How Would You Improve Image Search On Twitter? Step2 Startups

from the interesting-question dept

We've been busy and haven't had a chance to do a Step2 Startups post in a while. If you don't recall, this is where startup execs ask you for feedback on something they're trying to figure out. This time around, a new Twitter image search engine called ThudIT is seeking your feedback on the overall concept. I actually find this to be pretty interesting. We're all used to things like Google's image search, but Twitter has become a more and more important platform for realtime images these days. We all know the stories, of course, about breaking news first appearing via mobile phone snapshots on Twitter -- things like the airplane that landed in the Hudson River, for example. Having a real-time search for images could be quite useful in a very different context than something like Google image search. ThudIT's Freddie Wynne provides two examples, one involving a sporting event and another about a conference to demonstrate the basic power of the tool. I could definitely see it coming in handy. But he wants more feedback/advice/suggestions, etc. Feel free to head on over to the thread on Step2 and provide some thoughts.

We're planning to get back to doing more Step2 Startups posts in the near future, so if you'd like to get feedback on whatever you're working on, let us know!

Filed Under: image search, real-time, step2 startups
Companies: thudit, twitter

Prospectus for Silicon Valley's Next Hot Tech IPO

from the risk-factors dept

With people still talking about the mess of Facebook's IPO, it's been causing other companies problems as well -- including a series of postponed IPOs. However, the folks over at McSweeney's have uncovered the S-1 filing for what could possibly be the next hot IPO. As they note, this is one "where nothing could possibly go wrong." If you're into reading these kinds of things, check out the full prospectus. Or just sample the risk factors here:

An investment in Ponzify involves significant risks.

User metrics
A significant portion of our income is derived from advertisers who still buy this whole “clicks” and “page count” business. Thus, we plan a vigorous defense of our current metrics while making up new ones with impressive-sounding names. For instance, KonBuy (short for “Konfirmation Bias”) scores the popularity of apps and websites based on whether their titles are intentionally misspelled portmanteaus.

Age Factor
Our CEO, CFO, COO and a bunch of other acronyms were all born after Nirvana released “Nevermind”.

Experience
Did you watch that two-part Frontline special on PBS about the inside story of the global financial crisis? We did. We were like “Dude, that’s like what we’re doing!”

If only real prospectuses read this way...

Filed Under: frontline, ipo, mcsweeney's, nirvana, prospectus
Companies: facebook, pbs

Let Congress Know That It's Time To Pass Startup Act 2.0

from the just-pass-it dept

For years now, we've been pointing out the ridiculous situation that the US has with denying visas to entrepreneurs. Over and over again, research has shown how skilled immigrants starting companies in the US help create new jobs. So we were excited earlier this year when plans for a Startup Act were presented in the Senate. Some aspects of that were taken care of by the JOBS Act, which came a month or so later, but key issues concerning startup visas and entrepreneurs still need to be addressed... and thankfully, Senators Moran, Warner, Coons and Rubio recently introduced the updated Startup Act 2.0. And, yesterday, Representative Michael Grimm, along with seven other House colleagues, introduced a the House version.

There's no way around it. This bill makes sense. In fact, looking around to see if anyone is arguing against the bill, the only thing I could find was a column at HuffPo arguing that Startup Act 2.0 Is Embarrassing. I was curious why the author would think so... and it turns out his reason is that it's embarrassing that we actually need a law for this, in this day and age, when what's in there should have been in place decades ago:

So why do I hate the Startup Act 2.0? Because it's embarrassing.

As a business owner and an American I'm embarrassed that such a fuss is being made over something that has been needed for so long and everyone agrees is necessary. That will clearly help this country over the long term by keeping those people who our own universities educated here, where many of these students want to be, rather than forcing them to leave. As a small business owner it seems so fundamentally right that it's unbelievable that these rules weren't changed decades ago. I hate that.

I also hate that we're celebrating the "bipartisanship" of the proposal. "I would guess that 80 percent of my colleagues in Congress would agree with the visa provisions in this legislation," says one of the bill's sponsors, Senator Jerry Moran. "And what I would encourage is that we not take the attitude or approach that unless we do everything, we can't do anything." With all that Congress has not accomplished during their past few sessions, we're applauding them for agreeing on something so fundamentally obvious and right? And who are the 20% of those that would oppose something like this? I hate that we have elected representatives that actually think this way. It's embarrassing.

And that's why the damn thing just needs to get passed. There's no reason to bicker around it. There's no reason to argue. Congress just needs to pass it.

But, of course, this is Congress that we're talking about, and they might not pass it because actually doing something useful is apparently not in their job description. However, one thing that is clear is that Congress does care about jobs -- and there's no question that startups create jobs. Research has shown that most of the net new jobs in the US have been created by startups over the past few decades. And, Congress is finally waking up and willing to hear from the startup community about what will help them create more jobs.

Our friends over at Engine have created an easy way to contact your representative to let them know that it's time to finally pass this bill and help entrepreneurs create more startups, and help those startups create more jobs. And, while you're at it, you should join Engine, as well, in order to keep on top of these things -- and help get your voice heard by Congress.

Filed Under: congress, immigration, michael grimm, startup act, visa

DailyDirt: What's In A Name?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

There are plenty of marketing gurus who will advise company founders to choose names and logos very carefully -- making sure to avoid confusing names or names without the appropriate gravitas. Then again, there are several companies with names that break the rules.

• If you're starting a new company, and you need a name (other than some silly placeholder like NewCo), read through this article to avoid some obvious pitfalls. Digg is a great name -- but execution matters, too. [url]
• The Name Inspector gives his advice on company names -- and debunks some common naming myths. He also analyzes a few familiar company names (eg Apple) -- and hates the branding term "empty vessel" because he thinks it's silly. [url]
• If you've ever wondered how some big company got its name, here are a few examples. Lego means "I put together" in Latin, but the company says that's only a coincidence. [url]
• To discover more interesting business-related content, check out what the deal is on StumbleUpon. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Filed Under: branding, marketing, names, startups
Companies: apple, digg, lego

What Obstacles Are There To Storing Your Own Media In The Cloud: Step2 Startups Feedback Wanted

from the step2-startups dept

The latest in our Step2 Startups series is from QVIVO, a maker of home based media center/storage systems, who have added a cloud syncing system, and are wondering what the biggest obstacles are for people hosting their own media in the cloud. Is it a legal issue? Cultural? Technological? What would it take for you to be willing to make use of such a service?

Filed Under: cloud, media center, step2 startups, storage
Companies: qvivo

Step2 Startups Feedback Wanted: What Do You Want To See In An Online Investment Community?

from the join-in dept

As we announced recently, we're now featuring and highlighting startups who want feedback on what they're working on over at our Step2 discussion platform. The latest startup to take part is Sprinklebit, an online investment/trading community that is looking for feedback on what you would like to see in an online investment community. There's already a good conversation going on at the discussion page.

Separately, we've already received a bunch of requests to take part in future Step2 Startup posts, but if you've got a startup and want to get feedback from the Techdirt/Insight Community, please send us a note (use the "Step2 Startups" option in the pulldown).

Filed Under: online investments, startups, step2
Companies: sprinklebit

Help Provide Useful Feedback For Startups: Announcing Step2 Startups

from the keep-it-going dept

We've been working to do more with our Step2 discussion platform lately, and today we're announcing Step2 Startups -- in which various startups reach out to the Techdirt community for feedback/thoughts/advice. Step2 has already been set up for people, creators, entrepreneurs and innovators, but now we're starting to specifically highlight interesting startups that are asking for feedback from the community. The first participant is the startup Snackr, "The Pandora for Audio News".

A little over a year ago I was blown away by Paul Ford's brilliant essay entitled The Web Is a Customer Service Medium. It inspired me to write a post about the key idea in the essay: that the killer app for the web is providing the answer to the "Why wasn't I consulted?" question -- simplified to WWIC. Since then I've spoken dozens of times about WWIC in the context of building communities and navigating digital challenges.

The key to building communities really is to focus on the WWIC question -- and that was a big part of our thinking when we set up Step2. The platform was initially focused on business models and ideas for content creators, but the plan has always been to expand it to cover more and more useful concepts. We'd noticed that our community has a lot of opinions and insights into various new online tools and services. Any time we mention anything on Techdirt, people get into pretty detailed and involved discussions, and we thought we should leverage that with Step2. At the same time, we get tons of requests from PR folks or startup entrepreneurs themselves (we definitely prefer to hear from entrepreneurs directly over their hired-gun PR people) hoping to get coverage on Techdirt. Doing straightup "this startup is launching today" stories isn't really our bread and butter -- unless it fits into a larger trend we're looking at, it just didn't seem to be of much value. Plus, there are dozens of blogs doing that kind of thing.

But what we could do is help startups get feedback and insights from our opinionated and thoughtful community. We could help make sure you folks "were consulted" on various interesting new tools and services. Hence Step2 Startups -- where we'll be highlighting various startups that request feedback and thoughts from the community here. Step2 is an open platform, so any company can just post their questions directly and seek feedback, but if you want to be featured on Techdirt as well, like Snackr here, we ask that you hit us up via the feedback form. If it's appropriate, we'll work with you to find an interesting question on which the community is likely to have thoughts.

So head on over to Snackr's request for feedback, check out the company's demo video or get the software itself (for iOS devices only at this point)... and help improve the product.

Filed Under: feedback, innovation, startups, step2, why wasn't i consulted, wwic
Companies: snackr