Re: What about changing the rules?

[Ray Cromwell <ray@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Hi Bill

 Um, don't confuse me with Bill Gates, my name is Ray. :)

> I am sorry that your trial failed but it does not mean that an other one
> would.

It didn't fail, it was just an idea I considered, but dumped it because
of the problems I see inherent in it.

> certain people in this movement. However, there is now several millions
> people on the net and there is a higher probability that you can find people
> with a different mind set.
> This first wave just showed a model. There is now enough people on the web
> to try other ones.

  I agree. The revolutionary aspect of the open-source movement is going
to get co-opted by the adults and the "suits" (business types), and it's
going to be rationalized and mainstreamed (even if the Slashdot readers
are dragged kicking and screaming into this future) This is the nature
result once more and more people get interested in an idea -- it moves
to the center.

  Anyway, I can see what you are trying to do, I just don't think it
isn't anything that hasn't been tried before. Virtual Company? It's
been done. Get people to work for nothing, but promise them stock?
It's called a startup company. For the last year and a half, I have
been spending my own savings living like a pauper at the company I own
a part of.

  Now, the idea sounds promising: try to attract 100,000 freeware
developers to your company by giving them stock. But is it
economically viable? Let's see, even if the company gets bought for
$100,000,000, I only have a %.01 stake, which amounts to $1000. Even
if it gets bought for $1billion, it's only $10,000, surely not a great
return given that the average developer can bring home $50k/year and
put $5-10k into the stock market over that period. The downside is
worse, if in all likelyhood, the company's stock becomes worthless.

 The only person who is going to get rich off of this, is you,
assuming you keep a 20% stake yourself, you can probably sell the
"100,000 developers" to Microsoft or IBM for targeted advertising at
$100/user. You can't even sell the human capital, or intellectal
property. You don't have any employees, nor do you have any
IP since it is all open-source-free-ware.

 In the end, these kinds of ideas are nothing more than ponzi schemes.
Why not start up a competing portal to yahoo and given each user who
registers some stock? Maybe you will signup lots of users, and they
call all get 1 penny a piece for their share after the company is
sold (with you, at the top of the pyramid) getting the lions share.


 TANSTAAFL
-Ray

p.s. I won't follow this up anymore, because it is inappropriate for
this list, but good luck anyway.  I'll be highly jealous if I see
you cashout a few years later on this idea. :)





  







 



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