davcro

One of my rails apps was hijacked via xss injection last week. I wish I had read this guide sooner. I highly recommend for any rails admin.

Look for a successful app you can copy. Then copy it.

I'm expecting downvotes for this comment, but it is the best advice I can give. You will learn tons in the process and the end app will likely be tailored in your vision. Something along the lines of this (jump to 4:43) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pgy4PcSpUkI

Stealth mode is reserved for high profile entrepreneur's or successful business's that can be easily copied. Also stealth mode should not mean private beta. Stealth mode should mean hiding from potential competitors. For example, I'm a Facebook developer which means the apps I create are for everyday consumers. A TechCrunch article or HN post about one of my apps would have a negligible impact on sales or traffic, but it would attract competitors. For that reason I avoid that form of publicity.

If I was a high profile entrepreneur working on a top secret project, I still wouldn't do a private beta. Instead I would block IP's belonging to tech savvy states like California and countries like China. Actually I think it is a good idea to block all of Asia. The majority of clones of my apps are created by people in China.

The difference between BioE is scale. Both cars and computers were built from large objects you could hold in your hand. BioE is at the nano and micro scale. Bio work requires a sterile environment, expensive hard to obtain chemicals, and fancy machines like atomic microscopes. In my mind Biohacking is as far fetched as nano-engineering and time travel.

Full disclosure: I have an undergraduate degree in bioengineering from 2008. I did a lot of lab work, but never worked in industry. I've went straight into web apps after graduating.

Ex-bio engineer here. I do not think the DIY bio community exists or will ever gain traction. For one, I don't understand how someone could do labwork in their garage. Two I don't understand how people could afford mandatory tools like PCR machines. Three, the results from your labor don't seem tangible or exciting. At least with the computer hacking movement in the 60s and 70s you could hold a computer in your hand, you could see improvements in speed and performance as you tinkered. When programming, the output of your code would be realized relatively quickly. Bio is too complicated, too tedious, and too expensive to ever be fun or support a hacker community.

I disagree. I believe a business should be built around a product, a vision dreamed up by the founder well before they started hiring or searching for co-founders. The personality of the business will be determined by the product. The correct question is "What is the product going to be?" not "Who is your business going to be?". A company with a good product won't have to ask the questions posted in the article.

Talking to yourself is okay as long as no one talks back.

No. The internet is a big place and there is room for multiple competitors. If someone else is "doing it," than the idea has been proven to be lucrative.

Regarding investors, if this is a web app, IMO, you should have an alpha version with good traction before raising money.