James Kotecki

Automated Insights: Adding a robot data scientist right into your spreadsheet

Posted by James Kotecki | May 25, 2016

Editor’s note: Durham-based Automated Insights, which is best known for its “robotic writing” software for news, sports and much more, is adding a new dimension to spreadsheets: “Actionable text.” How? Read this explanatory blog from Automated Insight’s James Kotecki, the firm’s director of communications. DURHAM, N.C. – We’ve got exciting news to share! Our “robot writing” software, Wordsmith, is now available directly within Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. You can use our natural language generation technology to create clear, actionable text from your data inside the spreadsheets you work with every day. It’s like your own robot data scientist,...

Want to Think Like a Tech Company? Start a Website

Posted by James Kotecki | Jul 25, 2013

After learning to code for several weeks, I’ve finally built my own website from scratch (thanks, TextEdit!). Now, not only do I know everything about web design, I also know everything about the tech industry! Well, maybe not. But it sure feels like I’ve learned a lot: Simplicity is complicated. Even with my minimalist design intentions, I found that there were a number of decisions I needed to make about how the site should look and behave. How much instruction did I want to give the user? Did I want something special to happen if the user left the...

3 Ways JavaScript is Like Improv Comedy

Posted by James Kotecki | Jul 9, 2013

Photo by Kara Phelps It’s been four weeks since I started learning to code, and I’m prepared to reveal some deep truths . . . about improv comedy. Turns out my JavaScript lessons on Codecademy have a lot in common with my improv lessons at the DSI Comedy Theater. 1. Small Choices Build a Complex Reality The two magic words of improv are “yes—and.” By agreeing with your scene partner and then building on their suggestion, you can create complex worlds from simple ideas. You agree on an escalating set of truths and then explore the result. “Yes, we’re...

VICTORY! Hacking Up a Mini-Win

Posted by James Kotecki | Jul 4, 2013

Coding update! According to Codecademy, I am on a 17-day learning streak. That may sound impressive, but I still spent a solid ten minutes today completely flummoxed by a colon. Turns out it needed to be a semicolon for the code to work. Come on, JavaScript, you knew what I meant! You’re never going to become sentient at this rate. Anyway, I am happy to report that this week I had a CODING VICTORY! Someone mentioned that on a website we were building, the title had to be an image file. “Wait a minute,” I thought. “I think we...

Learning To Code Has Taught Me Nothing

Posted by James Kotecki | Jun 25, 2013

Note: This is part 2 in James Kotecki’s ongoing saga You Should Learn To Code. He’s planning on going from blogger to rockstar coder with nothing but Codecademy and a sense of humor. Dear coders of the world, How the hell am I ever supposed to catch up to you? Seriously, how? I’ve been working in Codecademy for 10 days straight now, and you know what I’ve realized? I. Know. Nothing. Sure, it feels like I’ve made a lot of progress. It was fun to blaze through HTML and CSS. Now I’m on to Javascript, where I’ve gained the...

You Should Learn To Code

Posted by James Kotecki | Jun 18, 2013

Call me crazy, but this whole Internet thing seems like it’s really catching on. Barring the planet-wide collapse of civilization, it’s pretty safe bet that computers will just keep getting more important to our lives. Maybe now is a good time to understand how they work. Mashable says coding is “21st-Century literacy.” As a blogger, I’m still at a Sesame Street level. Douglas Rushkoff frames the issue quite starkly for me in the title of his book: Program or be Programmed. “Choose the former,” says Rushkoff, “and you gain access to the control panel of civilization. Choose the latter,...

Five Tips from Startup Stampede Pitch Day

Posted by James Kotecki | Aug 1, 2012

Durham’s third Startup Stampede came to an end Monday at Beyu Caffe with good food, cold beers, and two-minute closing pitches from a handful of impressive startups. The startups didn’t just have polished business models—they also communicated their ideas effectively to a packed house. Here are five great pitching tips from five of the evening’s Stampede company presentations: 1. Get Their Attention Early Some audience members talked during some of the pitches. But everyone stopped to listen to The Art of Cool Project, which started its pitch with a dynamite trumpet solo. The company is passionate about brining jazz...

Mint Market Launches, Makes Me Hungry

Posted by James Kotecki | Jul 24, 2012

On Sunday, a new local food market will launch online. Mint Market will connect Triangle chefs with local farmers for maximum local efficiency, and deliciousness. After salivating over Mint Market’s press release, I chatted with founder Ricky Spero to learn more. What’s your favorite story about how customers used Mint Market during beta testing? In the very first sale during the beta period, Ever Laughter Farm sold $60 of Swiss chard to Scott Howell at Nana’s. Sam at Ever Laughter could drive up to Nana’s, knock on the door of the kitchen, hand the staff his box, and just...

Cherokee Challenge Launches Inaugural Greentech Class

Posted by James Kotecki | Jul 16, 2012

We love all startups here at !ExitEvent, but let’s face it: not all startups do things your grandparents can understand. Fortunately, the Cherokee Challenge accelerator is kicking off a new crop of startups you can write home about. Do you live on the earth? Congratulations, you’ll benefit from the environmentally-focused work these startups are doing. As the inaugural accelerator class, LYF Shoes, JouleBug, and Sanitation Creations will get free Raleigh office space, $20,000 of seed funding, and a cleaner planet (well, technically, we’ll all get that). Here’s why even your grandparents will care: LYF Shoes LYF Shoes makes socks....

Posts by James Kotecki