Hi Mike,

I think this is an excellent, and really valuable overview. I agree that it isn’t an either/or, but there is something odd about the way we handle product development, and the transition between startup and service.

It should be possible to work in an environment where spontaneous, fun and creative things emerge from the simple process of playing with technologies. Equally, it should be possible to incubate the *best* of these and then to transition them into long-term, managed services (Twitter and Facebook may not have grown from serious, but you can betcha they’re serious now…)

The changes which happen under the bonnet when you shift from startup to service are fundamental and important. You have to take something from one kind of culture and hardwire it into an existing organisational one. The expectations of users ramp up proportionately to the issues of quality and reliability.

Where we do tend to go wrong is in expecting to go directly from idea to fully-fledged implementation. Funders are no good at delayed gratification!