I just discovered Hacker Monthly, "the print magazine version of Hacker News". Today I spent some time reading and enjoying some of the lead articles. Although, they tend towards the sensational. Here's a summary:
- Lessons Learned From 13 Failed Software Products: Sweet! This is the kind of solid, real-world information that's so hard to come by. You can find tons of information about the guys who made millions, but what about those who did not? The latter are far more interesting, if you'd prefer to learn from the mistakes of others. At first I thought the article was about 13 failures of one particular person (woah!) but they're 13 separate ventures.
- How to Become a Millionaire in Three Years: This article is about what you'd expect. I wonder if there actually are any rich people out there who got that way via get-rich-quick schemes? The article is not a scheme, mind you, rather a jumble of stuff that may be worth doing, but probably won't get you rich. (Probably nothing you do will get you rich, let's face it.)
- Why I Quit a Six Figure Job: Is it sweeps week at Hacker Monthly? First you can "get rich quick," and next you're reading about the guy who "quit his unfulfilling job" - and you can do it too. I can seriously see why this stuff sells the magazine, but what good does it really do? It gives you the same little thrill you get from scratching a lottery ticket. A moment of hope and wish-fulfillment, followed by a minor feeling of disappointment. I agree with everything the guy says, except there's this:
I currently have enough assets to sustain me for about two years, and there’s nothing that I want to buy, so I don’t need any more money.
Well, I guess if you think you'll live longer than the next two years, you might want to put a little more thought into that. Ah, youth! Seriously, who doesn't want to do this? But is there anyone out there doing it who isn't at least partly nuts?
Beyond the lead articles, there were a couple more good items about startups. There was a kind of strange article about legal issues that seemed designed to scare entrepreneurs into hiring a lawyer first thing. And then I ran out of time.
It's a mixed bag. Maybe a little too fluffy, a little too much stardust in there. But I think it's worth the time spent reading it. I'll be back, at least for a while.
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