club Hackz

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What's this club all about?

This site is the home of clubHackz. We're just starting out, but we have Big Plans! Our club is designed around the idea of bringing free, and open-to-the-public computer education to Mason City, IA and the surrounding area.

Beginning soon, clubHackz will have regular meetings for its members (once we get a few of those), and it will offer free, public training to provide introductory and advanced programming classes for those wanting to get into the field of Information Technology (Computer Science).

Yes! We want to share the skills related to computer software development with anybody interested in the subject. For some, computer programming can seem intimidating or impossible to learn on their own. To others, getting a formal education in computer science is expensive, or is for some reason, "out of reach". If you have the interest to get started, we'd like to help you find your way.

But getting people started is just one of our goals. We also want to help each other to grow, and to improve skills. Sharing ideas with other people involved with computers is one of the best ways to learn.

Classes are being planned now. The subject of our first course is "Introduction to Programming", but there are things that our members need to decide upon. One of which is, "What language should we teach?" C# is a powerful and modern language to learn, but C++ gives a better understanding of how computers work. This and other thoughts are being cosidered, so join our free club now and let your opinion be known.

Is it really free? Yes, but donations are requested: We will provide the training at no charge to the general public. At each class meeting, we will accept donations of any amount, but no payment will EVER be required. In fact, the collection method will be more of a tips jar than anything else. We will use donations to pay for the use of the training room (probably at the Mason City public library), training materials, etc. The goal is not to make money, but to help the community learn to enjoy their computers.


You can also use this link if you want to help out:

The clubHackz idea is the brain-child of Ray Wilfong. Ray recently moved from his home-town (San Antonio, TX) to settle in his wife's home-town (Mason City, IA). After settling here, Ray began to notice that there are few resources for computer education in the area. Through his research Ray found almost no opportunity for the general public to receive low-cost computer science training in Mason City. This amazed Ray since he was able to take advanced computer science classes at his public high school in San Antonio, "way back in 1985." Always the optimist, Ray decided that he could help fill this need in the area.

Ray was interested in programming when he got his first computer in 1982. He learned to program that computer through reading, and a lot of trial and error. Later, he took programming classes in high school, and he studied computer electronics in college. He has been a "professional" computer programmer since 1993. He now wants to pass some of that experience to everybody in the community, because he now considers Mason City his home.

One final note: In Ray's opinion, Northern Iowa has a shortage of computer based jobs, and a shortage of computer based workers. Ray knows he can't change this: one person can't do that much alone. But by increasing the knowledge, interest, and support base for those with a desire to learn about computers, who knows where it could lead?