Build these projects and I will HIRE you

Summary

This video presents five unique side project ideas that can help developers gain an unfair advantage in securing a job. Each project aims to solve real-world problems, from improving GitHub productivity tracking to creating a semantic search for chat history, and offering AI-powered AWS support. Developers who successfully build these products will not only have a paying customer but also gain exposure and recognition. The creator commits to supporting the best projects through direct payments and promotion. Open-source, security, and thoughtful design are key to succeeding in these challenges.

Takeaways

• 😀 Building real products for paying customers provides a significant advantage in securing a job over merely completing to-do list apps or clones of popular platforms.
• 😀 The speaker offers to be the first paying customer for any of the five side project ideas shared in the video, which can be valuable for building a portfolio and gaining exposure.
• 😀 A VS Code extension for GitHub productivity tracking could provide a more accurate and meaningful log of coding activity compared to the flawed GitHub activity monitor, with 30-minute commit intervals summarizing what was worked on.
• 😀 The semantic search tool for chat history solves the problem of inefficiently searching through old messages for key information (e.g., passwords, addresses) by using AI to search across multiple messaging platforms.
• 😀 The 'Win My Argument' app leverages AI to provide references from academic studies, enabling users to back up their arguments with credible data in real-time, especially during casual debates.
• 😀 AWS Supporter is a proposed Chrome extension that uses AI to assist users with AWS's complex interface by providing step-by-step guides and highlighting necessary buttons for tasks.
• 😀 A mobile app designed to make buying and selling domains as easy and visually appealing as stock trading apps like Robinhood could cater to the domain-buying community and increase domain transactions.
• 😀 Open-source projects are a key requirement for transparency, data security, and trust, ensuring users have control over what data they share with the tools built.
• 😀 The speaker emphasizes the importance of building a landing page using tools like Hostinger to promote and sell the product without spending too much time on the website itself.
• 😀 Monetary offers for each project range from $10/month to $40/month, with the best product being chosen for payment, incentivizing developers to focus on quality and usability.
• 😀 The speaker encourages developers to explore these projects, as solving real problems for real customers with a functional product can lead to meaningful career opportunities and help with exposure.

Q & A

What is the main goal of these five side project ideas?

The main goal of these side project ideas is to help developers build real, usable products that not only solve actual problems but also give them an unfair advantage in job hunting and attract paying customers.

Why is the GitHub activity tracker project useful?

The GitHub activity tracker project is useful because it provides a more accurate and detailed log of a developer's coding activity by tracking contributions every 30 minutes, rather than relying on the misleading GitHub activity monitor. It encourages good software engineering practices and helps developers showcase their work effectively.

What are the key technical challenges in creating the semantic search for chat history app?

The key challenges include securely gathering chat data from multiple platforms (like Slack, WhatsApp, etc.), ensuring data privacy through encryption, and implementing an AI-based semantic search system that goes beyond basic keyword search to deliver more accurate results based on the meaning of the query.

What is RAG, and why is it important for the semantic search project?

RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) is a technique that uses AI models to retrieve relevant information from a large database of documents (like chat history) and generate responses based on that information. It is important for the semantic search project because it enables the app to provide more accurate, context-aware answers to user queries by pulling from past conversations.

How can the 'Win My Argument' project be helpful in everyday life?

The 'Win My Argument' project helps users quickly find studies and academic papers to support their claims in debates or discussions, making it easier to reference credible sources and strengthen arguments during conversations with friends, family, or colleagues.

What makes the AWS Supporter Chrome Extension different from other AWS tools?

The AWS Supporter Chrome Extension stands out by integrating AI to guide users through AWS's complex interface. It doesn't just reference documentation but also visually highlights the correct buttons and explains step-by-step processes to help users perform tasks more efficiently.

Why is a sleek and easy-to-use app important for domain buying and selling?

A sleek and user-friendly app for domain buying and selling is crucial because it appeals to tech enthusiasts who are looking for a smooth, Robinhood-like experience. It simplifies the process of discovering, purchasing, and reselling domains, while also making it easy for users to showcase their domain portfolios.

What is the significance of making these projects open-source?

Making these projects open-source ensures transparency, builds trust with users, and encourages collaboration. It allows others to contribute to the projects, review the code for security and quality, and ultimately promotes the idea of community-driven development.

How will the ranking website help developers who build these projects?

The ranking website will help developers by providing exposure for the best submissions, allowing potential customers to find and purchase the products. It also helps developers gain credibility, attract attention from other businesses or recruiters, and potentially increase sales for their products.

What tools are suggested for creating the landing page for the project?

The transcript suggests using Hostinger, a drag-and-drop website builder, to quickly create a professional landing page for the project. Hostinger provides easy-to-use tools for website design, SEO optimization, and hosting, allowing developers to focus on building the actual product rather than spending too much time on the landing page.