I’ve been looking forward to watching the premier of a new TV show called, “Leverage” on TNT. I first saw a teaser preview during the summer.
I happen to like Timothy Hutton. I was a big fan of the Nero Wolfe mystery series on A&E a few years back. ((Unfortunately, A&E in their infinite wisdom decided to cancel this show. I believe they began airing reruns of “CSI: Who Gives A Damn” instead.))
If you like caper movies/shows, chances are you’re going to enjoy Leverage. Its in the same vein as Ocean’s Eleven and Hustle. If you haven’t seen Hustle, its a BBC import shown on AMC about a group of con artists.
For those keeping score at home, I’d liken Leverage to:
The premier of Leverage was on last night on TNT. I expect they’ll show an “encore” sometime in the near future. In any case, its going to be on Tuesday night at 10:00 PM.
Everyone has heard the phrase, “pull oneself up by the bootstraps.” ((Photo courtesy of Jarl van Hoother)) It basically refers to using your current resources to reach the next step.
In a prior post I talked about “How to Start a Business: Plan B,” which was mainly about fund raising. Fund raising is the exact opposite of bootstrapping. If you can’t raise funding for your business and you’re really committed to it, you’ve got to find another way. That would be “Plan B.” In hindsight I would have entitled that post, “B is for Bootstrapping” or “Starting A Business On A Budget.”
For a very nuts-and-bolts look at starting a business, look to Guy Kawasaki‘s “The Art of Bootstrapping.” This is an excerpt from his new book, “Reality Check.” My understanding is that this book is a distillation of his prior books and blog posts. Its on my Christmas wish list, so I’ll look forward to reading it in about a month.
I used many of these bootstrapping techniques while building this website. Using the bullet points from Guy’s post, here’s some of the things I used to start this business:
“Ship then test.” To be more exact, I tested the calculators rigorously but didn’t spend nearly as much time testing how the earliest versions of this website looked in different web browsers. Once I got it to work in Internet Explorer, I started marketing it.
“Start a service business.” In the first few months of building this website I worked as a technology consultant and part-time programmer. In addition to being a nice change from my day job as an attorney and earning a little extra, it also gave me the chance to learn some new programming languages and techniques.
“Go direct.” I schlepped my laptop to every appearance and showed off the website to every single attorney that was foolish enough to sit still and listen to me. Besides not having the resources to hire people to sell for me, it also allowed me to learn more about what my customers wanted. Keeping in touch with my clients/customers has lead to a LOT of new developments on this site.
As to “how” I started this business, here was my process:
I wanted to build my own online rating calculators. ((The exact reasons why are the topic of an entirely different blog post altogether.))
I bought some books about web based programming languages. $55.00 or so for two books.
“SAM’s Teach Yourself PHP, MySQL, and Apache” is probably written for the beginning programmer who’s already familiar with other programming language structures, but not with PHP, MySQL or Apache. I found this book the more helpful of the two.
Before I start talking computer repair, I offer three caveats. First, I have no formal training in diagnosing, repairing, or even using computers. Second, I have no experience with repairing an Apple or Mac computer. Third, all of the below only applies to laptop repair. Its incredibly easy to swap out components on a desktop.
You’ve done the math and decided that it is a better use of your resources to repair your non-functional and out-of-warranty laptop. ((Photo courtesy of Just Us 3.)) You know that sending an out of warranty laptop to the manufacturer is a bad idea. But, what about a big box store like Best Buy, Circuit City ((They’re bankrupt, so don’t bother)) , and Fry’s? ((For those of you who just can’t wait to find out: I think a dedicated computer facility is best.))
Option 2: Big Box Stores
When I’m not buying computer or electronics components online, I like Best Buy for products and Fry’s for components. However, I would never have a computer diagnosed or repaired by either place.
First, let’s recognize that a big box store has certain priorities. As such, their staff are trained to sell, not to diagnose or repair. I imagine their priorities are, in order: (1) Sell you things, (2) sell you warranties for things, (3) sell you new things, and (4) sell you warranties for those new things, (5) LLR. ((LLR – Lather, rinse, repeat.)) From a capitalistic perspective, its hard to argue with a business plan like this.
A little burned out component on the motherboard takes very special equipment and skill to replace. When faced with such a problem you can replace the entire computer, the motherboard ((Which, by the time you need it, costs as much as your computer is worth.)) , or just that one component.
From calling numerous computer repair facilities, I know very few of them have the special equipment and skill required to replace a single tiny component on a motherboard. If dedicated repair facilities do not typically have this equipment, I doubt big box stores would be up to the task.
I think everyone’s heard the horror stories or seen the TV investigations of big box computer store repair services scamming unwary or uninformed consumers. I have friends who hired Best Buy’s “Geek Squad” and still didn’t have their problems fixed.
If I were a very cynical person ((And, I am.)) I’d suggest that big box stores hire untrained staff who have a vested interest in charging a diagnostic fee to tell you that your computer and all your data is beyond recovery.
Luckily, I believe the third option, finding a reliable dedicated computer repair shop, is your best bet.
Since the new WCAB rules became effective, the new EAMS forms are now mandatory. The exceptions named in the above bulletin are:
There will be a four-week “transition period” in effect through December 12, 2008 during which the “legacy” ((Read: non-EAMS)) forms will still be accepted.
Forms requiring multiple signatures will be accepted in “legacy” form as long as the filer establishes that circulation began prior to November 17, 2008. ((I suppose the easiest way to demonstrate this is to point out that at least one of the signatures was dated prior to 11/17/2008.))
Unrepresented injured workers will be allowed until February 17, 2009 to use “legacy” forms.
Unrepresented injured workers who do not have access to a computer or typewriter will be allowed to fill in the new OCR forms by printing using block letters. ((Though, I suppose printing clearly in all-capital letters migh work better…)) ((Photo courtesy of Thomas Hawk.))
Did you know there’s a handbook for the new Optical Character Recognition EAMS forms? You can check it out here or download it here:
Driving home from a deposition on Tuesday evening I was listening to NPR. ((I’m an NPR junkie, remember?)) They had a piece about how food banks in California are struggling. Donations across the board are down. Corporations that used to donate are reducing or even eliminating their donations. People who once donated to food banks are now showing up asking for food.
Tuesday night I made a decision to help my local food bank.
I have donated all of the income from this website, retroactive to November 1, 2008 to my local food bank. I will be sending out an e-mail to all current paid subscribers thanking them for their support of this website and, by extension, our food banks.
I also decided to make a further commitment.
I will continue to work on this site to bring you the absolute best workers’ compensation calculators for free. And, I will continue to donate every single cent from this website to this food bank through the end of this year.
If you buy a monthly subscription, I will donate your subscription to this food bank through the end of the year. If you buy a yearly subscription between now and the end of the year, I’ll donate the whole thing to them. I do not believe this would be tax deductible for you, so I’ve thought of another option.
If you make a donate of any amount to your local food bank, just send me a copy of the receipt and I will give you an equivalent amount of subscription access to this website. ((E-mail, fax, mail – whatever works for you.))
If you use this website chances are you’re a professional who can spare enough to make a donation. I’m no good at impassioned pleas or eloquent words. Please make a donation and help out some hungry folks. If you want to sign up for access for this website, please e-mail me or try to make an online payment through your profile on this website.
