Deadline24 was an international team programming marathon. During the contest, the teams of three tackled algorithmic problems. Everyone could demonstrate knowledge, skills, creativity, and perseverance – the competition’s final lasted continuously for 24 hours.
The first edition of Deadline24 was organized in 2009 in Gliwice, Poland, and it was the only event of that kind in the country. Back then, it was a small meeting for the fans of algorithmics. The idea was originated by Tomasz Łakota and Mateusz Brzeszcz – graduates of the Silesian University of Technology.
In next years the competition gained an international character, and the number of people interested in it was growing every year. In the qualifying round, the contestants were from such countries as Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Russia, Ukraine, the United States, Great Britain, South Africa, Belarus, China, Switzerland, India, and Brazil.
The plot of the contest tasks, based on the adventures of beetlejumpers, was not the only distinguishing feature of Deadline24. It was also about the venues where it used to be organized, always closely related to the industrial tradition of the Silesia Province.
The final of the last 10th edition of Deadline24 was held at the Silesian Stadium in Chorzów, Poland. Previously, in 2016 and 2017 it took place in Muzeum Śląskie in Katowice, four stories underground. In 2015 the finalists were hosted in “Elektrownia” Modern Art Gallery in Czeladź. A year before, we were in the “Ludwik” Historic Coal Mine in Zabrze, and 2012 and 2013 editions took place in the “Guido” Historic Coal Mine at 320 meters underground.
During the contest, the participants had to face unusual creatures called beetlejumpers (Polish: żukoskoczki).
In 2009, it turned out that those outstanding creatures from the Universum were extremely useful as they could neutralize the Negative Energy Carriers and thus contribute to saving the world. Beetlejumpers could walk, jump, harden the surface, commit seppuku, and breed. They could also transmit what they just saw. Unfortunately, they were extremely lazy, and they needed a lot of motivation to work. The participants’ task was to tame and train those wild but interesting creatures.
A year later, we learned more about beetlejumpers, who were traveling to different planets by an intergalactic car. The research on how to raise the population of these useful creatures was carried out as beetlejumpers didn’t breed in their natural environment (because of their laziness and lack of motivation).
They continued conquering the Universe afterward, developing transport base in their extensive colonies on the neighboring planets. They used cars called Żuk, a model that used to be produced on the Once Blue Planet. They also fought against bloodthirsty Coors and mined some precious materials.