I was able to solve one of my holdups using news.yc. I needed a fair amount of money to buy new servers, get really good co-location service, pay for incorporating, and cover some other expenses. By posting to news.yc my need and what I thought I could do (will do) I was able to find someone to buy-in a 5% stake of what I am doing. The news.yc forum is a powerful medium. In all I found a partner willing to to give me $20,000 (its in my bank now) so I could make things happen. 5% may seem like a lot but I figure I still own 95% and have no need to go out and look for more money.