move quickly through the basics of code for web browsers (HTML, CSS, and JavaScript), Git, Shell scripting, Ruby on Rails (routes, controllers, models, views, and partials), Stimulus/StimulusReflex, Redux/React, Hotwire, and testing/linting in Ruby and JavaScript.

Will Little

Nov 24, 2020
Startups Software Development Will's General Newsletter Social Entrepreneurship

Innovation in media, landing livable wage jobs, private commenting in Satchel, and prep work for learning to code

In this newsletter I talk about my podcast with Omari, our joint venture to help people of color land jobs, a private commenting experience on Satchel I built this past weekend, and CSS/JS assignments for students learning to code.
Will Little

Nov 24, 2020
Startups Ventures Podcast Social Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship and innovation in media, No Excuses Jobs, and the Converge Media story :: with Omari Salisbury

In today’s episode of Ventures I had the honor of interviewing Omari Salisbury (https://twitter.com/Omarisal) about his journey as an entrepreneur in the international media space, his company Converge Media (https://www.whereweconverge.com/), their unique spotlight in Seattle, and their new campaign NoExcusesJobs (https://NoExcusesJobs.com) in collaboration with Prota Ventures (https://www.protaventures.com).