Miles's blog

All over the news today is the story of the Pebble watch.  Five guys have created a watch which links to your phone (iPhone or Android) so you can not only tell time on your wrist, but see who is calling, use your apps, check where you are, I am not sure all.  What is amazing is how they have generated this buzz and almost instantly created a successful product.  They used a website called Kickstarter.

Kickstarter allows people to raise money over the internet.  Opened in April 2009, the website primarily caters to creative undertakings, often involving performing art.  When you sign up you set a goal, how much money you will need and how long you collect the funds (up to 60 days).  I assume you have to give a detailed description and videos are probably recommended if not required.  One the project deadline is reached if the target amount has been raised the money is collected, however any project that falls short, even by a dollar, gets nothing.  According to their website more than 20,000 projects have been funded.  Kickstarter is not an altruistic venture.  They collect five percent and the pledgers’ credit  cards are charged an additional amount by Amazon which processes the transactions.

I think this is a very cool idea.  I had heard of Kickstarter before.  Meg knows people in the dance community who have used it to raise funds for performances.  It is a pretty ingenuous idea, and a great way to not only raise money but to raise the profile of the project.  The Pebble people had an original goal of $100,000; they have raised over $7 million.  Amazing.  Each pledge is actually a watch purchase.  For additional pledges you can get multiples of the watches and become a distributor.  It looks like those who jumped on this early will make some serious money.  Wow.

There are lots of interesting projects on Kickstarter.  Today’s featured product is from Brine andDine, apparently makers of “accessible, vegan, fermented foods.”  They have created designer sauerkraut and need $6500 to market the stuff.  They are getting close, having collected pledges of $5259 with 13 days to go.  For $15 you get a jar of the stuff (compared to about $3.50 for sauerkraut at the grocery store).  If you love sauerkraut on your brat, you might want to contribute.  (Add $15 for shipping if outside the New York metro area.)

Some company called Flint and Tender is making mens’ underwear. Not just any underwear, quality underwear made in America.  They wanted $30,000, they have raised $130,000.  Now I am not in need of better quality underwear, especially a $12 a pair, but if you want to support American-made products you might want to contribute.

Some people are amazingly creative.  Two photographers have raised almost $15,000 to travel around America for three months, take pictures, make postcards and send them to their backers.  Shoot. This is genius. I drove from Denver to Connecticut and all I got were some t-shirts I paid for, and a huge credit card bill for the hotels I stayed at. 

Book authors are on here trying to raise money to publish their books.  Maybe I should try to collect some money to have Their Own War professionally edited and published.  Heck it is just as good a book as some of the stuff in the stores.

There is a simple attachment for the iPad which makes the sound clearer; the transformation of an abandoned amusement park in East Germany, posters with deep philosophical quotes from people like Socrates and Nietzche (or intellectual bullshit if you prefer); and a bra with pockets (I have no idea how you would secure items out of the pockets and still retain your dignity, but if you have a need for this sort of thing pledge $30 or more, they have already reached their goal so you can be assured of being the first in your neighborhood to carry important items in a personal place).  You can support a movie about dust or a book about wrestling statistics (which has already raised five times its goal, go figure).

The more I view this website the more I think I need to get on this thing.  I have lots of ideas about things I could do with some money.  Seriously.  Gotta go, lots of deep thinking to do.