2018 Give Back Gift List
Tags: givebackgiftlist, nontechnical, gratitude, opensource
Published: 2018-11-26 18:48:44

---
title: 2018 Give Back Gift List
published: true
tags: Give Back Gift List,non-technical,gratitude,opensource
canonical_url: https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/
cover_image: https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/cover-give-back-gift-list.jpg
---

Every Christmas season, I always dread the task of coming up with gift ideas for me that family members can use. Is that too expensive? Is it not expensive enough? Can this very specific electronics part be easily purchased? These are just some of the questions I ask myself every year but NOT this year. I’m going to 💀🐦🐦⚫. This year, I have the perfect way to build a list and it also checks off another thing I have been meaning to do. Support the free content producers and open source projects I use every day by purchasing their swag. So I present to you:

### 🎄🎄🎄 Dave Follett’s 2018 Give Back Gift List 🎄🎄🎄

### 1️⃣ [CodingBlocks Podcast](https://www.codingblocks.net/)

The [CodingBlocks podcast](https://www.codingblocks.net/) is the first podcast I ever listened to and is responsible for getting me hooked on using podcasts as a learning medium. The [podcast hosts](https://www.codingblocks.net/about/), [Allen Underwood](https://twitter.com/theallenu), [Joe Zack](https://twitter.com/thejoezack), and [Michael Outlaw](https://twitter.com/iamwaltuo), breakdown complex programming topics into easy to digest explanations and have a lot of fun along the way. They also operate a very active and supportive [slack channel](https://www.codingblocks.net/slack/). So I’m putting this nice CodingBlocks two tone coffee mug at the top of my list.

[ ![CodingBlocks Coffee Mug](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/codingblocks-mug.jpg)  
](https://www.zazzle.com/caffeine_then_code_two_tone_coffee_mug-168751073751910322)

### 2️⃣ [The Cynical Developer Podcast](https://cynicaldeveloper.com/)

Another favorite podcast of mine is [The Cynical Developer](https://cynicaldeveloper.com/). The host [James Studdart](https://twitter.com/JamesStuddart) produces weekly podcasts which are a mix of sharing his experience or conducting interviews on the latest development technology. I almost like this sharp blue t-shirt as much as i like his podcast. Almost.

[  
 ![Blue Cynical Developer T-Shirt](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/cynical-developer-blue-tshirt.jpg)  
](https://cynicaldeveloper.bigcartel.com/product/classic-tshirt-blue)

### 3️⃣ [Dev.to](https://dev.to/)

If you haven’t checked out [dev.to](https://dev.to/) yet, you really should. It’s a developer-friendly platform for publishing software development articles. I publish my articles to my own website but I also crosspost them to dev.to because they provide a canonical link to the original source. Led by [Ben Halpern](https://twitter.com/bendhalpern), [Jess Lee](https://twitter.com/jessleenyc), and [Peter Frank](https://twitter.com/PeterKimFrank), it has quickly become one of my go-to resources for reading about software development. They also have a [large store](https://shop.dev.to/) with a bunch of really nice items. I really hope I end up with the DEV hat!

[  
 ![Black Dev.to Hat](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/devto-hat.jpg)  
](https://shop.dev.to/collections/accesories/products/dev-hat?variant=13793615806573)

[  
 ![Grey Dev.to T-Shirt](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/devto-tshirt.jpg)  
](https://shop.dev.to/collections/2018-new-merch/products/dev-unisex-t-shirt)

[  
 ![Dev.to Sticker Pack](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/devto-stickers.jpg)  
](https://shop.dev.to/collections/accesories/products/sticker-pack-1)

### 4️⃣ [Ubuntu Linux](https://www.ubuntu.com/)

I’ve used [Linux](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux) a long time and [Ubuntu](https://www.ubuntu.com/) is my favorite distribution. For me, it strikes the right balance of being stable but also providing access to the latest software package versions. Also, they just announced that [Ubuntu 18.04 will be supported for 10 years](https://www.zdnet.com/article/mark-shuttleworth-reveals-ubuntu-18-04-will-get-a-10-year-support-lifespan/) so this t-shirt should be in style for a long time.

[  
 ![Ubuntu Bionic Beaver 18.04 LTS T-Shirt](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/ubuntu1804-tshirt.jpg)  
](https://shop.canonical.com/product_info.php?products_id=1258)

### 5️⃣ [Vue.js](https://vuejs.org/)

I’m not a [JavaScript](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JavaScript) developer during my day job so when I decided I want to learn about it and JavaScript frameworks, I picked [Vue.js](https://vuejs.org/) because I heard it had a low barrier to entry. And wow, I was completely blow away. Not only was it easy for a non-JavaScript developer to pick up, it provides an [excellent developer experience](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW6YycsYzHY&t=3884s) with its CLI and DevTools as well. [Evan You](https://twitter.com/youyuxi) (Vue creator) and his team have really created something special and I’d be happy to wear this t-shirt around town.

[  
 ![Vue.js T-Shirt](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/vue-tshirt.jpg)  
](https://vue.threadless.com/designs/vue-logo-2/mens/t-shirt/triblend?color=heather_onyx)

### 6️⃣ [Guillaume Chau](https://twitter.com/Akryum)

The Vue Core Team does some pretty amazing work and it’s crazy to think nearly all of them do it for free in their spare time after working other jobs. [Guillaume Chau](https://twitter.com/Akryum) is exactly one of those people and he works tirelessly to make Vue better. Recently he was a big part of the [Vue CLI UI](https://cli.vuejs.org/) and the new [Vue DevTools](https://github.com/vuejs/vue-devtools). He also recently released this cool vuefinity design t-shirt.

[  
 ![Vuefinity T-Shirt](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/vuefinity-tshirt.jpg)  
](https://akryum.threadless.com/designs/vuefinity/mens/t-shirt/regular?color=slate&size=x-large)

### 7️⃣ [Vuetify](https://vuetifyjs.com/)

I really struggle with CSS and making things look nice. So when I need to quickly make something that looks good, I go for the [Vuetify UI component library](https://vuetifyjs.com/). If you aren’t familiar, think of [Bootstrap](https://getbootstrap.com/) but with a material design and built into Vue components. They also have a cool logo that works well on this hat.

[  
 ![Navy Vuetify Hat](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/vuetify-hat.jpg)  
](https://vuetifyjs.com/en/store/product/1439739183146)

### 8️⃣ [GitLab](https://gitlab.com/)

I started using [GitLab](https://gitlab.com/) a few years ago because it offered free private repositories. I’ve stayed because it works so well and they have steadily rolled out feature after feature. I’m interested to see where this [100% remote working company](https://about.gitlab.com/company/culture/all-remote/) goes in the future. Check out this cool mug!

[  
 ![GitLab Mug](https://davefollett.io/2018/11/26/2018-give-back-gift-list/gitlab-mug.jpg)  
](https://shop.gitlab.com/collections/frontpage/products/camper-mug)

### 🎁 Wrap Up

I’m not quite sure how this will work out but I have high hopes to spread 💰 support and awareness to some of the free things I use everyday (while getting some cool gear). I can’t wait to see what I end up getting! I’ll be sure to update here with what ends up getting bought.