oceanician

Hey - KingOfSpain, get in touch http://ianmoss.com/contact

It'd be great to know which of the basic features beyond 'available and nearby' you'd like to see...

I see that's core (once it's done) as listing consultancies and startups, and clusters accross the country, and referring to external sites for specialised areas.

There'd be value in making a decent search & fuzzy matching of cofounder types, and helping people in embryonic stages of a project progress along the 'next step'.

Hi - cheer for the followup. I am looking for Manchester based cofounders in a variety of disciplines, for a variety of ideas. Because people have various different experiences I'd expect to be able to narrow it down before meeting, so you're sure that it's worth meeting & to make sure people have thought about it properly / have previous interests in that sector etc.

Though in a lot of senses I think it's worth keeping it an informal collaboration, and jointly evolving an idea. This gives more buy in.

For me my ideal team would be two techies; one with more front end & UX knowledge, and an experienced sales/business orientated pitcher. I'd probably be one of the techies initially, but there's younger people who can do this quicker.

Great; what criteria do you wish to search for? What commitment level do you expect? What are you offering people in return - 50% equity? 5% and £200 pd? Some other combination? Have you completed your BMC? Has feedback from potential customers been sought?

Which of these questions should be incorporated in a cofounder finder site?

60% of 60 hours would still be pretty much full time.

You have a salary???? You have money??? Both unknowns to me.

Maybe cut both your salaries and employ some more people, that can help put more of your ideas into action.

You need to work less hours yourself. Delegate more. Spend some time on a hobby / interest / go to the cinema / anything.

Hey, cheers for the info. I'm slowly getting a picture of where things are and if I'm likely to be able to contribute at all. For a robust platform to extend in software would be the fun I was after. I've started a Manchester group - there's an amazing 3 of us: http://www.facebook.com/groups/523358144381052/ The kit I've found at a cheapISH price so far is: http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/preorder-crazyflie-nano-qua...

Ermm. Non of those career options arn't open to someone because they suffer from depression! Why would you think that? A prison guard capable of empathy might deliver bigger results in reducing reoffending rates than one that doesn't. A sky diver capable of conquering fears? Oh, I think that might be quite useful. Not sure about mortician tbh. What is the ideal mortician? Probably someone who cares that the family of the deceased.

(1 in 10 people suffer from depression. It doesn't necessarily have any link with death, apart from in a few very unfortunate cases - it mostly results in a reduced quality of life, and with awareness and help from those that care there's ways around the problems the affected people have. It's more a case of stopping trying to fit square pegs into round holes, than stopping doing anything)

Would you recommend a person who has suffered from depression, not become a politician or prime minister?

This is fantastic. Thanks :)

This article is unbelievably wrong!

If you've tech skills, but you don't find working in a noisey office is for you, then you've really got to find a way to earn an income that works for you. Carrying on, and forcing yourself to apply for more and more jobs, where you have to compete with those in their early 20s who are willing to work 12 hour days, and havn't the burden of 15 years of technology changes in their heads isn't for everyone.

Startups offer an opportunity to create a world that not only works in the economocial sense, but also in various health capacities. If you don't like working in big offices. Don't. If you want to work in teams, when the rest of the tech world you know encourages solo endeavours & alpha-male heroes then you can choose to work in teams. You get to choose with who you work with. It's not easy in any stretch of the imagination.

There's been some high profile suicides of late. And it's a waste of life. A horid and chronic waste of life. Whilst there's a few people who hold nasty views on this, I believe the vast majority of people would just rather find a way to help people out through their struggles. I've seen an unexpected side-effect, of others who in one startup forum, have been much more open about their health issues, and in particular addiction. Being more open about health issues is important. Helping people is important. Saying don't do a particular line of work is daft!

Imagine an ordinary every day office job Joe, who suffers from depression, but yet fights on every day despite massive calls from within to do nothing, or stay in bed. These people deal with far bigger ups n downs than most. I'd argue that if that person finds that they're much better off without the 'ordinary every day office job' and finds a sustainable team to work as part of in a startup that they've passion for they're going to be in a better place. Also due to the past fights they've been through, they're going to be much better equipped to deal with the ups n downs of startups than people who havn't suffered from depression.

Startups give opportunity to create a sustainable business and to have a much greater influence on creating a sustainable workplace than merely being employee number 30+ in an established business.

If anyone reads this article and thinks startups are not for me then please do get in touch. I'm http://ianmoss.com/contact

Have a great day :)

Looking forward to this. The region as a whole is coming on leaps and bounds. From Liverpool to Manchester to Leeds to Sheffield and upwards to Newcastle, there's lots of interaction going on in the startup scene. We've been promoting the heck out of Manchester with http://startupDigest.com/manchester and there's been TechHub open here at the end of last year. It's great that Leeds also has significant activity, and I look forward to both everyone working together, and having a bit of friendly competition :)

I wonder which project you believe require the most help?

Would be fun to have a small working group in Manchester (UK) - shout if you're in the area and are interested.

I think an outsider's view point is useful. Especially if they don't say, "hey, have you put the semi-colon in" alllll the time. ... though it's suprising that 1 in 20 times that is actually useful.

Especially you're a ruby dev doing a bit of PHP haha.

Just get a keyboard? (As in are there any tablets with a slide out keyboard. Like on the HTC Desire-Z, or Motorolla Photon Q)

Earn more than my basic needs from consulting, and progress with my startup events listing.

Would be great to hear more less successful stories i.e. first freelance making less than the previous job.

It's tricky - and my first year isn't over yet, but not living in a concentrated tech city has made it difficult. Have been considering moving to a bigger city. I prefer working in teams, which is also an issue as most freelancers seem to prefer to work solo.

which reminds me of http://www.codeclub.org.uk/

Sounds like a great success story. I'd hope it's a great cheap device for getting kids into programming (a bit) with other resources they have lying around like a tv. I'd think those kids can probably teach us something by now :)

Less than in the iPhone 4s opening weekend?

Never say never.

I'm sold on Google Chrome at the moment also, but found Opera to be the best for developers for years previously.

They'll be another awesome browser. Just like they'll be another search engine we all use one day.

I'm at my happiest when I've 3-6 months of living expenses in my bank account. This is freedom.

However, getting there without going through a gruelling 9-5 existence can be demotivating. You have to do it. People will probably be happiest getting advice on how to be content in an unhappy (/less than ideal) work environment, as this is what most people have to do.

Unless you're lucky enough to find the right collaborators, and funding, or stumble into an idea that makes money from the start, or start trying to do your own thing early on in your 20s when time doesn't matter so much, you're going to have to do the 9-5, and save up, and instead of buying a house take some time off for your own ideas.

Cycle to work. Live closer to work. Take your lunch break & have a stroll. Don't eat too many pizzas or chips. See some friends at least twice a week. Cook a nice meal for a mate. See an amazing film. Don't watch live tv. Find projects to work on with people you like, and that they're also motivated by. Ask someone you like out on a date, at least once a month. Be ambitious, but don't beat yourself up for not achieving. Learn from mistakes - actually recognise improvements, but don't beat yourself up for not doing them..they'll be another time. Ignore fluffy people - there's nothing going on below their superficial surfice. Live within your means; don't buy a new shiney device if you can't afford it when something else will do the same job. Save money for a rainy day.

[Edit:updated a spelling mistake, and added below] Practicalities like finding a good house mate, that allows you to have a good 8 hour sleep, whilst maintaining a degree of interesting human contact allude me.

Great work. It'd be really handy to have the next entrance deadline for each of the accelerators alongside the other data. Thanks :)

I would love to buy one of the 10,000 sq metre mills 5 mins taxi from Manchester's central Picadilly train station and turn it into startup accomodation. We're only 2 hours from London's Euston!! (So less than 3 hours from Shorditch)

Berlin however does seem to have the greatest multicultural vibe going for it for startups. It's pretty impressive, and I hope to sample it later in the year :)

Really interested to see generalists highly valued. I've always felt that it was the specialists, that everyone was being forced toward. It's good to try different elements, and keeps it lively & interesting :)

Snap. Though I think I may have accidentally tranced out my co-workers in the past with this music.

Personally I find music without vocals, or very familiar music in the background to be useful. Blocks out the occasional car going past. Post-rock is really good unless it sends you into a trance haha.

Actually hate working with headphones on now. Similarly using music I love to block out noisey work environments doesn't work. (Well, noisey work environments just don't work do they!).

FWIW: I'm on last.fm as rock666

Could you move to the Chilli Startup. Seems interesting over there. I've been tempted to apply.

Just been watching a documentry on floating homes in Amsterdam. Could be worth checking it out. Look for 'Amsterdam's Futuristic Floating City'. It's one of the Extreme Engineering series. Episode 7. I saw it on Discovery Science. Hth.

I guess someone could take the list, and put a rate up next to each book to see which ones people think are actually the quality books.

I still rate paper books over scanning through pdf for a solution or fix to a book. I'm definitely wrong though as the rest of the world values searchability over knowledge.

I wonder what % of employees in China are actually earning minimum wages?

Perhaps try leaving a few sets of smarts in the office drawer, for the occasional day when it isn't so hot & humid and do the cycle just a couple of times a week. You will notice a difference :)