Ask HN: What business would you start, given $100K? - phalgunr
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MarkCole
What business, or what tech/software business?

Software wise, I'd probably look into developing something that helps with
localization management. The tools around for managing various translations of
copy, images, and so on for websites at the moment are pretty terrible. Maybe
one of the reasons a lot of sites are available only in one language.

A simple way to on-board a team of translators and let them manage revisions
of copy, manage different variations of copy (for example singular and plural,
1 comment, 2 comments. One minute, two minutes). Then there are more
complicated things like functions where you need to say something like "You
have just purchased $x apples". This all needs to be wrapped in a simple UI,
and then an API/export function that can export this to the WIDE range of
formats people use for translation (XLIFF, po, etc to name a few).

In addition to selling the actual software, you can also sell approved
translations. You offer to translate their content into another language, with
accuracy, for a fee with a reasonable turnaround.

~~~
zatkin
In my experience, localization is best done by referencing to indices in a
key-value 'database'. So instead of saying "You have just purchased $x
apples", you say $translate.instant('purchasedApples') (angular example),
which references to en_US.json, which returns the English translation.

~~~
MarkCole
Oh I think you have misunderstood. On the code side for the website/software
that is being translated that's what would happen.

This theoretical software is for gathering all of the translations, and having
editors and translators (multiple) manage them with ease. Then generating all
of the JSON/XML/XLIFF/Other_Format files for every language for use on the
site/software. I have yet to find software that can do this well.

~~~
dawson
[https://www.localeapp.com/](https://www.localeapp.com/) does a pretty go job
of this for Rails apps. We used it with 13 remote translators and I can't
recommend it enough.

~~~
MarkCole
Now this is a very interesting app, and is sort of almost what I would build
with this theoretical 100k.

I feel like they are missing a trick with limiting themselves to just
YAML/Rails though. I will keep an eye on this though, and hope they go
language agnostic in the future. Seems to be a very well made product.

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kluck
If I had $100,000 I would select a software idea that really solves a problem
and develop it open source. I would be the only developer so would probably
need $2000 per month. So I would be able to program roughly 4 years with the
money. Of course I would publish the code early on and when there would be
enough traction I would found a non-profit organisation that would oversee the
further development.

~~~
ionised
I was thinking something along the same lines.

~~~
alpguneysel
2000 * 12 * 4=$96000, hence $100000.

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phalgunr
Just to throw in my own (non-tech) idea, which originally led me to wonder
what other people's capital-intensive ideas might be:

I would open up bookstores with a Netflix-like business model. You pay
something like $5/month to use it, read any books you want without buying them
and not feeling like a freeloader. There can be monthly family plans etc., and
when someone does buy a book, their fee for that month can be waived.

Clearly, despite having an entire bookstore in their pockets, people want a
physical place to socialize and read, and this offers them a way to do that in
the 21st century.

~~~
merrua
Are you making a joke about libraries?

~~~
phalgunr
No, I'm being serious! I thought about libraries being the same thing as
Borders/Barnes & Noble chains (if you're in the U.S.), but there's something
about the bookstore (being able to speak at a normal tone, having a coffee
shop in there) that seems to attract people more.

This might be a crazy (the wrong type of crazy) idea, or coming from me being
sad about the fall of Borders and the eventual demise of B&N.

But I do notice that people prefer to "hang out", stroll around, or spend an
evening at a bookstore than a library.

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GFischer
It depends on your risk aversion level and your goals.

Do you want a business you can run yourself? Maximizing revenue? A "safe bet"?
Passive or active investment?

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk%E2%80%93return_spectrum](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk%E2%80%93return_spectrum)

[http://personalfinance.duke.edu/prepare-your-
future/savings-...](http://personalfinance.duke.edu/prepare-your-
future/savings-and-investments/what-are-my-investment-options)

It also depends on your location / country, 100K gives you a lot more runway
in my country than in the U.S.

Since you're a "college grad" on HN I guess a software-based startup is your
goal.

Personally, I'd bet on the Oculus Rift, the guys I knew that struck it rich
rode a wave of innovations / new hardware (for example the iPad), I believe
the Oculus will open a lot of new avenues (virtual shopping, virtual
sightseeing, virtual training, data visualization, virtual everything :) ).
100K might not get you very far in the U.S. however.

Non-software, there are plenty of franchises that give an interesting return
on investment.

[http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/206466](http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/206466)

------
johnsocs
Perhaps this is not the answer you are looking for but I wouldn't start a
business just based on how much money I had in my pocket. I'd start a business
based on what markets are within my reach, based on connections, skills etc..

Myabe you were asking what those were?

~~~
phalgunr
I agree that just having the capital alone is not enough reason to start a
business.

I was asking more along the lines of, "what controversial/high risk business
have you always wanted to start, but that requires a lot of starting capital?"

(Purely software startups probably don't fall into that category)

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gchokov
I would not start a business with my own money :) Shoot for business with
someone paying for what you do from day 0, that's the ultimate validation of
what you are doing. Keep the money to support you and your family.

~~~
phalgunr
Valid point, but I was trying to aim more along the lines of business ideas
that _are_ high risk and require a lot of initial capital to get started.

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danielki
I think there's a lot of interesting things that are going to be happening at
the intersection of health and wearables in the next few years. $100k likely
isn't enough to start a full-fledged company, but it's enough to create a good
enough prototype to get some outside investment

Some ideas for said company that I'll probably never implement because I don't
have said $100k:

\- Running shoes that give feedback on your running form using pressure
sensors and accelerometers. Depending on the type/placement of sensors, could
also double as a weight tracking device that doesn't require you to weigh
yourself

\- Smartwatches aimed at diabetics, which can continuously monitor
insulin/glucose levels, while also serving other smartwatch functions. Alerts
for low/high levels.

\- System that would let paramedics/doctors access recent pulse/skin
temperature/etc data from a smartwatch and display it in a usable manner.
Could help figure out what happened in the minutes leading up to an emergency
call.

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cdvonstinkpot
I would either buy an already-profitable app on Fliptopia & work on upgrading
& maintaining it.

-or-

I'd invest in Real Estate- flipping houses with a builder I know.

If all goes well, I might be able to do both, depending on the Fliptopia
market at the moment. I find many apps there seem overvalued.

------
atsaloli
Training in system administration. I've been doing it part-time for 5 yeas,
would love to do it full-time.

~~~
mrfusion
Can you expand on that a bit more? Sounds interesting.

~~~
atsaloli
I've been a sysadmin for over 15 years. For the last five years, I've been
organizing (and more often than not, delivering) trainings in public and
private venues.

Example of a public venue -- I rent a hotel conference room for 3 days and
people fly in to take a class. Or I teach at a conference, usually a half-day
or a quarter-day course. Occasionally full-day.

Example of a private venue -- a company flies me in to teach their staff whom
they also fly in so we are all in one room. :)

I've taught CFEngine, vi, and Time Management for System Administrators (based
on Tom Limoncelli's book)

I'd do 2-6 trainings a year.

I was doing this on the side, while holding down a regular full-time job.

Here's the pitch deck I put together last October when I was exploring getting
funding to do this full time:
[http://www.verticalsysadmin.com/vsa.htm](http://www.verticalsysadmin.com/vsa.htm)

However, I managed to fall into a 1 year CFEngine consulting project which
keeps me almost too busy to train (plug -- I have a public CFEngine training
coming up in Prague in October -- USD 5K for 6 days of training for one
student -- [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cfengine-3-course-and-policy-
wr...](https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cfengine-3-course-and-policy-writing-
workshop-sep-28th-oct-3rd-2015-prague-tickets-15849520342))

I'd love to offer more training -- specifically I want to be able to take in a
computer user and turn out a sysadmin ("infrastructure engineer" or whatever
the modern term is) -- my first step toward this was working with LOPSA
(Professional Content Committee) to create a sysadmin reading list
([http://www.sabok.org/](http://www.sabok.org/))

I really enjoy training, I find it quite gratifying when students light up
with new-found understanding.

People often tell my training is the best they've ever had, e.g.:

"Thank you for such a great class. Been to lots of technical training and you
are the best instructor I've had. Beyond standard lecture/lab your examples
and willingness to help is unmatched." \-- Thomas Nicholson

I've been a regular employee pretty much all my career so working on my own
business full-time is new to me. I find it exciting, creative, exhilarating,
exhausting. I asked the founder of Pythian (quite successful DBA/sysadmin
consultancy) how he grew his company, and what was the key to his success, and
he said, a RIDICULOUS amount of HARD WORK. I am finding this to be very true.

------
eip
I would replicate the work of Stan Meyer.

~~~
phalgunr
Just looked it up, very interesting!

