

PG On Fox Today - rams
http://ycombinator.posterous.com/pg-on-fox-today

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adamhowell
I was actually pleasantly surprised by the hosts. Was expecting them to come
off as complete morons (having watched some of Fox Biz) but they did a decent
job.

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nreece
Direct link: [http://www.foxbusiness.com/search-
results/m/25897600/funding...](http://www.foxbusiness.com/search-
results/m/25897600/funding-tech-start-ups.htm)

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davidw
What's interesting about this is seeing how something that we know a lot about
is conveyed to the general public in a few brief clips. It must be difficult
to choose exactly what to say.

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ShabbyDoo
I was surprised that the hosts actually let Paul speak for more than seven un-
interrupted seconds. When the interview first started, the game of "I'm going
to say some stuff that I think you might say and ask you if that's what you
want to say" seemed to have begun, but the hosts thankfully scaled back to
occasional yapping.

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rsskga
Watching the video reinforced my desire to apply to Y Combinator. I've read in
the guidelines that submitting multiple ideas is acceptable, and even
preferred. It's also clear the majority of accepted startups are product-
oriented (I'm considering automated subscriptions to a web service a product
in this case), rather than service-oriented.

My company is following the Guy Kawasaki method of offering
services/consulting to generate immediate cash flow, while working on product-
driven solutions in the background. I strongly believe the product I'm
currently working on will succeed, though I don't believe it will ever be a
good acquisition candidate for Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, etc. I'm wondering
how important that is for acceptance into Y Combinator.

Even the services I'm offering have an extra entrepreneurial twist. With a nod
towards Anomaly (<http://anomaly.com/>), I have one carefully-screened client
with whom I'm essentially working for equity rather than cash. Thus far I've
been impressed by his performance and contributions to the project.

In summary, I'm hoping that someone here will evaluate what I've written and
respond with a convincing argument for why I should: A. Apply with my 'big
picture' vision, incorporating most or all of the above - keeping my fingers
crossed that what is essentially an agency with multiple business models has a
chance at acceptance B. Apply with total focus on the app - even though it's
not a good acquisition candidate C. Wait to apply until I have a product-
driven idea that is a good acquisition candidate

Thank you in advance for any light to be shed. I hope my questions possess
some semblance of universal applicability.

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rms
First, read this if you haven't. <http://ycombinator.com/howtoapply.html>

If you email me specifics I can give you some specific feedback as you start
writing your application. However, (A) is probably the right answer: it is
good to demonstrate to YC that you have multiple paths to success, especially
because the ideas for these startups tend to change over the course of the Y
Combinator program and behind. Just be very, very specific about what you're
going to do.

Not being an obvious acquisition target for Big Internet absolutely does not
disqualify you or even hurt you. Your basic idea is a good one that will make
you money -- and if you have real revenue you can always sell a company.

Wufoo is the canonical example of a YC company going strong as an independent.
So, my universal suggestion, would be to apply with your biggest picture
vision, while focusing on that big picture as a specific, well-defined product
rather than as services for individual clients.

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rsskga
Thanks very much for your feedback. As a Wufoo user myself, it is a very
encouraging example.

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tptacek
It is not easy to be that natural in front of a TV camera. I wonder if pg's
had training.

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Xichekolas
Is it just me or does he look mildly irritated by the end?

It seemed to start around the point where the host accuses Mark Cuban of
duping everyone with broadcast.com then lumping Viaweb in with that... as if
all founders made money by tricking acquirers rather than creating value.

Of course, maybe I'm projecting...

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budu3
I didn't see irritation. I saw amusement when the host mentioned Mark. But
then again you might be right.

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dejb
Last question was good - and the answer. Must admit to learning stuff in the
interview as an unlikely yc-applicant.

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edw519
Successful Pittsburghers:

Andrew Carnegie sold US Steel to J.P. Morgan and ended up in New York.

Mark Cuban sold Broadcast.com to Yahoo and ended up in Dallas.

Paul Graham sold Viaweb to Yahoo and ended up in Silicon Valley.

I'm determined to be next. Working on it.

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adamhowell
Carnegie was a teenager when his family emigrated to Pittsburgh, do
Pittsburghers count him 100% as one of their own?

I'd think the Scots would have something to say about that ;)

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jimbokun
The Pittsburghers that worked for Carnegie certainly did not count him one of
their own.

In a local PBS special about one of Carnegie's libraries, an elderly gentleman
said that he would go to the pool in the basement of the library when he was a
kid. But his father would never darken the door of any place with Carnegie's
name on it. The father called Carnegie a "son of a shoe," apparently a grave
insult in the father's home country.

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kirubakaran
The coolest thing about different cultures is that the grave insult that can
get you and your family killed and your brother-in-law's tractor dealership
bankrupted in one, is funny or no big deal in others.

A guy I know (here in US) got in trouble for beckoning a Fillipino coworker.
Apparently only prostitutes are beckoned in the Phillipines as a solicitation.
In some places in India, you -can- will get killed (or, if you are lucky, your
dick cut off) for saying "Your sister is hot". In other places you will be
considered enemy for life. In the US, I hear "Thanks man, I'll tell her".
Cultural differences between families is also very interesting to observe.
When I was a semi-kid, I heard one guy shout at his brother that he is son of
a whore and my jaw dropped and remained dropped for a while.

I wonder how shocking alien cultures will be. Zaphod was(is?) his own great-
grandfather due to a time-machine mishap and a defective condom, if I remember
it right.

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_pius
_In some places in India, you -can- will get killed (or, if you are lucky,
your dick cut off) for saying "Your sister is hot"._

That's not the brightest thing to say to any guy, even in the United States.

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kirubakaran
My friends must just be very laid back people then, I guess :)

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_pius
Apparently. :)

Of course, these things are probably situation dependent no matter what
culture you're in. If you're good enough friends with someone, you can
probably get away with saying nearly anything ... if they think you're joking.

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cschep
"Paul, did you have a startup at one point?"

UM...yeah!?

haaa. I guess there is no reason to expect that she would know that...

(what?)

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prakash
Is this playing for folks outside the US?

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abi
Yes. I'm in Singapore.

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prakash
thanks! For some reason it didn't play in Safari. It did work in Firefox
though.

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acangiano
I can see this becoming a reality TV. :)

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Rod
Hackers are (almost) always male and don't get laid that much, so a reality TV
with a bunch of guys and no sex is not going to attract a lot of viewers...

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robryan
Web based show! I think it would be interesting if they made a little
documentary following around 3 months of YC, commercially though I guess it
wouldn't be overly viable, would be great to see though.

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kylec
Joel Spolsky did something similar, except with a group in interns:

<http://www.projectaardvark.com/movie/>

There's also a little bit in there with the founders of Reddit and (IIRC) it
briefly shows a bit of the first round of YC.

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chrischen
Oh geez, 1000 applications? Is ycombinator taking 60 this fall?

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jasonlbaptiste
Black Polos are serious business.

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edw519
I didn't realize it until I watched, but with a single word, pg tells you the
answer to the question posed by one of my favorite books, "The Ultimate Secret
to Getting Absolutely Everything You Want," by Mike Hernacki.

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ph0rque
"No?"

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davidw
"That's what you've got to figure out"

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2k1uOqRb0HU>

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edw519
Wrong video.

[http://www.foxbusiness.com/search-
results/m/25897600/funding...](http://www.foxbusiness.com/search-
results/m/25897600/funding-tech-start-ups.htm)

Answer at B4.

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Ardit20
he is posh haha

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mofey
and fluffy!

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yread
PG for president!

