> As nice and cool as they may be when you meet them, they are fundamentally in a business of greed. +1. I like HN but I don't understand why the size of the b

> As nice and cool as they may be when you meet them, they are fundamentally in a business of greed. +1. I like HN but I don't understand why the size of the business / method of funding matters so much, as opposed to what is being done, unless I put on my cynic hat. Once affixed, I realize it's because getting millions in VC (rather than grinding for it) and then selling out to an established player, or selling before the IPO, is incredibly sexy. A really safe business strategy is to become a middle man who allows other organizations to operate smoothly. You then sidestep having to take a stance on any major issue and make money off other people using the service to do something truly remarkable. By no means am I familiar with all of YC's businesses but the ones on the front page are basically infrastructure applications. While neat, it seems like the sexiest businesses are ones where you don't actually make something, but you make a tool for someone else to make something. FogCreek sells, among others, a bug tracker, a closed version of an open dvcs, and a Windows RDP clone. Dropbox syncs files and revisions across computers. Others let you create database wrappers ("forms"), create blogs, or find incredibly expensive travel accommodations. I am a user or I want to be a user of most of them, actually, but I'd be lying if I said they are revolutionary or useful on their own. They're safe business strategies with incredibly intelligent, motivated people at the helm. Now, won't those intelligent, motivated people stop working on cat-pictures projects? I'd do something but I'm too stupid so I'm relying on smart people to change the world. EDIT: I know FogCreek isn't a YC venture. I made a really poor segue into talking about businesses with the startup mentality I read about, not specifically YC ones. Oy, what a day.