Wikimania 2011 Hackathon. Source: Wikimedia commons

A Decatur High School student will throw what’s being called the city’s first “hackathon” this weekend.

Duncan Trotter is looking for sponsors and participants for “HackDecatur.” The event will be held this July 5 and 6, from 9 am to 3 pm at the Decatur Recreation Center.

“This will be a two day gathering of programmers, designers, techologists and creative problem solvers working on software solutions to help local businesses,” the event announcement says.

So what is a hackathon? Wired.com describes it as “a marathon coding competition” intended to spark innovation.

Decatur Makers is helping to promote the event. Trotter is also looking for some help.

If you’d like to attend the event, click here to register.

If you own a local business and have a suggested problem you’d like the hackathon to tackle, email [email protected]

“Traditionally, there are bounties put on the various problems that arise at a hackathon,” the announcement says. “If you suggest a problem, please include a bounty (cash, merch, whatever) that lets people know how important the problem is to you.”

Trotter also needs hackathon fuel. He’ll take donations of sacks, drinks and bonus bounties. He also suggested providing cash, gift cards or other items to support the event. If you’re interested in contributing email [email protected]