Foursquare Is Doing Big Things, So Existing Investor Spark Capital Buys $50M Of Employee Stock

Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley spent this afternoon in Barcelona, explaining his location company's potential to Mobile World Conference attendees. Someone else didn't need to hear the presentation, though. Existing investor Spark Capital is buying $50 million worth of its stock, according to sources, in a deal to provide at least some employees with liquidity.The result is a valuation north of of the already-impressive $600 million from its last round, I've heard. This is even though the company continues to focus on product development instead of trying to maximize revenue.]]>

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9 Things Every Entrepreneur Needs to Learn From Woody Allen

I hate Woody Allen. Here’s why. Because if you’re Jewish and a little neurotic then it has become a cliché that nerdy neurotic Jewish people describe themselves as “Woody Allen-esque” thinking it will attract women. They do this on dating services. The idea is that they will then attract some waif-like Mia Farrow-ish  (or the 17-year-old Mariel Hemingway in Manhattan) blonde who will love all of their neuroses and want to have sex all the time and will, in the ideal case (the 17-year-old Mariel Hemingway in Manhattan, the 21-year-old Juliette Lewis in Husbands & Wives), be the most mature  in the movie and yet still be madly in love with the 30-year-older Allen.This only happens in Woody Allen movies. And power to him. He made the movies. He can do whatever the hell he wants in them. If Mariel Hemingway wants to have sex with him all the time then no problem. He wrote the movie! It’s up to you whether you believe it or not.Allen puts out a new movie or two every year. So he’s built up a substantial body of work that we can learn from. Why learn? Because clearly he is a genius, regardless of what other opinions anyone might have of him (and I only know him through his work. I don’t know his personal life at all). It is interesting to see how he, as an artist and creator, has evolved. To see how his idiosyncratic humor has changed,  how he twists reality further to stretch our imagination. He always stands out and stays ahead of the other innovators. And for other people who seek the same, he is worth observing.]]>

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How To Start Smart: The Five Things To Know When Approaching An Incubator

Incubators are playing an increasingly vital role in acquiring meaningful investment for first-time entrepreneurs. TechCrunch reported that elite accelerators like Y Combinator receive on average one application every minute, and AngelPad reminds its participants that it is many times more selective than the Harvard Business School. Incubators ask for a 2 to 10 percent stake in your company, a sum that could alternatively be used to attract a junior co-founder or provide meaningful ownership to the first few engineers you enlist. In return, incubators offer intensive coaching, networking with other founders, and warm introductions to likely investors. Incubators give first-time entrepreneurs and international teams alike a crucial link to Silicon Valley.]]>

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Things Entrepreneurs Should Avoid When Raising Capital

Alright, in my last post I argued that bootstrapping is just as over-rated as raising venture capital. But for those who decide to pursue fundraising, here are some things entrepreneurs should avoid when raising capital.For all of the talk about how much excess capital there is, it’s actually hard to raise capital because very few projects fit the VC profile—even though many VC-funded projects come across as frivolous, me-too projects.]]>

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All The Little (But Awesome) Things You Definitely Missed At CES

It's true. CES is out of control. I have no reference point since this was my first visit, but from the first second you disembark the monorail and look down over the sprawling campus of the LVCC, you know you won't see everything. The inkling gets stronger as you enter the building, and find that the Samsung booth is about as big as a mall. Luckily for you, John Biggs and I ventured into the deepest corners of the show to find the little booths you most certainly missed. Enjoy! ]]>

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SilverStone Continues to Shake Things Up

Over the past year we've had the pleasure of testing more and more SilverStone enclosures, but the case and power supply designer is not content to rest on their laurels. We had a chance to check out what's to come when we visited their suite at CES.

First, if you were a fan of the oddball FT03 like I was, SilverStone had on display a Mini-FT03. Essentially an even smaller version, the Mini-FT03 supports a Mini-ITX board, SFX power supply (not included), and features two expansion slots. Side panels snap on instead of sliding on (a problem with the bigger FT03), and the whole enclosure is cooled by a large 180mm intake fan at the bottom.

They're also introducing a new Temjin TJ04, a fairly standard-looking (at least at first glance) ATX enclosure that has more than a few tricks up its sleeve. While most ATX enclosures pay lip service to using a bottom-mounted intake, the TJ04 seems tailored for it. SilverStone includes removable drive cages, and the enclosure is supposedly able to support up to nine hard drives and five SSDs: more than most users will ever need. Finally, there's a side intake built in designed more to deflect cool air off of the hard drives and through the rest of the tower.

SilverStone's usual gamut of accessories were also in attendance, along with a faster, more powerful 180mm Air Penetrator fan and an updated USB 3.0 card with the new NEC Renesas chip that promises increased performance.

Finally, SilverStone continues to round out and toughen up their power supply line, but this year "thin is in." The ATX spec for power supplies is 140mm of depth, but modern power supplies routinely exceed that, usually hitting at least 180mm or longer. While there was a 1.35kW power supply on display, the more impressive units were the Strider Gold Evolution units that deliver 650 watts or better and maintain modular cabling connectivity while being just 140mm deep. SilverStone also now includes the Air Penetrator fan in their Strider Gold Evolution power supplies, reducing fan noise and improving cooling.

 

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Things You Need to be aware of iPhone 5

Apple iPhone 5 is about to roll out this October. The Hype is already created and lots of fictions, rumors and many predictions about the features, introductions of iPhone 5 are going all over world and are going really crazy. I even find over 20,000 Dedicated iPhone 5 websites are posting the regular updates which certainly drives the attention from Apple Lovers all over the world. iPhone turned as a professional business machine. Apple iPhone apps for business make your life really organized.

All these predictions may be true or may not be. But the popularity of Apple’s Innovation is the major reason for its crazy fan base. I’d like to say that Apple iPhone 5 is going to break all shackles and boundaries of SmartPhone Market. 

Here are few of the predicted Features and few other things that you need to know about Apple iPhone 5. Now, I hope this post might end the buzz that’s happening around iPhone 5.

#1. Apple planned to produce over 15 million units of iPhone 5 – 

This is one of the most surprising aspects according to me. Apple just sold around 3 million iPhone 4’s in span of one year and what stats made them to produce 15 million units for autumn launch. May be this is based on iPhone 3 sales ratio as well as iPhone 4 sales ratio. It is really interesting to wait and see how people are going to receive it. Of course considering the Freaky Apple Fan base, it’s not at all a wrong step to have bulk units. But this is reflecting one question, is Apple going to take much time for its next release?

If you are eagerly waiting for Vodafone iPhone 5 Plans, then you can check at official Vodafone website.

#2. Major Changes and Enhancements:

Apple planned to overcome its antenna problem which they considered as major issue for the fall of sales in Q3 for iPhone 4. So, they are definitely going to make a strong statement for Samsung and LG who complained that their products don’t have antenna problem as Apple iPhone does. It is also expected that Apple iPhone 5 will come up with 8 MP camera which will make Apple stand tall among the Top Rated Camera oriented SmartPhones. There is 80% possibility to have even bigger screen and also packed with excellent battery life. Few other predictions like they may introduce HDMI output as well as HD recording in iPhone 5. It is even faster and is loaded with A5 processor and also it syncs easily with iOS 5 which certainly enhances its performance.

techdraginfo

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Airbnb, Quora, and Uber Will Shake Things Up At Disrupt NYC

At Disrupt NYC, we're all about startups. We've culled two dozen of the hottest startups from over 500 applicants to launch at the event (which starts May 23, get tickets here). We are also bringing startups well on their way to disrupting existing markets onstage to share their experiences. Two sessions I am particularly excited about will bring the founders of Airbnb, Uber, and Quora to Disrupt NYC. Quora founder Charlie Cheever will be interviewed by Hunch founder Chris Dixon in a live session of his TCTV show Founder Stories. Quora, which was founded by Facebook expats Cheever and Adam D'Angelo, takes a unique social approach to Q&A and general knowledge discovery. Cheever will talk about their approach to designing their product, fostering a community that can provide the best answers on the Web, and how Quora plans to expand to new areas of knowledge and expertise.]]>

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