It's funny actually, the BloggerCon III file with Doc Searls was on IT Conversations today. I put it in my "Personal Programme Queue" on the Conversations Network the other day and I thought I had downloaded it and that iTunes had just miscategorised it. No, it was an O'Reilly Pick of the Week or something. Cool. I think I'll download "Medicine" next. The more I listen to BloggerCon, the more I think that BloggerCon London is an inevitability. 

Startup Mania 

Today, I have had two ideas for startups. One hit me while randomly surfing around. The other hit me while listening to an MP3 download of the "Making Money" session at BloggerCon III with Doc Searls on a late-night walk with my canine companions. The first is what Marc Canter would describe as a "San Luis Abisbo" project - it isn't a technological idea per se. Those of you who have known me for a while and can remember what I studied at night school might be able to figure it out. The second idea is far more of a Web 2.0 idea and consists in arranging the following ideas in to a profitable idea: "attention", "the long tail", "micropayments", "blogs" and RSS. If that sounds general, that's because it is. All of those things are involved, but I don't think I've given you enough to scribble out my business plan yet. Neither involve OPML though.

If I do decide to start up a business (and, hey, what else am I going to do when I graduate - go to law school? Work at McDonalds? Become a professional philsopher? Get out of here! ), here are the things I'm not going to do: hire PR people (no offence, but there's a simple way not to need PR and that's called being nice), take VC money (if I say that, it'll make it seem that I have a really cool idea that they can fund for a tiny amount), sacrifice people's credibility or trust or stay in Britain any longer than I have to (the 'coffee' is better in Holland, the tax laws are better in Ireland and America, despite rumours to the contrary, has really cheap gasoline).

Will I want partners? I'm not sure yet. Will it make TechCrunch? I don't know. Will it be fun? Absolutely guaranteed. If it stops being fun, then it's time to stop. Judge William may disapprove but screw Judge William. Sorry, Kierkegaard in-joke.

Dave: you said at BloggerCon that if anyone starts a business based on things they heard at BloggerCon, then you'd like to know. Consider this a ping.

Will this happen? I don't know. It's something that wouldn't have been possible up until very recently. It's a cool possibility.

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