I really think that it should not matter so much with this idea that there are similar existing startups. Since most of the time the actual product changes anyway, it is important that you have a good direction. I would be interested to see how many users Drop.io and Yammer have. That could actually be a validation that you have users that desire what you want to build.
I have to say this always works for me too. The thing is there are always forces pulling us away from what is most important. When i meditate sometimes it becomes more clear what is most important. Usually about 30 minutes into it I visually see something related to a goal. After that I just follow the vision. I worked with a guy who graduated from Pepperdine University for his MBA, and he said they are teaching meditation techniques to business majors now.
I agree I very rarely see articles posted here about Perl.
Probably the reason that you have been seeing more Perl posts in general around the net lately is due to the Perl IronMan Challenge which started at YAPC 2009. It's an initiative to promote the language. http://ironman.enlightenedperl.org/
Yes i thought it would definitely include local high school games and even possibly local hobby leagues. There are a lot of those. Funny when I grew up in Richmond, VA there was a local Rugby league. The athletes there were amazing . I was just lucky I lived nearby and I am not sure if anyone else in the neighborhood even knew about it . If they did they would have been exposed to a different sport from a different culture with great action.
Haha There is also another technique we practice in Brazilian Jui-Jitsu where you meet the attackers aggression by moving forward to hug him. It's called a "clench" but it looks just like a "hug". The reason you hug him is similiar to western boxing where one boxer hugs to prevent the other boxer from being able to hit him because of the distance. They call Jui-Jitsu the gentle art for a reason I guess :) One interesting fact is that the technique does not work if you are moving backwards, and its important that you are going towards him. There is a leading step kick that is just a feint so that you can get closer hehe.
Code Complete 2nd edition is a good and interesting book about programming in general. I also recommend these two because they are much lighter reads, and maybe better for a vacation: "The Passionate Programmer" and also "Masterminds of Programming: Conversations with the Creators of Major Programming Languages".
Another thing you could do is find some great piece of software by a well know Python hacker and read his code lol. You could put that code in some readable format on your Kindle, PDA, or Smartphone.
I don't agree with the "Remove all flash from your website suggestion". If you look at Pandora, Lala.com, Amazon, YouTube. They all use swf format as an easy way to deliver the music and video.
It's not without drawbacks however, but you will have a good idea of what the users experience will be when they recieve the media. It is probably not a bad idea to have multiple ways of viewing the media IMHO. With the user having the option to get the file itself alongside the sandbox be it Flash, Java , etc.
I don't think the Iphone supports flash right now though.