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Man it’s so great to see sites like this continue to thrive. At the same time, I am once again amazed at how little revenue a publicly touted successful proje

Man it’s so great to see sites like this continue to thrive. At the same time, I am once again amazed at how little revenue a publicly touted successful project makes.

quickthrower2 7y ago
$200k/y. One developer? Digital nomad friendly? Freedom from the pointy haireds? No real need to do 40h/ week? I think that is damn fantastic revenue.
- truebosko 7y ago
  That's revenue, so not .. quite what he's taking home. Less cost of servers, then benefits which he's not getting from an employer, 401k matching, etc. It adds up but yes .. the freedom is nice :)
- patryn20 7y ago
  Oh I’m not disputing it’s good for a single developer along with the freedom. It’s just that these projects always get talked up as huge successful life changing products (like Bingo Card Creator and appointment reminders etc) and then have really small revenue numbers attached to them. Don’t get me wrong, kudos to the developers for building something people love and that give them the lifestyle they want. I just think these projects are often overhyped to seem more than what they actually are: lifestyle projects.
  - idlewords 7y ago
    I mean, they are life-changing projects. This is not my lifestyle, but my life. What more do you want?
    - jholman 7y ago
      Frankly, if you don't have a bespoke Pagani Zonda with your initials in the model name, we're collectively unsure that your lifestyle has enough style or enough life. Thinking it over, I might not even invite you to my birthday party.
- patryn20 7y ago
  And to be very clear: I don’t think the developer in this case is overhyping anything. I think the community is. His writing is super entertaining and he has made a great product.
- underwater 7y ago
  It's a lot for a single developer. But not a lot for a product that has a lot of mind share and receives a lot of free publicity via outlets like this.
idlewords 7y ago
It feels like a lot of money to me.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
nemothekid 7y ago
220k/yr is would probably be fine for most (he probably takes home less than that, but at the same time he can do whatever he wants). However, I don't really like pinboard's "business" story - it seems, selfish, for lack of a better word. Pinboard lives and dies with Maciej and the people who have come to depend on that product may lose an amazing service if Maciej gets tired of running it. He may never get tired of it, but pinboard is reminiscent to me of many one-man communities that were built in the early 2000s that just died once the admin left - and no one was equipped to take over because the admin never wanted to let anyone else in. So 220k is great, but is it enough to support at least one other person full time? Is everyone who uses pinboard aware that the services lives or dies with one man (I know its called out in the blog post). When I see pinboard, I see less of a product that was made to provide value to others and more of a side project that lets the CEO live how he wants. Which is fine (I think Maciej is a great person - and I've donated to the Great Slate), but isn't my cup of tea when it comes to product responsibility.
- icebraining 7y ago
  I think the short history of web services has shown that depending solely on the whims of the founder is often much more reliable than the whims of VCs or other methods of running it. Delicious didn't live or die with Joshua Schachter, yet it's not around anymore. And yeah, 220k/y is more than enough to support another person full time. Not everyone lives in SF and pays thousands for half a bedroom.
- WA 7y ago
  Well, a one-man community usually makes no money and nobody wants to take it over. But a business making 220k/yr? I bet he (or his relatives in the bus scenario) would find lots of people willing to maintain Pinboard for 220k/yr.
- rimliu 7y ago
  I suggest to take a look at this: https://killedbygoogle.com https://killedbygoogle.com and think is single-person run business really that bad.
  - 7y ago

Man it’s so great to see sites like this continue to thrive. At the same time, I am once again amazed at how little revenue a publicly touted successful project makes.

quickthrower2 7y ago

$200k/y. One developer? Digital nomad friendly? Freedom from the pointy haireds? No real need to do 40h/ week? I think that is damn fantastic revenue.

truebosko 7y ago
That's revenue, so not .. quite what he's taking home. Less cost of servers, then benefits which he's not getting from an employer, 401k matching, etc. It adds up but yes .. the freedom is nice :)
patryn20 7y ago
Oh I’m not disputing it’s good for a single developer along with the freedom. It’s just that these projects always get talked up as huge successful life changing products (like Bingo Card Creator and appointment reminders etc) and then have really small revenue numbers attached to them. Don’t get me wrong, kudos to the developers for building something people love and that give them the lifestyle they want. I just think these projects are often overhyped to seem more than what they actually are: lifestyle projects.
- idlewords 7y ago
  I mean, they are life-changing projects. This is not my lifestyle, but my life. What more do you want?
  - jholman 7y ago
    Frankly, if you don't have a bespoke Pagani Zonda with your initials in the model name, we're collectively unsure that your lifestyle has enough style or enough life. Thinking it over, I might not even invite you to my birthday party.
patryn20 7y ago
And to be very clear: I don’t think the developer in this case is overhyping anything. I think the community is. His writing is super entertaining and he has made a great product.
underwater 7y ago
It's a lot for a single developer. But not a lot for a product that has a lot of mind share and receives a lot of free publicity via outlets like this.

idlewords 7y ago

It feels like a lot of money to me.

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]

nemothekid 7y ago

220k/yr is would probably be fine for most (he probably takes home less than that, but at the same time he can do whatever he wants). However, I don't really like pinboard's "business" story - it seems, selfish, for lack of a better word. Pinboard lives and dies with Maciej and the people who have come to depend on that product may lose an amazing service if Maciej gets tired of running it. He may never get tired of it, but pinboard is reminiscent to me of many one-man communities that were built in the early 2000s that just died once the admin left - and no one was equipped to take over because the admin never wanted to let anyone else in. So 220k is great, but is it enough to support at least one other person full time? Is everyone who uses pinboard aware that the services lives or dies with one man (I know its called out in the blog post). When I see pinboard, I see less of a product that was made to provide value to others and more of a side project that lets the CEO live how he wants. Which is fine (I think Maciej is a great person - and I've donated to the Great Slate), but isn't my cup of tea when it comes to product responsibility.

icebraining 7y ago
I think the short history of web services has shown that depending solely on the whims of the founder is often much more reliable than the whims of VCs or other methods of running it. Delicious didn't live or die with Joshua Schachter, yet it's not around anymore. And yeah, 220k/y is more than enough to support another person full time. Not everyone lives in SF and pays thousands for half a bedroom.
WA 7y ago
Well, a one-man community usually makes no money and nobody wants to take it over. But a business making 220k/yr? I bet he (or his relatives in the bus scenario) would find lots of people willing to maintain Pinboard for 220k/yr.
rimliu 7y ago
I suggest to take a look at this: https://killedbygoogle.com https://killedbygoogle.com and think is single-person run business really that bad.
- 7y ago