Protecting your startup's server from attacks

Good ideas from Alex at Jitbit on protecting your server: http://blog.jitbit.com/2011/03/protecting-your-startups-server-from.html

A Collection of Examples of 64-bit Errors in Real Programs

A great list of coding errors from Intel: http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/collection-of-examples-of-64-bit-errors-in-real-programs/

It might be a good exercise to compile and run 32 bit programs as 64 bit programs just to see what errors are hidden, even if there is no desire to distribute the 64 bit version.

There Will Always Be Some with More, and Some with Less

There has always been, and will always be, some with more and some with less.  More money, more power, more land, more influence, more food, whatever.

The primary consequence of having more is that one has alternatives.

For the most part, it is futile to attempt to restrict the alternatives of those with more, because they will exercise their alternatives to avoid the restrictions.  Those with more alternatives will be more successful than those with fewer alternatives.

In attempting to level the playing field, it is better to provide more alternatives for those with less than to remove alternatives from those with more.  This is one benefit of free markets.

For example, the wealthy often choose to send their children somewhere other than the neighborhood public school. Others have the resources to live where the neighborhood school is better.  Initiatives such as vouchers, charter schools, and school choice provide alternatives for those with less.

I favor an approach for education that is similar to our approach to food.  The government does not own farms, factories, or markets.  Assistance is provided to the poor so that they can go into the free market and make their own choices about what to purchase.

The Hallmarks of a Great Boss

Great 4 minute video of Stanford professor and author Bob Sutton discussing the proper level of involvement of a manager:

http://venturebeat.com/2010/11/26/the-hallmarks-of-a-great-boss/

A key point is that the level of involvement and the approach has to be appropriate for the task and the people involved (their level of experience, preferences regarding work environment, etc.)

The entire 58 minute talk is here: http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2564

The Art of the Quick Phone Call

Mark Suster has written a really useful blog post called The Art of the Quick Phone Call.

The main points are:

1. You can start informally with banter (but not too much)
2. Let them know why you’re calling
3. Don’t hang yourself (by droning on without giving them a chance for feedback)
4. Ask questions
5. Know what “the ask” is (only one)
6. Stick to your budgeted time – maybe less

Insights from Philip Su

Philip Su has an excellent post of insights based on his time at Microsoft as he departs for Facebook.  He makes many good points, but my favorites are:

Good ideas are a dime a dozen.  Great ideas are usually laughed at.  Neither sees the light of day without you taking action.  Do the work to prove your idea, or stop talking about it.  In an entrepreneurship class in college, I pitched the idea of an online grocery delivery service and got laughed off stage.  Hurt, but convinced of my great genius, I returned the following week to pitch the idea of online movie rentals using the postal service.  I called it NetVideo.  Everyone thought it was absurd.  I used to tell this story to bolster what I thought was my streak of unrecognized, prognosticating technical genius.  These days, I tell the story to remind myself that in the end, only action and execution matter.

and

Above all else:  Integrity.  You must be able to trust who you work with and for.  Theodore Roosevelt once fired a rancher who stole some neighboring cattle and added them to Roosevelt’s herd.  When asked about this by incredulous friends, Roosevelt simply replied, “A man who steals for me will also steal from me.” 

The Passing of Benoit Mandelbrot

According to the web site of Nassim Taleb, the intellectual giant Benoit Mandelbrot has passed away.  Links to other thoughts on his passing and his TED talk in February 2010 from John D. Cook and Scott Beale.

Valuing lack of weakness rather than strength

Ben Horowitz has an great post on hiring executives.  My favorite part is:

Valuing lack of weakness rather than strength—The more experience you have, the more you realize that there is something seriously wrong with every employee in your company (including you). Literally, nobody is perfect. As a result, it is imperative that you hire for strength rather than lack of weakness. Everybody has weaknesses; they are just easier to find in some people. Hiring for lack of weakness just means that you’ll optimize for pleasantness. Rather, you must figure out the strengths you require and find someone who is world class in those areas despite their weaknesses in other, less important domains.

Excellent Letter Expressing Disagreement

This letter written by Leonard Nimoy is an excellent example of how to express disagreement in a business relationship frankly, without resorting to threats.

Labor and Capital

At various points in my schooling, I was taught that the factors of production are land, labor, and capital, and later, land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship.

I now realize there is only labor and capital. Land is a form of capital and entrepreneurship is a form of labor.

We are all born with the ability to perform labor. I can show up at a job site and perform labor, but I'm just a guy. If I work, and consume less than I produce (i.e., I save), then eventually I can buy a hammer. Now, I'm a guy with a hammer, and hopefully I can earn a higher wage. If I continue to save (which should be easier at the higher wage), I will eventually be able to buy a saw. Now, I'm a guy with a hammer and a saw. These tools (capital) help to leverage my labor to make me more productive and therefore able to command a higher wage.

Of course, hammers and saws are not the only tools. Some other tools are education, relationships, experience, and character. Some tools that are quite valuable do not require much money to acquire.