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Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

ycombinator.com

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Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#71

Post by whiskyant »

spoiledtechie wrote: post #13

Shameless plug: I want to do this 100%. I have exhausted every single person I know who codes for the passed 4 years. It pretty much comes down to "They don't want to do the work and are completely happy in their current job". If anyone is interested, I would love to be your co-founder. I have built several websites. I am experienced in both C# and Java. Ive built several Android Apps. I know DBs like the back of my…

Wait, I don't get it. If you have such skills and an idea that you truly believe in why haven't you started coding it yet? It doesn't have to be much, perhaps you can't even do all of it yourself, but you should at least TRY. If your skills with C#/Java/DBs aren't an exaggeration, I don't see any reason why you shouldn't at least start.

It's great that you're looking for a co-founder, this is a great start, but just don't jump head first into a relationship without getting to know them first. You should keep doing what you've been doing by meeting up with a lot of potential co-founders, discussing your idea, gauging their enthusiasm, skillset, and how well you think you'll get along.

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#73

Post by whiskyant »

brandnewlow wrote: post #5
bitsweet wrote: post #4

How many solo founders were accepted in summer 2011? Has the % accepted increased with the larger class size?

Solution: Don't be a solo founder. I spent a few years trying to go that route. It's death. Death. If you can't sell someone else on joining up, how on earth are you going to sell someone in giving you money?

I don't think you can make a blanket statement that easily. For some people, being a solo founder is a decision and can be best suited for them. If they have a great skillset to do it on their own, I don't they need to depend on a co-founder.

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#74

Post by iradik »

How many two-person startups were accepted last year where one of the founders resided in sf, and the other resided in a nearby city such as Seattle?

This is a case where both founders are software engineers who have already worked together closely for a sustained period.

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#75

Post by ww520 »

Tofusensei wrote: post #46
zbruhnke wrote: post #37

I've applied twice as a solo founder and have had no luck. If you think Sam Altman is tenacious you definitely have not met me yet. I haven't sold Obama O's like Brian Chesky and the gang but I have some stories that would be considered equally compelling by most. I founded a company and had an exit while still in college full time. I had 13 employees when I was 19, I currently work for a well funded startup with top…

If you're such a rockstar, why bother with YC at all?

I view YC as marketing. You gain exposure to your product/company/people via YC. You pay for the marketing with equity instead of cash.

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#77

Post by emmett »

rorrr wrote: post #76

How do people start up with less than $20K? That's barely enough to cover basic icorporation + lawyer + equipment + website graphic design. If you need to hire somebody professional (like sales guys), what do you do?

Incorporation is basically free because YC does it in bulk, and uses their own in-house lawyer for it.

Equipment is free because all you really need is your own laptop and Amazon EC2.

YC companies are usually started by hackers who don't outsource graphic design, or if they do they do it cheaply because they do much of the implementation themselves.

The $20k goes mostly to living expenses for the summer. You're expected to raies further capital after that.

(As a side note, thanks to Yuri Milner and StartFund, you now get easy access to an additional $150k, but I can say from experience that's far from necessary)

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#78

Post by smiler »

rorrr wrote: post #76

How do people start up with less than $20K? That's barely enough to cover basic icorporation + lawyer + equipment + website graphic design. If you need to hire somebody professional (like sales guys), what do you do?

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe YC provide an in-house lawyer for incorporation etc.

They're probably expecting people to provide their own equipment, every company gets offered free hosting and they can also take a further investment if they want it

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#79

Post by mikesaraf »

Can anybody that is in or has been through YC answer these questions:

How difficult and costly is it to find a place in SF for 3 months? It seems like a large part of the YC money would get used up for the founders basic living expenses.

Do most YC company founders go in debt / use savings / use most of the YC money, to cover personal expenses while they do this?

Re: Applications Open for Winter 2012 YC Funding

#80

Post by olivercameron »

mikesaraf wrote: post #79

Can anybody that is in or has been through YC answer these questions: How difficult and costly is it to find a place in SF for 3 months? It seems like a large part of the YC money would get used up for the founders basic living expenses. Do most YC company founders go in debt / use savings / use most of the YC money, to cover personal expenses while they do this?

Most new founders don't live in San Francisco. YC encourages you, and rightly so, to live in and around Mountain View, where rent is much, much cheaper than the city.
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