4 ms·

Well, good riddance. Is it just me, or is money being thrown at a lot of crap these days? As long as it has a cutesy name and is based in the Valley, it gets b

by itmag 15y ago

Well, good riddance. Is it just me, or is money being thrown at a lot of crap these days? As long as it has a cutesy name and is based in the Valley, it gets bukkaked with millions of dollars by eager investors. All this cash floating around also seems to lead to startups sucking up all the best talent. Do coding geniuses really need to be working on photo-sharing apps, as opposed to, say, rocket programming? I did an interview with Danish madman and super-entrepreneur Morten Lund once. One of the things he told me is that a recession is the best time to start a business: the table is cleared and the posers don't want to work hard to make it. More room for the truly dedicated.

dextorious 15y ago
"""All this cash floating around also seems to lead to startups sucking up all the best talent. Do coding geniuses really need to be working on photo-sharing apps, as opposed to, say, rocket programming?""" Good point. But for all the "how to hire the best" articles moving around related to startups, I don't see many "coding geniuses" there, and have yet to see a significant contribution to OSS or CompSci coming from a "social" startup. Mostly fresh-out-of-college, no-real-world-experience, lets-use-what's-shiny types... Someone like Brad Fitzpatrick runs circles around these guys.
- sunchild 15y ago
  The problem, in part, is that VCs want naive, unfettered young people. The VC model has sort of evolved into a kind of talent betting pool. If you're sophisticated enough to have a proven track record, you're probably also more sophisticated about retaining equity and control.
- lucisferre 15y ago
  Rocket programming? Really? Regardless, one persons useless website is often another person's invaluable tool. Not to say there isn't a lot of waste out there, but I doubt everyone getting hard to work on "rocket programming" will solve that problem. We'd just have a lot of crappy "rocket programs".
mgkimsal 15y ago
"One of the things he told me is that a recession is the best time to start a business: the table is cleared and the posers don't want to work hard to make it. More room for the truly dedicated." We've been in recession for years now, just not specifically in SV, where most of this stuff takes place. But people latch on to it, and many people think they're "starting a business in a recession" right now.
- itmag 15y ago
  I'm in Sweden so my knowledge of the situation comes from inferring a general Zeitgeist via online reading on this and other sites. So take my remarks with a few grams of salt. That's interesting btw, care to tell me a bit more?
  - mgkimsal 15y ago
    Not sure what to add... ??? The "start a business in a recession" is common guidance/wisdom. It seems to make some sense - it'll weed out the people who aren't truly interested in starting a business, because it'll be harder than in 'normal' economic times. The difference is, for web/tech startups, it's probably easier now to get started, insomuch as the cost of starting something is far less than it was 5 years ago, and there's more money being invested in small web startups than a few years ago. So... lower costs to startup, more money being invested, and we see more of these happening. However, people think they're "starting a business in a recession" because the general economy is in recession. The "web/tech startup" economy is not in recession - seemingly quite the opposite, really. In a year or two when the startup money stops flowing so easily, we'll be in 'startup recession' territory, and that's where the "start a business in a recession" wisdom will be tested, but I suspect not as many people will put it to the test.
    - itmag 15y ago
      Thanks. I am satisfied.
gmac 15y ago
All this cash floating around also seems to lead to startups sucking up all the best talent. Do coding geniuses really need to be working on photo-sharing apps, as opposed to, say, rocket programming? I'm not sure your counterfactual is well-chosen. Round these parts (UK), bright physicists/engineers/compscis seem to mainly end up in finance, trying to stay on the right side of zero-sum-game financial jiggery-pokery. Photo sharing may not be the best possible outlet for their talents, but at least it has some social value.

by itmag 15y ago

dextorious 15y ago

"""All this cash floating around also seems to lead to startups sucking up all the best talent. Do coding geniuses really need to be working on photo-sharing apps, as opposed to, say, rocket programming?""" Good point. But for all the "how to hire the best" articles moving around related to startups, I don't see many "coding geniuses" there, and have yet to see a significant contribution to OSS or CompSci coming from a "social" startup. Mostly fresh-out-of-college, no-real-world-experience, lets-use-what's-shiny types... Someone like Brad Fitzpatrick runs circles around these guys.

sunchild 15y ago
The problem, in part, is that VCs want naive, unfettered young people. The VC model has sort of evolved into a kind of talent betting pool. If you're sophisticated enough to have a proven track record, you're probably also more sophisticated about retaining equity and control.
lucisferre 15y ago
Rocket programming? Really? Regardless, one persons useless website is often another person's invaluable tool. Not to say there isn't a lot of waste out there, but I doubt everyone getting hard to work on "rocket programming" will solve that problem. We'd just have a lot of crappy "rocket programs".

mgkimsal 15y ago

"One of the things he told me is that a recession is the best time to start a business: the table is cleared and the posers don't want to work hard to make it. More room for the truly dedicated." We've been in recession for years now, just not specifically in SV, where most of this stuff takes place. But people latch on to it, and many people think they're "starting a business in a recession" right now.

itmag 15y ago
I'm in Sweden so my knowledge of the situation comes from inferring a general Zeitgeist via online reading on this and other sites. So take my remarks with a few grams of salt. That's interesting btw, care to tell me a bit more?
- mgkimsal 15y ago
  Not sure what to add... ??? The "start a business in a recession" is common guidance/wisdom. It seems to make some sense - it'll weed out the people who aren't truly interested in starting a business, because it'll be harder than in 'normal' economic times. The difference is, for web/tech startups, it's probably easier now to get started, insomuch as the cost of starting something is far less than it was 5 years ago, and there's more money being invested in small web startups than a few years ago. So... lower costs to startup, more money being invested, and we see more of these happening. However, people think they're "starting a business in a recession" because the general economy is in recession. The "web/tech startup" economy is not in recession - seemingly quite the opposite, really. In a year or two when the startup money stops flowing so easily, we'll be in 'startup recession' territory, and that's where the "start a business in a recession" wisdom will be tested, but I suspect not as many people will put it to the test.
  - itmag 15y ago
    Thanks. I am satisfied.

gmac 15y ago

All this cash floating around also seems to lead to startups sucking up all the best talent. Do coding geniuses really need to be working on photo-sharing apps, as opposed to, say, rocket programming? I'm not sure your counterfactual is well-chosen. Round these parts (UK), bright physicists/engineers/compscis seem to mainly end up in finance, trying to stay on the right side of zero-sum-game financial jiggery-pokery. Photo sharing may not be the best possible outlet for their talents, but at least it has some social value.