Ask YC: How did you choose a name for your startup?

I'm a student working in my spare time on a web application. One of the big things keeping me from taking it off my personal server (on a subdomain) is the lack of a good name, and hence a domain name.

Do you have an advice on how to come up with a good name?

We worked with words that essentialized what we were trying to achieve - never more than 2 together.

I found a good URL that didn't have a squatter and then developed a product to fit that URL.

I like to have a consonant-vowel-consonant pattern throughout any name I create. Such names are easy to pronounce and can sometimes have a sing-song sound to it.

I usually think of the idea I am working on and write as many words about it as possible. I then filter/add as needed. After I have a long enough list (and this is where it gets sketchy) I read the words aloud and then set the list aside.

At this point it's worth mentioning that I'm HIGHLY dyslexic and this is where it comes handy: I start mixing the words together in my mind by cutting them up and combining them. This is a process that is very specific to how I might create a name for a project and it might not work for you ;)

Also, I sometimes violate the first rule of the consonant-vowel pattern if I have two words that compliment each other semantically. This can yields the worst results, but it helps filter out what I don't want in a name.

When creating a list of words, I sometimes throw in adjectives that are not related to the concept but evoke a certain feeling/emotion/color. This sometimes helps, sometimes doesn't.

Domain availability. Think of a two/three word description for what your app is, see if it's available. Go to the thesaurus and look up alternates.

http://instantdomainsearch.com/ roxx