Blog

I'm a bit late to the game, but I'm reading "The Rise of The Creative Class", by Robert Florida and published in June, 2002.

One of the more interesting concepts presented is the shift in the types of social relationships that more Americans have - Florida says it is shifting from fewer/stronger relationships (links) to more/weaker links.

I think it's because we've become such a mobile society, which is a function of the breakdown of corporate culture where you had a job for most of your life.  This isn't a bad thing!

Having more though weaker links means we can tap our extended network for job opportunities, support or new experiences.  While they don't substitute for a few strong links to family and close friends, it can be argued that numerous weak links are actually economically advantageous to us in our complex and uncertain lives.

The rise of social networking sites in the past few years is perhaps the most profound evidence that weaker links are the way of the future.

Don Jones

VentureDeal

We're pleased to announce that leading venture-lender Square 1 Bank has selected VentureDeal's online database for its team of lending officers.

Square 1 was previously using a database that was expensive and thus had to be centralized, making it ineffective for field use by its lending officer staff. 

The deployment of VentureDeal's cost-effective venture capital database allows its field staff to view the entire database without being charged on a per-view basis.   Over 70% of its staff has signed up to use the service and they report a high degree of satisfaction.

VentureDeal provides a venture capital database that tracks transactions, venture firms and technology company financings and M&A deals nationwide, for only $25 per seat per month.

Don Jones

www.VentureDeal.com

At VentureDeal, we're always listening to our users and striving to improve the value you receive from the database.

We've got a few interesting additions that we've rolled out and a few that are soon to be live.  For example, now you can save your favorite five searches - great for those who just want to log in and click an already-saved search.

For the heavy downloaders, we've also added the ability to purchase additional downloads on the fly, instead of contacting us.  Each record is just 25 cents.

Soon-to-arrive additions will be the ability to search for all of the senior management personnel at venture-backed technology companies.  It will take some time to load in the data, which we will do over the next month, but this will be a tremendous resource to those looking for individuals or looking to search people by job function, location, etc.

Lastly, for Free Trial users, you'll be able to click through all the links, instead of only some of them - so you can see the entire value of the database before you buy.

This is just a partial list of the enhancements we're bringing to VentureDeal.  Stay tuned for more...

Don Jones

www.VentureDeal.com

Even though I scoffed at the idea of standing in line for days just to get an iPhone when you could order one online that same night and get it within 3-5 days, I still enjoyed the entire spectacle.

I really think it reveals something about our collective desire to transform ourselves.  I think Americans are at the forefront of this concept, though we don't own it by any stretch. 

Computers, the Internet, electronics, have all been re-purposed from their original design intent in order to allow individuals to transform themselves.  Transformations that provide new ways to communicate with each other. 

The culture of technology is a good thing, or at least not a negative, if it promotes communication.  It may be the most powerful 'culture' that America produces.

Don Jones

www.VentureDeal.com