What should you build?
exponentially.substack.com
What should you build?
1–10 of 30 posts
Re: What should you build?
#2Was thinking about this with my SO doing fiber arts today.
Was thinking about a small 2d scanner/ccd camera in the profile of a SpO2 sensor. Connects with Bluetooth. Would take pictures of garments, fabric, yarn, etc for purposes of color matching in a store.
The app would have color calibration with white LEDs. 2 main functions: "store" and "match". Store would allow storing color samples. Match would show the samples you have and %fit to the stored sample/samples.
Could easily integrate with online stores for matching colors as well.
But yeah, I don't have the capital to do this. Maybe someone else can run with it.
Re: What should you build?
#3Related:
Paul Graham: "Almost all founders learn brutal lessons during the first year, but some learn them much more quickly. Obviously those founders are more likely to succeed. So it could be a useful heuristic to ask, say 6 to 12 months in, "Have we learned our brutal lesson yet?"" "The most common lesson is that customers don't want what you're making. The next most common is that it isn't possible to make it, or at least to make it profitably."
Can you make it? Will people want that? Will it make money?
Re: What should you build?
#4Was thinking about this with my SO doing fiber arts today. Was thinking about a small 2d scanner/ccd camera in the profile of a SpO2 sensor. Connects with Bluetooth. Would take pictures of garments, fabric, yarn, etc for purposes of color matching in a store. The app would have color calibration with white LEDs. 2 main functions: "store" and "match". Store would allow storing color samples. Match would show the sampl…
Sounds like you can make it with an iPhone app and a 3d printed lens cover. Obtain all iPhone models, run calibration for each with known samples, and store the profiles.
It’ll work similarly to those heart rate measurement apps.
Re: What should you build?
#5Was thinking about this with my SO doing fiber arts today. Was thinking about a small 2d scanner/ccd camera in the profile of a SpO2 sensor. Connects with Bluetooth. Would take pictures of garments, fabric, yarn, etc for purposes of color matching in a store. The app would have color calibration with white LEDs. 2 main functions: "store" and "match". Store would allow storing color samples. Match would show the sampl…
Have you seen https://colormuse.io/ ? I absolutely love mine. Seems to do what you’re looking for.
Re: What should you build?
#6So the article comes up with the grand firework of a thought of
> Make something that people want
I still find this kinda complicated to follow in practice. Make something that you want. What you need, day to day at best. You longed it for long, searched all the possibilities and it just doesn't exist yet. It helps with motivation, and you know the basics to start from. Other people/the market can then help steer it in the right direction.
Re: What should you build?
#7So the article comes up with the grand firework of a thought of > Make something that people want I still find this kinda complicated to follow in practice. Make something that you want. What you need, day to day at best. You longed it for long, searched all the possibilities and it just doesn't exist yet. It helps with motivation, and you know the basics to start from. Other people/the market can then help steer it…
Yeah I fully agree doing this is super hard in practice. If you want it, for sure that can be a great place to start!
Also, although “make something people want” is pretty simple, still people forget it all the time (Including me btw). So it’s as much a self reminder as anything!
Re: What should you build?
#8Was thinking about this with my SO doing fiber arts today. Was thinking about a small 2d scanner/ccd camera in the profile of a SpO2 sensor. Connects with Bluetooth. Would take pictures of garments, fabric, yarn, etc for purposes of color matching in a store. The app would have color calibration with white LEDs. 2 main functions: "store" and "match". Store would allow storing color samples. Match would show the sampl…
Have you seen https://colormuse.io/ ? I absolutely love mine. Seems to do what you’re looking for.
Wow, go figure. Thats pretty much what I was envisioning.
Except it's pretty pricy. I was also thinking a clip-based device, but I can see how an eyeglass would also be good.
(I was thinking of a clip so you could have white balanced LEDs on the same and opposite sides of the ccd chip.)
But yeah, thats definitely the thing. Thank you!
Re: What should you build?
#9Related: Paul Graham: "Almost all founders learn brutal lessons during the first year, but some learn them much more quickly. Obviously those founders are more likely to succeed. So it could be a useful heuristic to ask, say 6 to 12 months in, "Have we learned our brutal lesson yet?"" "The most common lesson is that customers don't want what you're making. The next most common is that it isn't possible to make it, or…
It is an unnerving situation for founders, because the product might sell if you just added a critical feature, focused on a specific segment, changed the pricing model, etc. You could be one step away from success. Or you might not. It takes luck, pluck, and faith.
Re: What should you build?
#10Related: Paul Graham: "Almost all founders learn brutal lessons during the first year, but some learn them much more quickly. Obviously those founders are more likely to succeed. So it could be a useful heuristic to ask, say 6 to 12 months in, "Have we learned our brutal lesson yet?"" "The most common lesson is that customers don't want what you're making. The next most common is that it isn't possible to make it, or…
What makes this important lesson harder is that the image of a founder has become an identity for so many young and talented people. Getting past that and wiping it out to start again, is really hard.