Posts by Dharmesh Shah

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Startups and The Problem Of Premature Scalaculation

development December 3, 2007

Early-Stage Startup: "We've designed the system to handle millions of users and be fault-tolerant so that there is no single point of failure and can assure our users of 99.999%…

Looking For Tech Legends: Is Boston Not Thinking Big Enough?

vc November 29, 2007

Last night, I attended an invitation-only event called "Thinking Big". It was organized by Scott Kirsner who is a Boston Globe journallist and also authors a blog called "Innovation…

Why Some Software Is Not Simpler, Just Suckier

strategy November 28, 2007

There has been a lot of discussion on the web about the value of simplicity in software. Generally, I agree with the notion of simpler being better (all other things being equal). But…

Entrepreneurs: Co-Founder Issues Driving You Crazy? 7 Simple Insights.

strategy November 21, 2007

The selection, care and feeding of a co-founder (or co-founders) is one of the key determinants of long-term success in a startup. Lots of startups have issues like a lack of market,…

Insider Peek At Data From Two Years Of B-List Blogging

anniversary November 12, 2007

This week, OnStartups.com (the blog you are now reading) turned two years old. Woo hoo! Hard to believe another year has gone by since I posted "Data Points and Delusions Of A B-List…

Why Startups Have Fewer Dilbertian, Pointy-Haired Bosses

strategy November 5, 2007

If the title of this article made you smile, then chances are that at some point in your life you've worked for a big company and/or been subjected to a Dlibertian pointy-haired…

Why You Should (Almost) Never Rewrite Your Software

development October 29, 2007

Software startups are fun. In the early days, you have an idea, and a few developers (usually including one of the founders) cranks away and manifests that idea into an application…

Diminishing Dead-Tree Media and 3 More Ways Bloggers Can Help Save The Planet

blog action day October 15, 2007

Back in August, I was contacted by Collis Ta'eed, a longtime reader of OnStartups.com. Collis was kicking off an initiative called "Blog Action Day" to get bloggers around the world…

Why Facebook Will Flourish: No Food Fights or Vampires On LinkedIn

strategy October 12, 2007

I came across an interesting article on the NYTimes.com website today: LinkedIn Plans To Open Up In A Closed Sort of Way The article is an interview with Dan Nye, the CEO at LinkedIn.…

force.com: The Perils of Platform As A Service

strategy October 5, 2007

First off, let me say I'm very impressed with Salesforce.com. I admire the company considerably. My startup, HubSpot, is a Salesforce.com customer. We're also about to become a…

Startups: Why A Real Market Of A Few Is Better Than A Mythical Market of Millions

strategy September 24, 2007

I talk to entrepreneurs all the time that are very excited about their idea because "…the market opportunity consists of millions of potential customers!". This line of thinking then…