# A course for Geoffrey **URL:** \ **Category:** Other\ **Created:** [8 September 2023 10:57 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537 "2023-09-08T10:57:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SteveW](https://ifnotnil.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/f05b48/32.png) [@SteveW](https://ifnotnil.com/u/SteveW)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 10:57 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/1 "2023-09-08T10:57:27Z")
[The University of Maryland, College Park: The Citizen Developer Mindset: Creating Business Solutions with Design Thinking](https://www.edx.org/learn/business-administration/the-university-of-maryland-college-park-the-citizen-developer-mindset-creating-business-solutions-with-design-thinking) > Learn how to use design thinking to create training programs to teach citizen developers in design thinking. That’s a lot of “design thinking” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Torsten\_B](https://ifnotnil.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/ecae2f/32.png) [@Torsten\_B](https://ifnotnil.com/u/Torsten_B)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 12:06 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/2 "2023-09-08T12:06:59Z")
You mean “back to school!”? ---
**Author:** ![TomasJ](https://ifnotnil.com/user_avatar/ifnotnil.com/tomasj/32/4998_2.png) [@TomasJ](https://ifnotnil.com/u/TomasJ)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 14:44 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/3 "2023-09-08T14:44:49Z")
…for somebody close to his pension? Nah… ---
**Author:** ![Karen](https://ifnotnil.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@Karen](https://ifnotnil.com/u/Karen)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 15:08 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/4 "2023-09-08T15:08:18Z")
That got me to goole the definition of “Citizen Developer”. One I found is: > [@](#): > > A citizen developer is an employee with no/low coding knowledge who creates software applications for their team or others, using low-code/no-code platforms without the involvement of IT. By that definition IMO Xojo is not a tool for “citizen Developer”… Abstracting the nitty gritty of low level OS stuff to not have to deal with a lot of it as Xojo does, is not the same as products that need “no/low coding knowledge” to create anything really useful. (and they tend to hamstring you way too much!!!) I have been a “citizen developer” for almost 40 years, and I can say from experience more than minimal coding experience is needed to produce robust solutions! > [@](#): > > They build apps in runtime environments with development methods approved and sanctioned by IT. That has not been my experience… -Karen ---
**Author:** ![npalardy](https://ifnotnil.com/user_avatar/ifnotnil.com/npalardy/32/10_2.png) [@npalardy](https://ifnotnil.com/u/npalardy)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 15:27 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/5 "2023-09-08T15:27:05Z")
Some of this sound like it would be really useful > [@](#): > > - Trainers will teach citizen developers Observation techniques to scope out the customer’s problem fully. > - Trainers will expose citizen developers to Empathy techniques to help citizen developers better understand the causes of the customer’s problem. > - Trainers will teach citizen developers a variety of Solution techniques to develop no-code/low-code apps that will meet the customer’s needs. > - Then, the citizen developer is taught Prototyping techniques to build possible solutions to test how well their no-code/low-code apps solve the customer’s problems. The first, second and last item would be super nice to see in action at a certain green company ---
**Author:** ![Torsten\_B](https://ifnotnil.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/ecae2f/32.png) [@Torsten\_B](https://ifnotnil.com/u/Torsten_B)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 17:24 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/6 "2023-09-08T17:24:26Z")
‘Empathy techniques’ employed by Xojo’s management team. Not going to happen. These people are wired in a completely different way. ---
**Author:** ![DaveS](https://ifnotnil.com/user_avatar/ifnotnil.com/daves/32/79_2.png) [@DaveS](https://ifnotnil.com/u/DaveS)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 17:50 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/7 "2023-09-08T17:50:46Z")
not EMPATHY, but PATHETIC just spelled wrong ---
**Author:** ![npalardy](https://ifnotnil.com/user_avatar/ifnotnil.com/npalardy/32/10_2.png) [@npalardy](https://ifnotnil.com/u/npalardy)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 18:40 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/8 "2023-09-08T18:40:13Z")
For me “empathy techniques” has a particularly laughable connotation when it comes to the green co It made me chuckle out loud when I read that in the course syllabus ---
**Author:** ![npalardy](https://ifnotnil.com/user_avatar/ifnotnil.com/npalardy/32/10_2.png) [@npalardy](https://ifnotnil.com/u/npalardy)\ **Post date:** [8 September 2023 20:33 UTC](https://ifnotnil.com/t/a-course-for-geoffrey/3537/9 "2023-09-08T20:33:11Z")
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