Darkstar

The New Boom

Wired has an article on the boom and bust cycles of Silicon Valley in their latest article on the apparent bubble forming around Web 2.0 startups.


Technorati Tags: web2.0, business, vc

RIM Patent infringement case

Fascinating story about the Blackberry patent infringement case and the history behind the two inventors ptting their heads.  One just happens to be dead.

Great charts

Ever find yourself looking for a chart of major trends or aggregated data?  Check out Karl Hartig's site of charts for some pretty cool charts you can use in that presentation or hang on your wall.


Technorati Tags: charts, diagrams, information

How to be Creative

Great article on how to be creative.  Definitely worth a read either the long version or the shorter snippets.

So you want to be more creative, in art, in business, whatever. Here are some tips that have worked for me over the years:

1. Ignore everybody.

2. The idea doesn't have to be big. It just has to change the world.

3. Put the hours in.

4. If your biz plan depends on you suddenly being "discovered" by some big shot, your plan will probably fail.

5. You are responsible for your own experience.

6. Everyone is born creative; everyone is given a box of crayons in kindergarten.

7. Keep your day job.

8. Companies that squelch creativity can no longer compete with companies that champion creativity.

9. Everybody has their own private Mount Everest they were put on this earth to climb.

10. The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props.

11. Don't try to stand out from the crowd; avoid crowds altogether.

12. If you accept the pain, it cannot hurt you.

13. Never compare your inside with somebody else's outside.

14. Dying young is overrated.

15. The most important thing a creative person can learn professionally is where to draw the red line that separates what you are willing to do, and what you are not.

16. The world is changing.

17. Merit can be bought. Passion can't.

18. Avoid the Watercooler Gang.

19. Sing in your own voice.

20. The choice of media is irrelevant.

21. Selling out is harder than it looks.

22. Nobody cares. Do it for yourself.

23. Worrying about "Commercial vs. Artistic" is a complete waste of time.

24. Don’t worry about finding inspiration. It comes eventually.

25. You have to find your own schtick.

26. Write from the heart.

27. The best way to get approval is not to need it.

28. Power is never given. Power is taken.

29. Whatever choice you make, The Devil gets his due eventually.

30. The hardest part of being creative is getting used to it.

Technorati Tags: creativity, business

Google Earth Mac OS X

Lots of Mac related announcements this week on the heels of MacWorld.  One quiet announcement was the release of Google Earth for Mac OSX.  An earlier Beta was leaked about a month ago, but now we finally have yet another Beta product from Google.




Technorati Tags: googeearth, macosx

Technorati Tags: googeearth, macosx

SMS People via Email

Ok.. I am geeking out tons these days so mainly run across interesting services online.  Here's one that allows you to SMS your friends via email.  There are lots of SMS gateways out there, but this one is very elegent.

Teleflip started when the founder became increasingly frustrated at
his inability to send text messages to friends' cell phones
from his PC. It was of course possible, but you had to know
the cell phone provider, the correct domain name and the correct
syntax for the email address.



Technorati Tags: sms

Technorati Tags: sms

Essential Mac OSX software

Ok.. so I am a Mac head.  Have preferred Macs since sys 9, but now with OS X mature, robust and with BSD under the hood, it really does kick ass.  I have had no problems interacting with Windows folks and there's not a single Windows app that I miss out on.  I ran across a fun little list of essential Mac OS X applications that is a good start if you are just getting a Mac for the first time.  What is your top couple of Mac OS X apps you can't live without?

Small Biz 101

Ryan Carson does a good job of introducing some basic on the ground insights into starting your own business, especially since he has a CS degree and not an MBA.  A good read through his series How to Get Started, Cash Flow Basics and No One Starts with a Masterpiece.  In the latest installment Tips for Increasing Sales he talks about ways to be passionate about what you are doing and eight good steps to take in order to bring in the customers to improve your cash flow.  Worth the quick read if you are trying to start your first business or even if you are a veteran, it never hurts to have a refresher.


Technorati Tags: business, startup, tips

Technorati Tags: business, startup, tips

10 Things You Should Never Buy Again

1. Styrofoam cups  
Styrofoam is forever. It's not biodegradable.  
Alternative: Buy recyclable and compostable paper cups.  
Best option:  Invest in some reusable mugs that you can take with you.

2. Paper towels  
Paper towels waste forest resources, landfill space, and your money.  
Alternative: When you do buy paper towels, look for recycled, non-bleached products. Search the National Green Pages™ for recycled paper products.  
Best option: Buy dishtowels or rags to wash and reuse.

3. Bleached coffee filters  
Dioxins, chemicals formed during the chlorine bleaching process, contaminate groundwater and air and are linked to cancer in humans and animals.  
Alternative: Look for unbleached paper filters.  
Best Option:  Use reusable filters such as washable cloth filters.

4. Overpackaged foods and other products  
Excess packaging wastes resources and costs youmuch more. Around thirty three percent of trash in the average American household comes from packaging.  
Alternative: Buy products with minimal or reusable packaging.  
Best Option: Buy in bulk and use your own containers when shopping.

5. Teak and mahogany  
Every year, 27 million acres of tropical rainforest (an area the size of Ohio) are destroyed. Rainforests cover 6% of Earth's surface and are home to over half of the world's wild plant, animal, and insect species. The Amazon rainforest produces 40 percent of the world's oxygen.  
Alternative: Look for Forest Stewardship Council certified wood.  
Best Option: Reuse wood, and buy furniture and other products made from used or salvaged wood.

Learn how to become WoodWise at home and in your office »

6.Chemical pesticides and herbicides  
American households use 80 million pounds of pesticides each year. The EPA found at least one pesticide in almost every water and fish sample from streams and in more than one-half of shallow wells sampled in agricultural and urban areas. These chemicals pose threats to animals and people, especially children.  
Alternatives: Buy organic pest controllers such as diatomaceous earth.  
Best Option: Plant native plants and practice integrated pest management. Plant flowers and herbs that act as natural pesticides.

7. Conventional household cleaners  
Household products can contain hazardous ingredients such as organic solvents and petroleum-based chemicals that can release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into your indoor environment, positing a particular danger for children. The average American household has three to ten of hazardous matter in the home.  
Alternative: Look for nontoxic, vegetable-based, biodegradeable cleaners.  
Best Option: Try making your own green cleaner using vinegar, water, and castile soap.

Find safe, green cleaners in the National Green Pages™»

8. Higher octane gas than you need  
Only one car in ten manufactured since 1982 requires high-octane gasoline. High-octane gas releases more hazardous pollutants into the air, and may be bad for your car.  
Alternative: Buy the lowest-octane gas your car requires as listed in your owner's manual  
Best option: Make your next car purchase a hybrid.  Or ditch the car and take public transportation, ride a bike, or walk.

Learn more about green transportation »

9. Toys made with PVC plastic  
70% of PVC is used in construction, but it is also found in everyday plastics, including some children's toys. Vinyl chloride, the chemical used to make PVC, is a known human carcinogen. Also, additives, such as lead and cadmium, are sometimes added to PVC to keep it from breaking down; these additives can be particularly dangerous in children's toys. PVC is also the least recycled plastic.  
Alternative: Avoid plastics that are labeled as "PVC" or "#3." Look for #1 and #2 plastics, which are easier to recycle and don't produce as many toxins. Use sustainable construction materials.  
Best option: Take action to tell manufacturers to stop using PVC plastics, especially in children's toys.

Find safe toys in the National Green Pages™ »

10. Plastic forks and spoons  
Disposable plastic utensils are not biodegradeable and not recyclable in most areas.  
Alternative: Use compostable food service items. Companies such as Biocorp make cutlery from plant materials such as corn starch and cellulose.  
Best option: Carry your own utensils and food containers.

Guy's Rules for Powerpoint

The 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint

Found this entry from Guy Kawasaki on the rules for a powerpoint presentation.

However, I have another theory. As a venture capitalist, I have to listen to hundreds of entrepreneurs pitch their companies. Most of these pitches are crap: sixty slides about a “patent pending,” “first mover advantage,” “all we have to do is get 1% of the people in China to buy our product” startup. These pitches are so lousy that I’m losing my hearing, there’s a constant ringing in my ear, and every once in while the world starts spinning.

Before there is an epidemic of Ménière’s in the venture capital community, I am trying to evangelize the 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint. It’s quite simple: a PowerPoint presentation should have ten slides, last no more than twenty minutes, and contain no font smaller than thirty points. While I’m in the venture capital business, this rule is applicable for any presentation to reach agreement: for example, raising capital, making a sale, forming a partnership, etc.

Ten is the optimal number of slides in a PowerPoint presentation because a normal human being cannot comprehend more than ten concepts in a meeting—and venture capitalists are very normal. (The only difference between you and venture capitalist is that he is getting paid to gamble with someone else’s money). If you must use more than ten slides to explain your business, you probably don’t have a business. The ten topics that a venture capitalist cares about are:
   

1. Problem    
2. Your solution    
3. Business model    
4. Underlying magic/technology
5. Marketing and sales
6. Competition
7. Team
8. Projections and milestones
9. Status and timeline
10. Summary and call to action
    

You should give your ten slides in twenty minutes. Sure, you have an hour time slot, but you’re using a Windows laptop, so it will take forty minutes to make it work with the projector. Even if setup goes perfectly, people will arrive late and have to leave early. In a perfect world, you give your pitch in twenty minutes, and you have forty minutes left for discussion.

The majority of the presentations that I see have text in a ten point font. As much text as possible is jammed into the slide, and then the presenter reads it. However, as soon as the audience figures out that you’re reading the text, it reads ahead of you because it can read faster than you can speak. The result is that you and the audience are out of synch.

The reason people use a small font is twofold: first, that they don’t know their material well enough; second, they think that more text is more convincing. Total bozosity. Force yourself to use no font smaller than thirty points. I guarantee it will make your presentations better because it requires you to find the most salient points and to know how to explain them well. If “thirty points,” is too dogmatic, the I offer you an algorithm: find out the age of the oldest person in your audience and divide it by two. That’s you’re optimal font size.

So please observe the 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint. If nothing else, the next time someone in your audience complains of hearing loss, ringing, or vertigo, you’ll know what caused the problem. One last thing: to learn more about the zen of great presentations, check out a site called Presentation Zen by my buddy Garr Reynolds.

Technorati Tags: presentation, guy, kawasaki

Technorati Tags: presentation, guy, kawasaki