Browser Helper Objects

Getting back in shape. Let's hope it does not take long: I do not seem to have much time at my disposal these days. Developing COM components with ATL has its specifics. Especially true when dealing with the multiple IDispatch implementations, connection points, Disp events, etc. For instance, today I had hard time figuring why document events were not sinking. During the advise call it was all fine: S_OK every single time. It took both ATL source digging and debugging just to find out IDispEventImpl requires the MSHTML type library major/minor version exactly as in the registry. If this does not hold, no event ever makes it into the callback. Other people were having the same problem, but none of the top Google results contained the solution. Posted it as a reply here: http://tinyurl.com/l4krht. Hope it helps others avoid unneeded debugging effort. Cheers!

Revenue

Another great session at the Founder Institute took place yesterday. It is far different experience being in the room than watching the presenters via the video feed. The video is real-time in most cases, but still it is limiting.

The Investor pitching session was invaluable in terms of what an investor thinks like. What shocked me was, an investor was actually helping us all by giving answers to whatever question we came up with. Seems like a good investor is one that values long term relationship above all. When/If time comes, I am to look for an investor like that. The bad news is, there is just one chance at getting a particular investor interested. There is a whole lot to learn in a meanwhile...

It was interesting how a B2B software vendor sees the big corporations. It intersects unbelievably well with my own experience, though he is on the other side. It comes to tell, one must know the customer base extremely well. Otherwise a valuable time will be spent working on insignificant issues and no real progress will be made toward getting customers or signing a contract.

Yesterday's Roadmap Session

It is interesting how it all goes through a high and low cycle. The last week Intellectual Property session was definitely a low, partially due to the fact uncovering the valuable information that may affect the startup is buried in pages of legal text. In addition, the requirements on how to properly maintain an inventor book, getting witness signatures, etc. it is so much hassle that ends up eating valuable time. Regardless, sticking to the rules and filing an application may keep one away from a courtroom for some time. And going to a courtroom will definitely put an end to a startup.

The high of the Roadmap session was in the fact, there is no roadmap. Laying down a roadmap is needed for the idea to crystallize. This is it. At is all about protecting and growing the product in a direction that makes sense from users perspective.

The Funded Founder Institute Rocks!

It has been three weeks into the Funded Founder Institute (FFI) '09 Inaugural Semester. It is amazing how the Institute managed to attract exceptional Mentors for relatively short period of time. Between the story leak in TechCrunch and the actual semester start, there were no more than 8 weeks. During that period the FFI had to finalize the curriculum, define an application process and execute it in 10 days, setup the web site we all use on daily basis, setup a live video feed for the remote participants, have the legal aspects covered, define the compensation model for Mentors, FFI, and participants, etc.  All that in addition to selecting and inviting truly exceptional mentors. 

It did take just couple of weeks to realize what was wrong with my previous venture and why it end up unsuccessful. Being able to differentiate the company from the crowd, perform a basic research, and pick a name people will remember the first time it is said are just the first steps. Basic rules. So basic people generally do not pay enough attention to. Eager for more. It is a privilege being there. 

All I wish for at the moment is a success to the FFI. What FFI is about is the free will. The undertaking is noble and with potentially great impact on the entire society. At the end it depends on us, the founders participating in the semester. The Institute is doing the best. I hope we are up to the challenge.