Mark Your Trail

What is Bitcamp?

Bitcamp is a hackathon that values participant experience and mentorship over competitiveness and points. Come to have fun with your friends, learn something new, eat s’mores, and have a generally awesome time. We have all sorts of crazy activities planned for you...come find out the rest!

What’s a hackathon?

A hackathon is a creative marathon all about building cool things. Students are encouraged to come with an idea, form teams, and then build out that idea into a product in 36 hours. We want you to take something you love (sports, art, camping, anything!) and combine it with technology to make something awesome. It's a great time to push the envelope and learn some new skills.

What have past Bitcampers created?

From Augmented Reality Human-Scale Pong to a research paper detailing vulnerabilities in Google’s reCaptcha system, the projects at Bitcamp span across all categories and interests. You can check out all of the amazing submissions at the Bitcamp 2017 Devpost!

What if I have no experience or ideas?

Don't be afraid if you don't think you have enough experience, a team, or an idea. Everyone has a first hackathon, and we would love for Bitcamp to be yours! Mentors who are well-versed in a variety of topics will also be there to help you, whether it be finding a team, fleshing out an idea, or just figuring out where to begin.

How else can I get involved?

We'd love to get you on our volunteering or mentoring teams! If you'd like to help, please fill out this form. Also, be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates!

What is Slack?

Throughout the event, we will be using Slack as the main form of communication. Never used Slack before? Here's a quick introduction!

What is Devpost?

After the 36 hours, you’ll be submitting your project to DevPost for judging! New to Devpost? Here's a quick introduction!

What hardware will be available at Bitcamp?

Arduinos, sensors (ultrasonic, photoresistors, thermisters), inputs (buttons, switches), outputs (LEDs, piezo speakers, 7-segment displays, micro servo motors), passive components (resistors, capacitors, diodes), and wiring.

Timing

Participants will arrive between 5PM and 8PM on Friday, April 6th, 2018. Our Sponsor Fair will also be at 7PM, where you can spend time going around and check out our different sponsor booths. Hacking starts Friday evening after opening ceremony. Closing ceremony will begin at 1PM on Sunday, April 8th, 2018.

Location

We are proud to host Bitcamp at the Xfinity Center on the University of Maryland campus! This expansive sports arena is a unique spot for any event, and we’re excited to be back again!

Travel

We'll have buses covering the hike from Stony Brook, NYU, GWU, Georgetown, American, and UMBC. Information about securing your spot on these buses will be sent out soon! Travel reimbursement applications have closed for this year.

Packing List

Bring yourself, a photo ID, your signed waiver (if applicable), a change of clothes, toiletries, a towel, a sleeping bag/blanket, your hacker setup (laptop, charger, headphones, tablet for designers), and maybe an idea or two!

Teams

Projects are submitted by teams to DevPost. You don't need to finalize your team until project submissions are due during the event. You may work individually or in a team of up to four campers. Don’t have a team in mind? No problem! Hacking will kick off with an optional team formation event.

Guidelines

Don't bring any firearms, knives, weapons, drugs, or alcohol. Don't use an old project. Start a new trail instead! Also, please read the Major League Hacking Code of Conduct and the Bitcamp Terms, Code of Conduct, and Release Waiver. Organizers will enforce this code throughout the event. We are expecting cooperation from all participants to help ensure a safe environment for everybody (TL;DR be nice).

Other questions?

Send us an email at [email protected] or message us on Facebook!