Hi, I am Jason LI a computer science student and tech enthusiast. When I learned about a Datathon coming to town I was curious what it meant and decided to participate in the IBM Z Datathon.  

I have to admit, it was an amazing journey participating in the IBM Z Datathon where I got to learn more about this technology and implement a ML project on LinuxONE Community Cloud (L1CC). There are so many things to talk about my experience and the L1CC platform. 

Production tools are vital to unleashing our creativity, and IBM’s L1CC lab is an ideal production environment. For example, we can create a robust virtual server with just a few clicks and the web interface is quite easy to use. An instance is created when I entered my name and some details. The platform is all-in-one, including access to files and folders, an easy-built Jupyter Notebook panel, and all the software such as Python and TensorFlow. 

I want to point out the fact that when I was playing with the platform, especially in prototyping my program on the server, the whole process was very smooth. This really stands out among other providers, as this minimal disruption helps me so much in focusing on my ideas. This is valuable because ideas, especially during a short period like a Datathon, can disappear in a flash, and I really don't want random errors to interrupt me during the process. For this reason, I like the LinuxONE Community Cloud very much. 

Something that really surprised me was the vast amount of help and resources online. As a passionate individual in computer science, I relied so much on YouTube and help from my friends. Yet, when I joined this Datathon, I discovered platforms such as Google Data Search, Hugging Face, Roboflow, and Kaggle. I was really impressed that I could access almost all kinds of datasets that truly unrestricted me from designing any kind of neural network. 

I also realized that there are so many people being brought together by esteemed companies such as IBM – people who are talented and passionate about the things they do. During and after the competition, I enjoyed having conversations with them so much. It is very respectable that there are lots of people who are not majoring in computer science but are able to develop their skills in this field. When we were sharing our thoughts and ideas on our project, I was intrigued by their algorithm design from time to time. 

Without a doubt, it is this opportunity provided by IBM that brings everything together, allowing me to reimagine what I am capable of in this information world. And I am ready to use what I have learned during this journey to make a positive impact on our society. 

As a winning team of the IBM Z Datathon, what I am really looking forward to is the mentorship that my team will receive from an IBM Z Subject Matter Expert to continue to build on our project idea from the Datathon.  

I would recommend students interested in exploring machine learning on IBM Z to check out the LinuxONE Community Cloud (L1CC). Take advantage of the resources, tutorials, and labs for machine learning on this platform, allowing users to leverage the power of mainframe technology for their projects. 

The best place to get started on your journey with IBM Z is IBM Z Xplore - a no-cost online learning platform that is a fun and interactive hands-on experience. Log-in or sign-up to check out the IBM LinuxONE challenges, including the Machine Learning on L1CC lab. It's your gateway to a world of possibilities!