
Show HN: Orbit – Weekly list of software contractors ready for immediate work - philip1209
https://www.moonlightwork.com/orbit
======
philip1209
Moonlight helps companies increase momentum by hiring expert software
engineers as part-time consultants. We just finished YC’s Startup School
(where we were in the first office hours video [1]). While we’ve had many
contractors join our marketplace, our main focus has been getting more clients
to hire through Moonlight.

What differentiates us from other sites is that we have quality contractors
who are not normally in the contractor market. 62% of our 1000+ contractors
have day jobs at technology companies. at companies like Facebook and Google.

We've realized through user testing that clients like to see who is available
and how much time they have to work each week, before they submit a problem to
the contractor community. So, today we’re releasing that as a product!

Orbit is a weekly email of top software contractors ready immediate work. We
have 1000+ contractors with backgrounds like “Frontend team at Facebook” and
“Former Android Team at Google.” When you sign up for Orbit, we’ll send you
the latest issue - and inside you can read about some of the projects where
Moonlighters have made an impact.

If you’re interested in contracting through Moonlight - you can sign up here:
[https://www.moonlightwork.com/apply](https://www.moonlightwork.com/apply)

[1]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abtHadERzXU&t=27m](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abtHadERzXU&t=27m)

~~~
justboxing
> If you’re interested in contracting through Moonlight..

Thinking about it. Couldn't find any info on your site (from a contractor /
freelancer perspective), so asking here.

1) How does it work once someone submits that typeform? what is your criteria
for approval?

2) Who decided the hourly rate for the contractor? You or the Contractor?

3) The Orbit landing page says "Richa S 165$ / hour", "Jacob L" 150$ / hour.
Are these real people or placeholders? Cos I couldn't click them to view their
profile.

4) How much of the "165$ / hour" does Richa S get once approved by a client
for work, assuming you (moonlightwork) take a cut. Is that negotiable between
you and the contractor? Is it a 1 time fee or on-going based on the hourly
rate?

5) Is the work done as 1099 Contractors? or W2?

6) Anything else you can add here, that will help potential prospects decide
if this is worth applying for.

~~~
kondro
Don't know about anything else, but saw their cut is 15%. Not sure which side
it gets added on though, although it doesn't really matter in the long run.

~~~
philip1209
Contractors set their rate and get paid that. The client pays a 15% processing
fee on top, and from that 15% comes things like credit card processing fees,
payout fees, 1099 fees, etc.

------
throwaway2016a
Is this open to companies as well? We do consulting have several software
engineers, I'd love to be able to list them for availability.

~~~
philip1209
We don't currently support development companies yet. However, we've had a
couple people inquire about this. If you shoot us an email at team at
moonlightwork.com, perhaps we can do a user study about what this would look
like.

------
amsheehan
Does Orbit do anything to protect contractors from bad code bases?

One benefit of contracting through a company is a long due diligence process
before starting. This is helpful to set realistic expectations. Is there any
process at Orbit for something similar, or is it Grindr for devs and work?

~~~
sidlls
One person's "bad codebase" is another contractor's windfall project.

------
anotherturn
Any reason the authentication mechanism doesn't work? Unable to log in / use
forgotten password. If we want to update our tag line, skill set on offer
there doesn't seem to be any way to do this..

~~~
philip1209
In Startup School, we were pushed to "do things that don't scale". (This was
particularly hammered into us into the office hours video I linked to in my
original comment). So, we abandoned coding development in favor of using
Zapier, email, and spreadsheets. Now that we have a better idea of what works
(and what doesn't), we're getting back to application development. We hope to
have a web-app online later this month.

If you want to update anything - please email us! (team at moonlightwork.com).

------
deskamess
Is there a way to exclude companies from seeing your profile? For example,
your current employer. Nothing is a 100% so perhaps a simple exclusion by name
pattern or email suffix of the company.

~~~
philip1209
You're private (1) unless you tell us you want to be publicly advertised, or
(2) when you choose to work with a specific client

------
Animats
This is the online equivalent of standing on a street corner where contractors
hire casual labor. Depressing thought.

~~~
philip1209
I disagree - I think it's the future of work. Our company mission is to help
people earn what they want. For some, this means working extra - for instance,
to pay off student debt. However, among contractors on our platform whose
primary source of income is contracting (as opposed to a full-time job), over
90% work fewer than 40 hours per week. This means that they earn what they
want, and choose to work less.

As we talk about things like universal basic income, I think we also need to
rethink the idea of a workweek. The contractors on Moonlight are not junior -
48% have 10+ years experience in technology (and 76% have 5+ years). I think
it's a sign that what people expect in terms of work is changing.

~~~
wayn3
People pretend that platforms like Moonlightwork turn "developers" into
"corner whores". Its quite the opposite. They assume all the operational
overhead of running a consulting business and let you code. They empower you
to be an entrepreneur without doing any of the hard stuff.

As a contractor, I am able to sell as little hours as I want. Working from a
thailand beach. Or Tokyo. Or Las Vegas, where I currently reside.

I can operate this as a business. Meaning that I can immediately reinvest the
money into a side venture without taking the employment tax hit.

I can set my own hours, work other projects, don't answer to a boss and don't
dance with HR.

I make 4x the cash I could make working a real job. I don't get fucked over on
overtime.

Does moonlightwork beat working a very senior position at google headquarters?
Probably not. But not everyone has the means or ambition or willingness to do
the SF grind.

Doing contract work is a very easy path to becoming a millionaire if you're
good. You can easily take home 250k+ here. Live whereever you want. Its a very
easy life.

I've never been inside an office and I will never be. Never going to be stuck
in traffic. Or with people I don't like. Always around my loved ones.

As far as those platforms are concerned, Moonlight Work is easily the best.
All the power to Emma and Phillip. I don't know their numbers, but they will
make it big. Sky is the limit, guys.

I'd immediately come work for them if they offered me a job.

These guys only charge 15% on top of what you make. That's a joke. They could
easily justify 35%. Moonlight Work is the shit. Screw the haters.

~~~
philip1209
Thank you!

Not all entrepreneurs have to be product-based. I have friends who are sales
experts and know no engineering, but have setup successful reseller businesses
(e.g. of Cisco products). I think that freelancing for engineers can be very
similar - you don't have to make a product or raise funding to get the
flexibility associated with being an entrepreneur.

Regarding remote work - after I shut down my last startup, I started
freelancing, then promptly sold all my stuff and moved to Mexico City (where I
am now). It's been liberating to live on my own terms.

