

YC S12 Single Founders Wanted - xiaomei

Applications for YC S12 are due in five weeks. I suspect there are many great people here wanting to start a venture. However many of us may lack an idea or prototype to apply with. Others may be in need of a founding partner. I know that it is risky to apply with someone you barely know but marriages do follow from speed dating, after all.  The best example of founder speed dating I can think of is Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi deciding to apply to YC after meeting twice to start Dropbox [1]. So, who is in need of a product idea or a cofounder before applying to YC?<p>Please tell what you can offer to your founder match.<p>[1] http://www.forbes.com/sites/victoriabarret/2011/10/18/dropbox-the-inside-story-of-techs-hottest-startup/
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dirkdeman
I’m fearing this will going to look like a personal ad, but here we go anyway.

Who am I? I’m Dirk, a 32 year old Dutch jack-of-all-trades. I have a
background in communications/PR, taught myself to hack (PHP mainly, Python OK
too) some 7-8 years ago. I’m not the best designer in the world, but I know
when something ‘works’ or not and know my way around photoshop/illustrator et
al.

Our family dog (I have a wife+2 young kids) is a lab. As with most dogs, his
owner has similar personalities: easygoing, playful, more intelligent than
you’d say at first sight, and a puppy-like naivety well into adulthood. Oh,
I’m housebroken, too.

About my project: No paint just pixels Two years ago I started No paint just
pixels: a project that will disrupt the art world. A lot of media have made
the transition from analog to digital, from offine to online. This is clearly
not the case with art. I made an online marketplace where digital artists and
art lovers can buy, sell and display their art. The project is written in PHP
and is about 75% finished. Check my YCW11 appliation pich here:
<http://dirktheman.posterous.com/private/oDCxnvrzme>

Who am I searching for? I’m looking for someone who is a jack of all trades
like me: part hacker, part design guy/gal, part marketer, part sysadmin. If
you have strong coding skills but lack a sense of design or marketing that’s
okay, but coding skills are a must. Personalitywise: if you’re easy going,
love art and/or photography, want to make the world a better place and have a
sense of humor contact me! The one thing I can do without is a big ego though.
If you’re already based in California that’s a plus, but by no means a
prerequisite.

What’s the deal? For sake of equality, 50% of the company and its proceedings.

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crawfordcomeaux
Generalist developer seeking biz or designer cofounder to launch AudienceAmp,
an app to make attending presentations/conferences more enjoyable & meaningful
via realtime interaction. Core features include standard stuff usually
available as single services, like polling or surveying. Few apps/platforms
consolidate them & the ones that do have a lot of pain points.

My team & I won Startup Weekend Baton Rouge in November with this idea. The
long-term roadmap is pretty solid, too. Hint: loosen your definition of
presentation/conference, but we can discuss that later. There's been a lot of
interest expressed in the idea & I've got a plan for launch, but nothing's set
in stone, of course.

Ask away if you've got questions!

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xiaomei
I think it's important that founders match primarily on personality
compatibility and not on the project idea. The idea will most likely change.
In a way, the project application idea is a means to get past the YC judges.

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iglinksy86
ME! iglinsky86@gmail.com iglinsky86@mail.ru facebook.com/igor1glinsky. I have
3 brilliant ideas: 1 incredibly complex but written in such detail with so
many connecting points --you'll love it. The other so effing simple that it's
got EASY capability of making around 4 billion a year.. by the second year.
This is not a joke. And the third one I'm still mulling over in my mind, once
I figure out the mechanics it also will be pretty freakin awesome

So for idea one and two, need developer/engineer, coders

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vrikhter
Only in the second year? Why not the first?

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evanmarks
Interesting forum for finding like minded individuals. I have been near
applying to YC several times, but never pulled the trigger due to the fact
that I have no partner to bounce ideas off of. Would be interested in applying
this round.

I am a great generalist. Currently work in marketing and fundraising at a
nonprofit (an orchestra), hack on side projects (just launched on the app
store), and have a degree in classical music and an MBA.

Contact info is in my profile.

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xiaomei
Our Lists is a neat app idea. I keep thinking everything that could be
shareable already is but I am always surprised. You can find my contact info
in my profile.

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chris_dcosta
I think the main issue here is that probably _everyone_ has an idea/project.

How do you match two founders who both want someone to work on their own idea?
Maybe we should be looking for someone who is prepared to agree to give both
ideas a go, equally.

I know it's a tall order, and I see (ego) trouble ahead, but think of it this
way : surely it doesn't matter which idea succeeds if you're both sharing the
profits?

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mirsadm
I'm not sure the best idea would be to apply because you simply want to get
in. Surely it would advantageous for you and the application if you were
passionate about something and want it to come to life.

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mgallivan
I'm looking for a co-founder (assuming we match). I have a project idea/WIP
but am fairly flexible. I'm a programmer.

Reach me at gallivan.matt@gmail.com

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dwwoelfel
You may get more replies if you put your contact details in your profile. The
email field is only visible to admins.

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xiaomei
Contact info added. Thanks.

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mrkmcknz
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3614884>

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xiaomei
I believe 2012 will be remembered as the year that the education revolution
took off. Rising education costs and poor quality of instruction are the
catalysts for educational innovation. Current products fall into video
lessons, memorization and digital textbooks. They all use visual stimulation
and repetition as the primary means for learning.

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keeptrying
Anyone interested in the publishing industry? Email me, contact is in my
profile.

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molsongolden
What aspect of publishing?

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keeptrying
I'm creating a marketplace for writers to meet artists and editors to self
publish their book. Trying to cut the margins of big middlemen companies like
lulu etc. It has a built in escrow system to make transactions safer. Most of
hte code is done. Should be able to launch soon.

