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3Crumbs app - Are you the local thrifter we all have been looking for?
impt; ideas, music, pictures and things
Why social works (and how to succeed in the consumer internet)
These 2 ideas are by no means canonical or conclusive, but they’re evolving, and they help me make sense of the internet today.
1. Social = adding structure to data
If you look at the internet as a repository of data of all kinds that is constantly being generated, the “meta” meaning of what “social” networks really do, is add structure to it, Basically by allowing people do things with that data (view it, create it, tell their friends about it, tell the world about it etc) you create a sort of “tag” that says; “this is how important this data is” eg. a facebook share is more valuable than a twitter share, because there are fewer shares and they are directly to people you know. A twitter share > google +1 share, because the receivers are opt-in vs. just anyone etc, and if you look at it that way, what social has basically done is reduce an infinitely expanding world of data with static tags (defined by the creators or by the content itself) to a smaller, more slowly expansive world of data with dynamic tags (defined by the people who look at it).
Dont know how to monetize this but its just arisen as a thought: Google won because search was primary way people found things, and the internet was small enough and their algorithms were good enough that they were able to filter out the noise. The real threat to google (of fb etc) is that the internet is so large and growing so fast, and their algorithms find it so hard to keep up, that at some point people always find noise in their google search, and structured data becomes the dominant way people find things in the majority of use cases. The second order threat (this will become more apparent in the coming years) is that the layers of social and all the public stuff that people do on the web, as well as improved AI, make it easier for other companies/ideas to dominate certain verticals of discovery (the easiest example I can think of this for is Quora - it’s early but you could argue they have found a better method than search for mapping and discovering “knowledge” - particularly the subjective kind).
2. Success on the web = finding the broadest single use case, and nailing the process of getting that. The path is usually by finding a series of progressively broader use cases; this is called “iterating”
This isnt really all that groundbreaking; continuing with the idea of applying web metrics to the real world to see if they pass muster (eg DAU/MAU for fridges, toilets and beds = 100%, which validates those metrics), you can argue that consumer internet success = ubiquity, and ubiquity is derived from finding a single use case that has the broadest reach (ie something that most people do every day, often a day) and nailing the way to do it on your platform (web or mobile or whatever else). So the easiest example is google; search was the primary way people discovered things 10 years ago, and google created a better way to search things than anyone else.
If you’re looking for consumer internet success - perhaps you first find an activity that people do frequently, then create a better/easier/more valuable along one dimension (Eg instrumenting for better decision making or taking out a pain point) to do that activity. What this means is; if someone comes to you with an idea that sounds like 4 things, that is bad, even if the 4 things cover a lot of people/activity. If someone comes to you with an idea that sounds like 1 thing, and the one thing is highly repeatable, then the only question is; what are they paying to do that one thing today (and if they arent paying to do it, who will pay).
Help me complete this thought.
Ayo
WanderPlayer Turns Your Phone Into a Controller for Any Computer Game
Smartphones have already replaced cameras and calendars for many people — and piles of gaming controllers might be next. A startup called WanderPlayer has developed a technology that turns iPhones (and soon Android phones) into controllers for computer games, no matter whether those games ca…
Q. Why are federal elections held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November? via @michaelwolf42
A. The Tuesday after the first Monday in November was initially established in 1845 (3 U.S.C. 1) for the appointment of Presidential electors in every fourth year. 2 U.S.C. 7 established this date for electing U.S. Representatives in every even numbered year in 1875. Finaly, 2 U.S.C. 1 established this date as the time for electing U.S. Senators in 1914.
Why early November? For much of our history America was a predominantly agrarian society. Law makers therefore took into account that November was perhaps the most convenient month for farmers and rural workers to be able to travel to the polls. The fall harvest was over, (remembering that spring was planting time and summer was taken up with working the fields and tending the crops) but in the majority of the nation the weather was still mild enough to permit travel over unimproved roads.
Why Tuesday? Since most residents of rural America had to travel a significant distance to the county seat in order to vote, Monday was not considered reasonable as many people would need to begin travel on Sunday. This would, of course, have conflicted with church services and Sunday worship.
Why the first Tuesday after the first Monday? Lawmakers wanted to prevent election day from falling on the first of November for two reasons. November 1st is All Saints Day, a holy day of obligation for Roman Catholics. In addition, most merchants were in the habit of doing their books from the preceding month on the 1st. Congress was apparently worried that the economic success or failure of the previous month might influence the vote of the merchants.
“ If I were Michael Bloomberg, a very smart and wise man, I would take a deep breath and spend one day this weekend trying to learn what Occupy Wall Street is about, from the point of view of an average New Yorker. He’s so smart he will get it. The problem is his perspective. He’s one of the few people who they are angry with, and rightfully so. When the light goes on for him, he will be able to explain it to others in his class. Whether they listen or not is their problem. But it’s up to him, as the elected leader of all New Yorkers, to listen and understand, and make wise choices. ”
Schedule for the Founders’ Retreat
A gathering of the entrepreneurial community at Wharton and Penn, early every year. This year’s Founders’ Retreat is At General Assembly in New York City. The Founders’ Retreat is brought to you by a collaboration of Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs, the Wharton MBA Career Management Office, the Wharton Entrepreneurial Club, and General Assembly! The Founders’ Retreat schedule is below (subject to change): 9:30 - 9.50am: Breakfast & Arrivals 10 - 10.20am: Intro to the day, & welcome with Jake Schwartz, General Assembly founder, WG ‘08 10:20 - 10.45am: Entrepreneurship at Wharton: Overview of the different paths MBAs choose to pursue and the resources to leverage along the way 10.50 - 11.40am: Start it Up at Wharton: Perspectives from founders in Wharton’s Venture Initiation Program and other incubators and those who have launched business from Wharton’s Business Plan Competition. Featuring
- Cherif Habib and Stephan Jacobs- co-founders of Kembrel.com and WG’11
- Joseph Cohen - CEO and founder of Coursekit
- Rohan Deuskar- CEO and co-founder of Stylitics,
- Andrew Ward, founder of Pandaly currently in DreamIt Ventures 11.40am - 12.20pm: 1st Year class introductions 12.30 - 12.55pm: Student Founders (VIP, WVA, DreamIT) founders introduced to their 1st year teams for strategy session. 12.55 - 2.10pm: Lunch + Strategy session within VIP/WVA teams. 2:20 - 3:05pm: Recruiting at startups- perspectives from MBAs and the startups that hire them.Featuring:
- Roberto Medri- SquareSpace’s head of business development and WG’11,
- Shafqat Islam- NewsCred Founder and CEO and Penn Engineering ‘03,
- Arlyn Davich- PayPerks Founder and CEO,
- Harry Kargman- Kargo Founder and CEO 3:05 - 3:15pm: Break 3:15 - 3:45pm: Perspectives on MBA ideas/businesses, with Kartik Hosanagar - co-founder of Yodle Inc., Wharton Professor of Entrepreneurship & Operations and Information Management, and Angel Investor. 3.45 - 4.15pm: Founder’s story with Corey Pierson - CEO and co-founder of Custora and WG’10 4:15 - 4:25pm: Break 4.25 - 5:20pm: Mixed panel and perspectives on fundraising and today’s ecosystem from founders and investors. Featuring
- Jake Schwartz- General Assembly founder and WG’08,
- Saadiq Rogers-King- co-founder of Hot Potato,
- Michael Geer- co-founder of Badoo,
- David Mars - principal of White Owl Capital and WG’ 07 5:30 - 7pm: Happy hour & mixer
Schedule for the Founders’ Retreat
The Founders’ Retreat schedule: 9:30 - 9.50am: Breakfast & Arrivals 10 - 10.20am: Intro to the day10:20 - 10.45am: Entrepreneurship at Wharton10.50 - 11.40am: Start it Up at Wharton 11.40am - 12.20pm: 1st Year class introductions 12.30 - 12.55pm: Student Founders Intro12.55 - 2.10pm: Strategy session2:20 - 3:05pm: Recruiting at startups3:05 - 3:15pm: Break 3:15 - 3:45pm: Perspectives on MBA ideas/businesses3.45 - 4.15pm: Founder’s story with Corey Pierson 4:15 - 4:25pm: Break 4.25 - 5:20pm: Mixed panel and perspectives on fundraising 5:30 - 7pm: Happy hour & mixer
mirchi.fm: Turntable.fm: Huge Opportunity Calls for A Licensing Fix
In its first month, Turntable.fm has generated a tremendous amount of buzz. It’s the first truly social web music service; it’s addicting, viral, and easy to use. This weekend the service hit its first hiccup as it closed the service to users outside the US. This led to disappointed…
Instructions for UX Day
Lets get started:
Use the #UXday hashtag for all your comments on twitter (and please tweet a lot!).
Enter your ideas into the following google spreadsheets for each product
Thats it. Lets have some fun
ayo
Instructions for UX Day
Lets get started:
Use the #UXday hashtag for all your comments on twitter (and please tweet a lot!).
Enter your ideas into the following google spreadsheets for each product
Thats it. Lets have some fun
ayo
