

Startups Open Sourced: Stories to inspire and educate - jmtame
http://www.startupsopensourced.com/

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prayag
Using open source in the title doesn't seem right since you are neither
talking about open source start-ups or open sourcing the book.

I don't think the word open source means what you think it means. It is a
particular philosophy of writing software (or doing creative work).

Using open source in the title seems disingenuous.

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jmtame
I've gone through a few name changes. I didn't start out calling it Startups
Open Sourced, I think it started out as "Founders in School" or something
close to that back in February, and then it changed to "In the Trenches" and I
worried that "In the Trenches" sent an overhyped message, or set the wrong
tone as this aggressive, war-story type of book. When the idea of "Startups
Open Sourced" came to me, I thought it seemed appropriate, because it's like
you're looking at and understanding how each of these founders work on a
personal and professional level. You get inside their head and they put it all
out there for you to analyze. Hiring, fundraising, finding cofounders, staying
motivated, all that is talked about in depth.

As far as the process of writing the book, I'll actually 'open source' that
process next weekend. I'll cover everything, from the e-mail templates I sent,
to the way I recorded and transcribed the calls and edited everything.

~~~
Harkins
So someone who buys a copy can redistribute it freely with changes?

<http://opensource.org/docs/osd>

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jmtame
The 'open sourced' connotation was mostly aimed at the process of doing a
startup, opening up all the complexities of that from the founders perspective
and allowing others to see it and possible reuse those techniques in their own
startup. Sorry if I've confused anyone on the nature of that. If I had to give
it a more generic name it'd probably just be "Interviews with Startup
Founders." If you want to share it with your friends, there's nothing that I
can really do about that--I would just say that if you like it enough, try to
purchase it.

~~~
Harkins
Then quit abusing the term "open source". It has a specific meaning. The other
word in the title is "Startups", would you do interviews with only established
multinational companies and call it "startups"? Would you publish a cookbook
and call it "startups"? Don't use "open source" unless you mean it.

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chesspro
Great content. I really enjoyed the interview with Dave Paola, the founder of
djangy.com & thathigh.com. I saw his AMA on reddit a while back
([http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/ev2zb/i_run_thathighco...](http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/ev2zb/i_run_thathighcom_and_it_pays_my_rent_in_san/))
and was curious about his story. I've read Founders at Work and while it's a
good read, I've been looking for interviews with more recent startups, which
is exactly what this book/pdf provides. Thanks.

~~~
jmtame
Thanks so much for the feedback! Yeah, Dave's interview still blows my mind
when I read it. Guy is a trooper!

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revorad
Bought a copy. Looks pretty solid. You should probably offer one free
interview for download or online as a taster. Just emailed you with some more
ideas.

~~~
jmtame
Done. <http://www.startupsopensourced.com/sample-grooveshark/>

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sjohns52
A writer is allowed to use words and common concepts in new and interesting
ways - this is how new words and meanings get created. jmtame makes a good
case for "Startups Open Sourced." He is providing insight into what the start
up process is like. This book serves to "open source" the knowledge of
starting a company, not the content.

I like the title; it's creative.

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marcamillion
I wonder if the author realizes the irony of selling an 'open-source' book of
stories ?

Just saying.

Looks interesting though. A shame I don't have much time to take this on :|

~~~
jmtame
Yeah a little bit of irony, I hear ya =]

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hanibash
I loved the Grooveshark interview. These interviews feel really personal.

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ropiku
Can we get ePub format please ?

~~~
jmtame
Sure. I'll try to get that added tonight.

~~~
krat0sprakhar
Would it be possible to mail it to the fellows who have purchased the pdf
copy?

~~~
jmtame
Yes, I'll do that. Thanks for the tip.

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krat0sprakhar
Just purchased a copy. It would be wonderful if you could bundle it with a
ePub version as well (like Hacker Monthly).

~~~
jmtame
Thank you. I've received several e-mails about this, I'm working on an ePub
version and should have it by tomorrow or Tuesday. Send me an e-mail jmtame at
gmail dot com.

Edit: just saw your other comment, I responded in that thread.

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thebigredjay
I think you could have come up with a more appropriate title, the connection
is a bit of a stretch. The content, however, looks great. I just purchased a
physical copy.

~~~
jmtame
Yeah it was more of a pun with an allusion/shoutout to the software/tech
world, but I see that some of the HN readers don't dig it. Thanks for checking
it out.

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patrickaljord
Is this about startups which products are open source such as status.net or is
it something else? Kind of confusing.

~~~
jmtame
I'm interviewing 33 startups and they talk about how they got interested in
entrepreneurship, ways they dealt with challenges such as finding cofounders,
hiring, raising money, staying motivated, getting users, etc. It's the same
Q&A approach as Founders at Work, but all of these guys are still in their
early stages (although there are a few like Foursquare and GitHub that aren't
as early stage).

~~~
patrickaljord
So is the book open source?

edit: Got it after reading: "the book is true to its title in that it open
sources the founders’ personal lives and their startups".

~~~
jmtame
The book title is mostly referring to the idea of making the process of doing
a startup as open as possible--you're getting a pretty good view into how
these founders think and deal with a lot of different problems. I'm not sure
why, maybe it's because I know some of the founders personally, but these
interviews are definitely more honest and cadid than most interviews I've
read. I have probably only seen more swearing in a book while reading Catcher
in the Rye.

