No, I get the point. The services are not equal in terms of catalogue depth. They're also not equal in terms of viewing volume.
If I used the DVD plan to fill those gaps, I would be annoyed too. But I don't, I only use streaming. I suspect the majority of users were either overwhelmingly streaming or overwhelmingly DVD oriented. The cost to fill the gaps for those users wasn't adequately covered by the $2, and since they were the minority, they put a wall between the services.
My point was, I still perceive $7.99 unlimited streaming as a great value for the product. Gaps and all.
I also tried both, I was recently promoted into a position where I'm surrounded by developers. They all say both work, but they also all say go Django.
I like Django documentation, I'm a rookie and I'm making progress. Progress is encouraging.
Start with Zed's LearnPythonTheHardWay... then move onto Django.
Rails will get you there, too. My support group is familiar with Django, which is generally the biggest deciding factor.
I would personally use this over Groupon. Especially if it integrates well with all the current Google services I use. I'm sure Groupon is a bit uneasy about this one.
I'd say yes, but I'm sure the favorable degree to which a recruiter may look upon an employed candidate is less in the tech industry than that of more traditional corporate oriented businesses.
If you're applying to start ups, I doubt they'd care as long as you have the skills necessary.
Is it a web application or just an ecommerce website. If you don't know the difference head over to google.
If it's a web app, find a technical co-founder.. if you can't find one and are dedicated to making something happen, start learning python/django or ruby/rails.
If it's just a website selling things online, you may be fine with a CMS system, look into Magento, Drupal, Joomla, Wordpress etc..
Team up with that new housemate of yours. Make him your CTO, get a prototype up and running.
Pick up a book or do some online tutorials in whatever the prototype is built in... Learn HTML & CSS - very easy to learn.
You're going to have a million more ideas in your lifetime you will regard as amazing and life changing, trust me. Use this one to get your feet wet. Start doing.
I've fallen into this trap as of late... definitely need to shut up and tinker...
There are so many wavering viewpoints and opinions on topics like Rails vs Django, what to use when, does your framework hinder acquisition possibilities, etc, that you can easily wander off path; Above all else: Play, build, learn.
His blog has great advice for new entrepreneurs. Especially when you don't have a tech co-founder... He covers in depth how he went about learning to code a basic prototype and provides a solid outline to go about doing so.
But you're neither an MCS or MBA. Instead, I feel you should be looking at this from an ROI mindset. If you take the time to scrap together a crap prototype... just so the basic features work, just enough.. you'll have a much more thorough understanding of not only your product, but how prototyping works, how to communicate with your tech personnel when you find them, and an enhanced ability to manage them.
They will also respect you more, see that you're serious, that you have at least some knowledge of what you're talking about as opposed to barking out orders with no concept of what is required to execute.
If you read my submissions, this is coming from a business guy with an idea and the realization that it will most likely go no where unless I create my own traction.
You were a former CS major that got lazy, changed majors, and partied...
Why not prove your work ethic by teaching yourself how to code a basic prototype? It's a much better way to gain some traction and attract a technical cofounder. It will take time, but it doesn't look like YC is going anywhere.
Putting the time in and grinding out your own prototype could look good on you as a non-lazy founder... it's all about the founders.
Believe it or not I've stumbled upon your blog before in searching for some answers to questions touched on in this post. I must say your blog was a big motivator based on the fact we're both young and non-MBA business guys looking to make our mark in the tech/startup world.
This post was very PRO python/django... other posts I've searched on HN have been pro Ruby/Rails. The best piece of advice I've gotten is to try both, I burned down 1/2 the entry rails book I ordered... Loved it(or maybe I was just excited to create some extreme novice terminal program telling me how many characters are in my full name). Tonight I'm going to attack the Learnpythonthehardway tutorial and then decide.
Do you feel like you're coming along quickly? Enjoying yourself thus far? PS I plan on blogging about this endeavor.
I've gone through a few potential co-founders. I'm currently working with one on an idea I had, it's going OK... but that's about it. It's really hard to attract quality Programmers, I'd like to educate myself a bit further before I make a serious networking push.
Development has been very slow, and I'm really trying to adhere to MVP and Lean Startup practices. Therefore, I'm going to take the time to learn how to hack some garbage together with hopes of attracting some talent.
If I used the DVD plan to fill those gaps, I would be annoyed too. But I don't, I only use streaming. I suspect the majority of users were either overwhelmingly streaming or overwhelmingly DVD oriented. The cost to fill the gaps for those users wasn't adequately covered by the $2, and since they were the minority, they put a wall between the services.
My point was, I still perceive $7.99 unlimited streaming as a great value for the product. Gaps and all.