Do you enjoy or find time to write code outside of work?

If you have an option, listen.

I usually start from presentation layer and dig deep into the data models. Sometime, in reverse order if the codebase is fairly bigger.

>> I've got several prototypes, one being evaluated by a publisher currently, and I've been going to conventions and networking with other people in the industry. If one of my designs ends up being a hit, I should have enough money to make the transition.

Care to share more on this ? If I want to, where do I start making board game prototypes ? An email would do good, I don't see your contact info on your profile. All the best.

Just Two things:

1) Always be writing code to build things.

2) Be selling what you build.

Without (1) you won't grow professionally.

Without (2) you won't survive.

thanks :) . how to learn about the selling part?

Yes I can.

Write code.

Write some more code.

Write code again.

Do it everyday.

Do it until you can't live without doing it.

How reasonable is it to make issue tracking and social interaction part of the SCM itself [with optional web interface] ?

git issues "This needs attention"

>> Issue #1 created

git issues

>> List of issues

git issues -u #11

>> Issue #11 up voted

>> #11 Important stuff, needs attention

git issues -d #6

>> Issue #6 down voted

git issues -f #4

>> Issue #4 flagged

Your `.git` directory would become huge pretty quickly and you would have plenty of problems with people commenting on issues without having a repo up-to-date. How would you handle conflicts in that case?

How is that a different problem than people editing code in a repo that's out of date?

You have to be a coder to participate~

>> Should I just burn my CS degree ?

Neah !! Jobs are not about the degree only, still having a degree always adds up. Try half a dozen other companies. This response is typical of small size startup who instead of inviting you for a drink invite you to an interview with their two person team. I was rejected by three companies (2+ engineers) before the present company (15+ engineers) made me an offer. It wasn't even a coding interview at all, the Sr. Engineer wanted to have a conversation for a couple of minutes.

If I'm not mistaken parent is talking about 'working for a startup' that IMHO isn't as risky as 'co-founding' the startup, which of-course has its whistle bells. Why would a 10th employee join a startup for the risk and not for the money ?

The OP as well talks about "founding a startup". I agree it is unclear what he is talking about.