Hackathon 2016: The Son Gual Diaries

The Gravitywell team have arrived on the sunny island of Mallorca and, after filling ourselves with BBQ and fighting over the best rooms, we're ready to start Hackathon 2016!

So excited were we to get started, rather than ease ourselves in over the weekend to start fresh on Monday, after breakfast we started to build upon the foundations and ideas Chris had begun to build the week before. 

Although we don't want to reveal too much too soon, the general aim and premise for the week is to 'build a better ebay'. And how're we going to do that I hear you ask? Well that is what this week is for - to figure it out.

We started the day lounging by the pool for a general meeting / brainstorm to get the ball rolling, and then once we'd established what / where / and who was doing what, we split off around the villa to expand on ideas and build on the project.

Lunch was then a slightly tense affair as it quickly became apparent that during our separate brainstorming time the group had divided into two halves - the visual and the ease of use. Whilst half were set on making the platform as straightforward to use as possible, the others were concerned about the ability to browse. Between eating, we spent most of our time trying to bring each half together, and soon found ourselves going round in the same circles and coming back to the same issues time and time again.

It's also to important to remember that despite the fact we're in Mallorca, it is still March. So whilst still in heated and frustrated discussion the temperature began to dip. After trying to persist in staying outside and adding warm layers in vain, we decided to take advantage of the living room fire.

Hackathon quickly moved from Mediterranean retreat to Log Cabin cutch, and thawing out in the warm soon turned into a 3 hour discussion, several light bulb moments and a plan of action for the week!

We're still working away, but here's our summary of what we've learned from today:

- 3 hour discussions in front of a log fire are both highly productive and mentally draining
- Breathing room and space are better for ideas, rather than hotboxing it until it makes sense
- Poolside stand ups are the way of the future