Referring to people who follow PG's writing and the discussions on this site as a cult is not correct, and frankly I'm getting tired of the moniker. If Paul were to write something bogus, the people here would be the first to pick it apart.
As with any reasonably well-known person, there are followers that adhere to PG too religiously. I can't speak for these people except to say that they are the minority on HN.
Paul's writings are inspiring in the same way as Rand. But they are different because they span the gap between fantasy and reality. His main message of "Make something users want" couldn't be more pragmatic.
Certainly some essays are more speculative and philosophical than others, but most tend to be focused on one idea: How to do something that is exciting and meaningful to you and fit that into how the actual world works; spanning the gap between your personal fantasy job and the reality of making that into a business.
0. Sorry I haven't replied Christmas came unexpectedly.
1. As always, the average level of the discussion here is far above average for the Internet.
2. Thank you for contributing your thoughts here. This is a deal-breaking issue for me and will determine whether or not I start a company or not.
3. It is not about greed, paranoia, or any malicious motivation. It's about doing something that's decently interesting to me, helpful to customers, and the necessary condition that you, knowing the most about the situation as a whole, should have ultimate control over the decisions that directly affect the user experience.
Long time listener, first time caller. Sorry that I didn't put the Ask YC (didn't know if it added it automatically or not).
I finally found a few potential cofounders, quit my job, and started working obsessively on my ideas. I'll have a demo in a few weeks and I need to make a decision about whether or not I actually want to go through with this.
My main concern is with the funding/stock/control issue. Ignorant or not, I (and the other founder hackers) need to have complete control over things from top to bottom. I am certainly open to suggestions & advice from a board, but the decisions ultimately have to rest with me.
In your experience, has this been an issue? Is this an unrealistic expectation?
As with any reasonably well-known person, there are followers that adhere to PG too religiously. I can't speak for these people except to say that they are the minority on HN.
Paul's writings are inspiring in the same way as Rand. But they are different because they span the gap between fantasy and reality. His main message of "Make something users want" couldn't be more pragmatic.
Certainly some essays are more speculative and philosophical than others, but most tend to be focused on one idea: How to do something that is exciting and meaningful to you and fit that into how the actual world works; spanning the gap between your personal fantasy job and the reality of making that into a business.