"Running a start-up is like being punched in the face repeatedly," he says. "But working for a large company is like being waterboarded."
Why does the world need so many little software companies? He looks at me as if I'm insane. "Imagine that instead of starting Google, Larry Page and Sergey Brin had taken jobs in some research lab," he says. "They would have written a little piece of an operating system that might not even get used and maybe some boring academic papers. Think of how much more they did for the world as start-up founders."
The phrase ""Boil The Ocean" describes an attempt at something that is way too ambitious, effectively impossible. The first time I heard the term was several years ago from an IBM developer. I thought it was an IBM-ism but I've been hearing it more and more outside of IBM. A Google search turns up an early use of the phrase that really captures its meaning:
When asked by a reporter what to do about U-boat sinkings during World War I, Will Rogers is said to have responded: "Boil the ocean". "But how would you do that?" the reporter continued. Without a beat Rogers replied, "I'm just the idea man here. Get someone else to work out the details."
Classic.
If I had a nickle for every time I have actually said "Look I'm just the idea man here, get Dev to work out the details" in meeting I'd be a very rich guy.
I mean come on, its only the halting problem people! Turing wasn't that smart... I'm sure Framework can hacked that out in like, 2 days!
The low hanging fruit, i.e. idiots whose parents paid for prep school, Yale, and then the Harvard MBA, was there for the taking. These people who were (often) truly not worthy of the education they received (or supposedly received) rose to the top of companies such as AIG, Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers and all levels of our government. All of this behavior supporting the Aristocracy, only ended up making it easier for me to find people stupid enough to take the other side of my trades. God bless America.
RE: Rumormonger: Is Google about to swallow up Digg?
Topic: Business
6:14 pm EDT, Jun 14, 2008
flynn23 wrote:
Google's cupcake princess, Marissa Mayer, and Kevin Rose, the playboy of the Webhead world, would make an awfully cute couple. Not romantically — the two are dating other people at the moment. But we hear Mayer is pushing hard for an acquisition of Rose's Digg, for a price below $200 million.
There are other people who should read this book. Your girlfriend will better understand why you turn into a jerk in your home office. Your mom will understand why you don’t call. Giving this book to your boss is a tricky proposition. Even if he needs it, you can’t tell him that, so surreptitiously leave it in his office… like a pen.
Managing Humans is 209 pages with 34 chapters. The 6 pages per chapter average is ideal for your attention deficient lifestyle. People dig it.
This book isn't just about management, it's about creating places where people can comfortably build stuff. It's about what to do during the first ninety days of your new gig, and explains why you should pick a fight, because bright people often yell at each other.
HP joins security convergence trend with SPI Dynamics buy
Topic: Business
11:15 am EDT, Jun 21, 2007
Hijexx wrote: On the heels of IBM's acquisition of Watchfire, HP today announced it was buying SPI Dynamics, another application security bellwether, for an undisclosed amount.
The move signifies the growing convergence of the information security marketplace, especially in light of IBM’s pickup of Watchfire, which was SPI’s main competitor, analysts said today.
...
I liked the name SPI Dynamics a lot better. So, how's it feel to (soon) work for HP Billy? :)
Ken Brockman : And I for one welcome our new insect overlords!
House prices in the U.S. from 1890 until 2005, plotted as a roller coaster that you ride from a first person perspective. Here is the datasource. Hold on to your hats.
Even the most successful business models erode over time.
The key to thriving under such tough conditions is adaptability. ... companies must continually update their business model ...
All of the possible methods of bringing customers value -- anything from more-efficient production lines to new products and services -- boil down to just three fundamental strategies:
* Industrial efficiency, which creates value by producing standardized offerings at low cost. Manufacturers and fast-food restaurants rely on this approach.
* Network services, which creates value by connecting clients to other people or other parts of the network. Telephone companies, delivery services and Internet middlemen such as eBay use this method.
* Knowledge intensive, which creates value by applying customized expertise to clients' problems. Law firms and medical practices are prime examples.
The owners of the privately held company have turned down a $750 million offer and hope to fetch as much as $2 billion in a sale, senior industry executives familiar with the matter say.
That may sound like a huge amount of money, especially when you consider that the company was launched just two years ago by a group of sophomores at Harvard University, led by Mark Zuckerberg (see BW Online, "Under 30, On the Cutting Edge"). But already, www.facebook.com has become the seventh-most heavily trafficked site on the Internet, according to market researcher comScore Media Metrix. It racked up 5.5 billion page views during the month of February, the latest month for which complete data are available. That's more page views than the Web sites of Amazon.com (AMZN), Ask.com, or Walt Disney (DIS).
I know several other Memestreamers are working on some cool web apps. Seems that there is a lot of interest in the area. How misguided it may be is a different story, but it looks like there's a crazy money pile at the end of the rainbow.
