Fundraising from... you - Need $5,000 from 500 people, each giving us $10.

Q: if this is a "swap", who pays the 4 bucks? Both parties?

O1: I think you are onto something here. But it is probably not this exact idea. If your proposition is "cheap + used + as fast as Amazon"... why not just use Amazon? People with books valued over 4 bucks lose out; better to sell it.

O2: You have been working on this full-time for 6 months, and have 3 months more to go? That is an unhealthy amount of time to do something like this without user feedback.

I am tempted to invest, but I think that's more to do with the low minimum than my excitement. The most innovative and clever thing is the funding method, not the business.

do both parties mail their books at the same time? why the $4 fee? what does that money buy? to me, this looks like you could get leapfrogged by a facebook app, which says a lot.

also, is this $10 an investment or a donation? do we get any equity for purchasing?

I recently left a full-time position and now devote 50% of my time to contracting, making 2x as much per hour.

Net result: I have 50% more free time and make roughly the same amount.

There could be dry spots if the economy / web bubble slips, but for the most part demand seems to be exceeding my capacity so far. ($4k contract for 50 hours of my time this month, for example)

2. You financials seem to indicate that by 2010 you'll have revenue of $70k is that correct?

3. Why would I pay to swap a book? It seems to me that in swapping a book I'm already giving something and getting something of 'equal' value; what makes you think people will pay for this service?