

Ask HN: Startup, Project, or something else ... - RiderOfGiraffes

Here's a thing ...<p>When I've asked people what the difference is between a restaurant and a cafeteria, the main points were that in a cafeteria you get your food from a central location, pay for it in advance, and take it to your table, whereas in a restaurant you sit at your table, order your food, it's brought to you, and you pay afterwards.<p>Yes?<p>So why do MacDonalds call themselves a restaurant?<p>In a similar vein, I'm working on a web site.  What criteria should I use to decide whether to call it a start-up, a project, or something else.
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yan
In my experience, it mostly depends on the amount of the start-up kool-aid the
author consumed (or 'founder') and rarely so the nature of the actual project.
Thus, you get some people hosting 'sites' that are very profitabl, self-
sustaining and add value to society, and others creating tiny twitter apps
(twart ups!) and calling themselves start-ups.

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poppysan
mmmm start-up kool aid.... Im drowning in it at my start-up.

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noodle
you serve yourself in a cafeteria. you have a server in a restaurant.

you have a project until you form a company. then, you have a start up.

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RiderOfGiraffes
What if I form a company, but it has no employees, it doesn't turn a profit,
I'm running it in my spare time, and I don't really see how I can turn it into
a full-time profitable venture.

Is that a start-up, a side-line, or a project?

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noodle
yes. you can still theoretically call it a startup. i just wouldn't waggle
that tag around too much until you have something to back it up.

