Technology

Saying Goodbye to MakeSimply

Robot Wave Goodbye
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I am leaving MakeSimply as of the new year 2015. It was fun being the face of MakeSimply for over two years. Within that time I have done a lot for MakeSimply as one of its co-founders. Starting and bringing a new business to life is not easy and takes dedication. I love the hardware movement that has taken the startup scene by storm and so I loved creating a company that helps these hardware startups develop and manufacture their products. That love and my excitement will never end.

At the start of creating MakeSimply I knew little about manufacturing except for what my engineering degree gave me and the experience starting my hardware startup in 2009 called Social Hardware gave me. I took the lessons learned there and incorporated them into MakeSimply. I also used my years of experience as business person to help shape MakeSimply into a company with a great reputation. I got a crash course in manufacturing and loved it all the way. I used that love and passion to help MakeSimply make a good name for itself in the hardware scene in NYC.

We had a lot of accomplishments throughout the last year that I am proud of. Some of them (that I can mention) are the Cooper Hewitt Pen, Inclusion Table Tennis, Sponsor of the New York Hardware Meetup and NYCEDC Next Top Maker. There are many others that you will see come to reality this year. Stay tuned.

I will miss MakeSimply and they will miss me, but it is time to move on to new things.

I have seen the New York hardware community grow from hackerspaces/makerspaces to hardware meetups to accelerators and have watch the new hardware companies become successful. I have listened to the stories of these entrepreneurs and these stories have fuel my enthusiasm. I love these stories.

In the beginning of 2015 I will announce my new venture. Stay tuned to the next chapter in the Tech Chronicles of Alan Hyman.

Photo credit: NASARobonaut / Foter /CC BY

The Everything Factory: Let’s Open a Factory That Does It All

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The decision to close a VegasTechFund company due to over-ambition is beyond ironic. As I’ve written before, Hsieh’s plans to regenerate downtown Vegas are cursed by over promising, often from Hsieh himself.

Many people have approached me over the years saying “We want to create Blah Blah that will revitalize manufacturing and provide all the resources hardware startups need”. What resources? What the what…Everything! That is impossible. Good factories specialize in various capabilities. No one does everything. We have an ecosystem of partners that provide the capabilities. Why? Because we want the right factory to help with the outcome and we alone can not do it all

via Factorli killed by VegasTechFund due to over-ambition, because irony is dead too | PandoDaily.

Vessyl Digital Cup – The Colbert Report – Video Clip | Comedy Central

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I love the Colbert Show. Sometimes he just gets it right. Why do I need a smart cup to tell me what I can just read on the container.

Vessyl Digital Cup – The Colbert Report – Video Clip | Comedy Central.

The AI boss that deploys Hong Kong’s subway engineers – tech – 04 July 2014 – New Scientist

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An algorithm schedules and manages the nightly engineering work on one of the world’s best subway systems – and does it more efficiently than any human could

Can I use this to help with the subway system in NYC? We sure need it here. I can see other applications for this. Maybe getting rid of project managers, just have the  computer do it.

via The AI boss that deploys Hong Kong’s subway engineers – tech – 04 July 2014 – New Scientist.

Kickstarter project spent $3.5M to finish a working prototype—and ended in disaster | Ars Technica

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The “Designs” are complete, patents filed, component suppliers selected, the manufacturing process is defined, the CM [contract manufacturer] chosen so all we need is your support in this project as we size the first myIDkey production run and ship product in September 2013. Please make a pledge and receive your myIDkey!

So the product was ready to go directly to manufacturing…What happened? They over promised and promising more until they ran out of money. I see this happen so many times I could cry. I mean really!!!! This product was very promising. The idea solid. The problem; stop adding features and making changes. JUST STOP!!!!

Feature creep is an easy pit to fall into, but you must resist the temptation to change your product after you have made commitments. Also don’t change your product unless you really have to do so. It will cause delays. Have you ever played the board game Monopoly? Think of it this way if you change something, add something then you do not pass go, do not collect $200 and you have to start at the beginning.

Here is an example. Lets say I want to change a button. You might say well that is not a big deal…right? However after you select the first button you had to work it into your PCB design, industrial design, package design, and your manufacturing plan. When you select a new part you have to go back and work through all those plans you before did again. What happens if the button just does not fit the enclosure right, then industrial design must take place. Then what if you try to get the button in the MOQ and price you can afford, then find out it is a strange type of button that is not common in the market. In that case you will have very long lead times and may not get the part at all. You must ask yourself some business questions (not technological questions):

  1. Is this going to bring added value to the market by adding this feature?
  2. Will this increase the revenue I hope to get for my product in a substantial way to justify the effort?
  3. Will I be able to meet my deliverable commitments, for sales, marketing and volume?

If any of these are no, do not add the feature. Wait till version 2.0 to reconsider it.

via Kickstarter project spent $3.5M to finish a working prototype—and ended in disaster | Ars Technica.

SECRET LAWS OF STARTUPS PART 1 – BUILD RIGHT THING » FAKEGRIMLOCK BLOG | FAKEGRIMLOCK BLOG

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THIS LAW 1: BE SHOES!BEST PRODUCT TAKE THING PERSON DO. DO BETTER!WORST TAKE THING NO ONE DO. BETTER NOT MATTER!NO ONE WANT DO NEW THING. MAKE SHOES INSTEAD. EVERYONE LIKE SHOES. GO ON FEET, MAKE WALK BETTER.MOST IMPORTANT: NOT WALK DIFFERENT.TAKE THING EVERYONE DO THAT SUCK. TURN SUCK INTO AWESOME. NOW ONLY NEW THING THEM LEARN IS PAY YOU MONEY.BREAK LAW: YOU FAIL WHILE FIGHT HUMAN NATURE. NO CAN WIN! IT BIG.

ha ha. I love the Fakegrimlock blog. Thank you for the recommendation. These laws of startups are hysterical.

via SECRET LAWS OF STARTUPS PART 1 – BUILD RIGHT THING » FAKEGRIMLOCK BLOG | FAKEGRIMLOCK BLOG.

Why That Phone Charger Took Two Years to Arrive – NYTimes.com

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Designing and fabricating a basic prototype was much harder than they had expected, and they spoke wearily of the process of obtaining permission from Apple to sell the case as a licensed accessory.

I am glad I keep reading this articles. I am reminded many times that people underestimate the manufacturing end of the product. It is great fun designing, marketing and branding, but hey you finally have to make the thing since you promised to deliver it. That is where the fun really is. At the last New York Hardware Meetup it was a abundantly clear from the panel that the manufacturing planing was a key thing that was underestimated.

Manufacturing plan is very important. The other item left out is DFM (Design For Manufacturability). People have forgotten about this too. Not forgot, but did not know they need to know that this is part of the product development and manufacturing process. The DFM process makes sure that your product is manufacturable. Without it you have no way of knowing if your product is manufacturable. It is best to keep DFM in mind when you are prototyping your product. That being said, there are many variables when it comes to DFM. In a nutshell you need to work with a person that has the skills and experience working with a factory to know what those variables are.

via Why That Phone Charger Took Two Years to Arrive – NYTimes.com.

Let It Roll, Let It Roll or Not

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We have been there before. You know that situation when you see people repeating the same mistakes you have made yourself and you think if you advise them that will change their current path. It makes me want to say “Ugh, What the f*@k are you doing?” Most of my colleagues have been there too. However when you are working with startups and people who have their own first business…sometimes you want to tear your hair out. Do you standby and let it roll?

In some situations I will voice my opinion, but there are some situations where you know if you say something it will not work. I have heard it before; “Oh you don’t know our situation” or the best one “That will not happen to us”. History always repeats itself said some very wise man and it is so true.

What do I do in those situations? I let it roll.  Sometimes the best lesson is the one you learn yourself. I watch and see people learn for themselves. It works great. You can sense when someone is not responsive to advice. You can see it in their face when you start talking with them. Sometimes I do give it anyway just to see the reaction.

Not to say I am sadistic by any means, but it is sometimes is funny to watch. It is like a sitcom played out for everyone to see. A show. A well written show. Well written because it happened so many times before that there must have been time to make the writing perfect. Sometimes the endings are difference. Most of the time they are the same. Most of the time it is history repeating itself over and over again.

When I do let it roll good things happen. People learn. They comeback and say oh yeah it did happen…”Oh crap!!!!”. Then the “Oh crap” turns to action and action turns to expected results. Other times you just see it in them. A light goes off and then the path changes. A right turn or left (Doctor Who reference). It is rewarding to see.

It is hard to give advice and it is hard to take advice, but how it evolves is fun to watch. Oh startups, a crazy business and oh so exciting. I am glad to be a part of it.

Photo credit: A Guy Taking Pictures / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Amazon’s Audacious Photography Patent – The Colbert Report – Video Clip | Comedy Central

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I saw this last night and I had to post. I love how Colbert describes the Amazon patent and the patent process. I hope Colbert’s patent goes through. The Amazon patent is just nuts.

Amazon’s Audacious Photography Patent – The Colbert Report – Video Clip | Comedy Central.

 

 

The Vendor Client relationship – in real world situations – YouTube

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The Vendor Client relationship – in real world situations – YouTube. A friend forwarded this video about the negotiation experience. Negotiating in these situations is very funny. You should watch it. However there is a lot of truth to the way people negotiate. At a point people need to get paid and you need to better plan your budget before you ask for services. I have been a consultant and business owner and have heard all the excuses.