Ask HN: How to startup doing desktop apps | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How to startup doing desktop apps

3 pointssteilpass3 comments

So I have an excellent startup idea and a co-founder and the skills. The only "problem" is that it's not a web startup. Most of the discussions around HN are about web startups. And I have the feeling that questions like: "What are typical business models?" and "How do I approach (seed) funding?" are somewhat different between a web/social startup and a desktop/offline app.

So where could I find resources about starting up with desktop apps? What do you guys think?

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The Business of Software boards over here has a community which is largely focused on that. http://discuss.joelonsoftware.com/?biz

Potential self-interest note: I am a moderator.

You'll occasionally see interesting stuff around here, too. More than a few of us sell things you can download. We have one chap named Peldi who does pretty freaking well with it. His username is balsamiq -- check his articles/comments, you'll find they are frequently of interest. (His blog, which you can Google, is also good.)

If you had asked something like "Ask HN: Is Java a good choice for a desktop application?" you'd have gotten a good discussion. (Answer: Yes. It is more widely deployed than you think and the very vocal minority who hates it don't pay money for software anyhow.)

I don't really see why there would be, in your mind, any difference? If you sell desktop apps and will sell them on the web, then you too are a "web startup" in many minds. Even if you put that aside, I don't get how it matters that you aren't a web startup. I think of HN as more of a tech startup resource rather than a web startup only resource. I posted a question about merchant accounts the other day and got some great answers. There's nothing "web startup" about that - if you want to accept CCs, you need a merchant account. I asked also about virtual PBX accounts, project mgmt site recommendations and more. It's a great community to tap into for any tech startup IMO.

Most of the discussion here is about web startups, but not all -- tarsnap couldn't happen without the internet, but is distinctly not a web startup.

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