Removing fluoride from the water supply

Sat, 01 Oct 2011 20:55:54 +0000

More cities have stopped adding fluoride to the water supply. This is a very good thing. Fluoride is an animal poison that reduces IQ and causes cancer. Even the CDC says not to make baby formula with tap water because the fluoride is dangerous for infants.

This video sums up a lot of the evidence

Links

http://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation/safety/infant_formula.htm

Could not find gherkin-2.3.9 in any of the sources

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 20:13:08 +0000

I hit that problem installing the gems for a project.

I believe its because that version got yanked from Rubygems, so its a non-version of a gem

You'll have to specify you want a new version (gem "gherkin", "~> 2.5.0"), and/or run 'bundle update gherkin'

Finding a technical co-founder

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 17:24:15 +0000

Where to get a developer to work on your start up with you

When you have a great startup idea, you probably want a developer partner who can run the coding side of things

Benefits of a technical co-founder

Easier to raise money with a "team"
Less upfront money needed to pay an outside developer
Frees you up to build the sales and marketing

Reasons they are hard to find

They have their own ideas for startups that they can work on
Everyone would love a developer they didn't have to pay
Their time is easily-convertible to immediate cash

Where to look

Your network, your network, your network Tell all your friends you are looking for a developer, email all your contacts, post it to your social media accounts
Espaces and Colab (co-working offices in Nashville). Go visit.
Jumpstart Foundry. This is a Nashville startup accelerator. They are looking for local startups with potential to mentor and seed fund.
The Entrepreneur Center. A Nashville startup incubator with office space. They can help you, and they'll have people in the startup world working on their own projects that can help you network.
Talk to strangers in coffee-shops (where developers work)
Meetups. Attend the local meetups for Python, PHP, Rails, Web Design, Javascript, Startups
Websites I don't know it works, but there are sites for matching website cofounders like http://www.startupwithme.com/ (these might work, but I suspect they have a lot more founders needing developers than developers needing founders)

What to do if you aren't finding one initially

Its not a big deal if you are convicted that you are pursuing an awesome idea.

Start building

You may be able to pitch investors without a working service (and then you'll find a lot of developers if you have money)
You may find that you can get started with a simple version of the service from Odesk.com developers that will build your customer base / prove your model

Learn some basic coding yourself

I recommend the Ruby on Rails Tutorial. If you can finish that, you'll be a lot closer to finding the right co-founder or even building a prototype yourself.

How to pitch yourself/idea to a potential technical co-founder

Here's the questions you have answer to attract a technical co-founder:

Why should I forgo my earning potential in the present?
Why you can do the hard work of selling the service to customers?
How soon until the developer can get paid (through revenue or angel investing)?
What special advantage do you personally have for making this idea a success? (Example: I already have related successful venture that my current customers will want this too; I've worked in this niche for 10 years and have a unique position to disrupt the industry)

Profile of a technical co-founder

Low monthly expenses
Has already built and launched some personal projects
Young - Older is great too, but older developers tend to have higher market wages, more startups they are already committed to, and more life commitments outside of work

Conclusion

Finding a technical co-founder can take a lot of work. If you need one, keep working hard. Startups take hard work.

You are welcome to pitch me your idea. I do a lot of work for startups in Nashville.

John Martin Luther Crews

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 01:02:26 +0000

Born Sunday morning August 28, 2011.

We are calling him "John Martin".

I want God to rescue him from death, sin and hell in Jesus.

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