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* The Business of Software

I am having a sentimental moment as I stare out the window, so bear with me.

I'd like proclaim my sincere appreciation for this forum and all the people here (lurkers included).

I've been hanging out here for over three years now...since before I started Antair, and as my business grows, and I communicate with other Micro-ISV owners here and outside the forum, the feeling of community and its appreciation grows stronger.

I've lasted here (actively) longer than I stayed at any *real* job (yes, I know I left myself open for an obvious joke there...try to refrain yourselves). Although we are on *some* level competitors of one another, we have no qualms about giving sincere, honest advice to anyone for the asking. This is a fantastic dynamic if you stop and think about it.

At any rate, I am thanking everyone here (Andy, Eric, Bob, Ian, Jon, Gavin, 'Mr Analogy').

I'd like to buy all of you a beer - but you all decided New York isn't good enough for you :). Maybe when Ian decides to put together another BarCamp I'll drop by with a case (or twelve).

Oh, and if I misssed anyone in the list above...I owe you two beers.

- Cheers!

It's the sunshine that does it - go back to working in the basement with no windows, noisy air conditioning and humming servers. The love of your fellow man will soon go away ;-)

There are some great people on this forum*.

I have found out a lot - hopefully more than enough to more than make up for the time I've lost browsing the board when I should have been doing something less interesting.

*And one or two fruitcakes. I'll each one of you decide which category you think you belong in. ;0)

I'd like to think that I'm a GREAT fruitcake (thank you very much).

I agree. It is one of the best ISV forums on the net today. The people that post here are top notch, and not a day goes by without me learning something new.

PS
You owe me two beers

Andrey,

I live in NJ and can come to City on any evening to claim my two beers. :)

Even though I am not posting on this forum lately (switched to lurker mode), this is the absolute best forum I have come across. Cheers! :)

Two beers for me!  ;)

I have learned quite a bit here too and I've felt like I've managed to share a bit too.  Part of the CodeSnipers concept came from here...

Damn. I should have parsed the archives before writing the post. There isn't enough beer in Germany...

Anytime! If anyone lives around NYC, or is willing to come down for a weekend, I'll happily arrange a dinner (or just a stinkin' drinking fest) in the city for the MicroISV's here.

Let me know what you guys think, send me an email. If there are enough interested parties, I'll make it happen.

Hey, I'll cash in on two beers as well... perhaps alcoholism is the secret ingredient to this forum?

Mmm... I think Phil has found the secret.

When in doubt, share a round with smart people.  ;)

"How to win friends and influence people?"  Beer. 

Is there some kind of uISV conference that is held yearly?  Should we have one?

I think an annual conference for small software companies is a great idea.

Sign me up.

I agree. This place rocks.

I've been posting here for more than four years, and I attribute much of my growth in the software industry to the things I've learned from the people in this forum.

Thanks everybody!

I'd also like to thank everyone for the valuable insights. And Andrey, thanks for sharing the 'sentimental moment'. I've also had my share of that too, although I used the blog for that.

I start frequenting forums back in '93, Fidonet and Usenet. I had my share of flamewars. I dropped the bad habbit. This happened in 100% of the (active) forums I've seen afterwards, so I didn't bother to even get started. BoS is the first forum I've found that doesn't have this problem. Great moderation? Great posters? Everything? I don't know, but it's a great pleasure. I plan to personally visit and buy lunch to many of the guys here as soon as the profits can pay for it :)

One thing: even if it may help, I know it's not because of the design of the forum software - the 'main' JoS forum is nowhere near the quality here.

Best luck Andrey and everyone with your projects!

I definitely share the sentiments expressed above.  It's an excellent forum, and I'm very grateful for the people that share their wisdom with all.  On the few occasions I've asked for advice here I've been overwhelmed with the level of generosity.

Thanks everyone :)

PS Our Energy Lens product was just approved by the MS Office Marketplace (partly thanks to this forum) so I'm in a slightly sentimental mood too!

MB, congratulations, and we'd be grateful if you'd report roughly on how the MS Office Marketplace listing affects your traffic and sales.

Thanks J.  I shall indeed report back when I've seen what Office Marketplace delivers.

Did you know that 2 beers equals roughly 30 gallons of beer or 2 kegs in the US?  Actually a "keg" is not really a keg.  A "Full Keg" is 30 gallons and a 1/2 barrel is 15.5 gallons; the latter of which most Americans refer to as a KEG or a beer!

Beer is good.  Very good.

In the immortal words of Homer Simpson, "Mmmmmm BEER."

Yes, this forum is worth drinking too!

Well, first off, I want to make it clear that I'm a nutjob - not a fruitcake.

I just want to say hats off to Joel for starting this forum and for publishing the great writings over the years. They've attracted a vibrant crowd, keeping the forums. There aren't that many places around the web that feel like home, but this is one of them.

And a big kudos to Eric for writing the Business of Software articles (esp. the micro-ISV one), which spurred Joel to create the BoS spin-off. Small software startups existed in the past and would have continued in the future, but coining the phrase "micro-ISV" really caught storm and made this a special place the last few years.

I don't know how many others were inspired to "go for it" because of this forum. I know I was. But I've got a feeling that it's unleashed a small economic army onto the software world, that we all hope grows into a big one.


P.S. If anyone's going to be in Oregon (aka, "definitely the most beautiful state" c.f. http://joel.spolsky.com/biketrip/9.htm ) for OSCON, drop me a line. I might be able to spare the time for a few pints.

I can't say I was inspired to go for it because of what I read, but the community here and the Micro ISV concept has given me a more structured view of what I've been trying to achieve. The community spirit and sense of shared goals have made me feel a lot less isolated, and the quality of the information that gets shared here is outstanding. I'm still learning a lot from everyone, and I wish I had all of you guys as advisors when I was getting started. As with most things in life, if only I knew then what I know now etc. etc.

Thanks to all.

I am not a business owner (yet), but nevertheless I would like to join you guys for a beer, or two.

OK, I decided to see if anything comes out of this, so I extracted one thread of this discussion into another...well..umm...thread:

http://discuss.joelonsoftware.com/default.asp?biz.5.365409.0

NO one thanked me for my JOS contributions.....hmmmm...is it because I don't live in NY?

>is it because I don't live in NY?

Or is it because you are one of the aforementioned fruitcakes? :0P