How do you even pronounce your name anyway?
Published on: 2026-02-07
Hi there! Now that this website is a bit more presentable, I figured it’s about time I properly introduced myself. But first, a little update on my progress this week!
This week, I spent quite a bit of time making this website actually look good. I’m about two thirds done with the Astro framework tutorial (the technology I’m using to build this thing). It’s really neat, and it’s been a great way for me to finally get back into doing some web dev stuff.
The idea is to finish the tutorial to see what other features Astro has to offer, and then all bets are off! I want to build a page to showcase the projects I do at school, with screenshots and maybe even some demo videos. This is supposed to be a hybrid blog/portfolio, after all.
Now, now, enough banter. Let’s get to the main event. It might be good to start from the beginning.
I’m glad you asked! You can call me ash, short for Aisling Fontaine. I’m a Swiss student currently studying computer science at 42 school.
Yeah. It’s supposed to be a reference to that book, which (I know, I know) I haven’t read. Yet. I’m a disgrace to the entire 42 ecosystem.
Here’s the thing: 42 is a network of schools around the globe, focused on peer-learning through a different approach from traditional “schools”. The idea is simple: we have projects to complete, involving any number of technologies from C/C++ to Python, with a bit of web dev and Docker Compose sprinkled about. No teachers, no tuition fees. Obviously there’s staff on site, but the pedagogy happens entirely through your fellow students and stuff you find online.
Our projects still have to be corrected by someone, obviously! So, when our code is ready to go and all lights are green, we submit it to the schools’ intranet. Then, other students will be assigned your code to review, and they’ll come to you to check it out. We have a list of requirements per projects that have to be respected, otherwise you fail the project (and can try again pretty much as many times as you like). There’s no penalty for failing, aside from having to wait for a few days before resubmitting your project.
This means that you’re pretty much free to work on your curriculum as you like. Ask others or do it yourself (in the case of solo projects, obviously you have to do team projects with your team), the important part is that your understand what you did for the evaluation.
I like to do music, actually! I’m currently learning electric bass, and I’ve already tried my hand at composing before. You can check it all out on my Linktree. I plan to build a page to showcase my music here, eventually.
Aside from that, I enjoy casual gaming and just learning about stuff. Most often that “stuff” is computer science or directly adjacent to it; I’m pretty passionate about what I do.
And that’s also why I built this place! The idea is to share what I’m learning with others, so that it might be easier for others to learn in turn.
Oh and, it’s just pronounced ASH-ling.
~ash