Yes, I can see that and I wish it wasn't phrased in that way. That overall idea isn't to give women something else to buy. It's to change societal views by educating young boys and girls about consent, respect, healthy relationships which have been proven to increase empathy and decrease aggression. The wearable is a piece of that - and we think it's a much better solution to pepper spray and other devices which are focused on hurting someone. This tries to buy time, get help from family and friends (which are more likely to be close to you) and call the authorities to quickly get help. We believe that we're not successful until there's no longer a need for these type of products. Thank you for your comment, Nadya.
This product is exactly the kind of thing I want when I'm walking around in the city at night. I actually own a plethora of personal safety devices-- 3 kinds of mini mace, and a keychain shaped like a cat with pointy ears. I still don't feel totally comfortable. A device that can make bright flashes of light and loud noises would be invaluable, PLUS alerting my friends/fiance where I am.
I must live in a different society than you. I see no issues with children understanding consent, respect for each others' bodies, and empathy. In fact - the society I live in actively punishes those who do not follow this code of conduct. We place them in prisons and have them sign a registry as a "sex offender" where that knowledge is made public and they never live it down for the rest of their lives. We treat sex offenders, in many cases, as worse than murderers.
But that doesn't prevent people who do not wish to follow this code of conduct from breaking the code of conduct. Education about theft and robbery does not prevent theft and robbery. These individuals do not care about "the rules". They care about themselves - and not others. Asking them to kindly stop robbing your store isn't going to get them to return the items they stole.
How does this device buy time? That isn't explained and I don't see how it could. Are you counting the few seconds before the criminal smashes the alarming/lighting device as "buying time"?
It could get help from family/friends, but this is assuming you aren't out alone. I imagine most crimes happen "while walking home alone" rather than "walking with my group of friends/family". Ignoring that statistically, most sexual offenses come from someone a person knows well, ie: a close friend or family member who might even be their emergency contact to begin with.
Authorities...quickly get help? I can order a pizza and call the police about a B&E and the pizza will get to my house first. You'd have to fix response times - police arriving to the scene of a crime after the crime has been committed isn't going to prevent the crime and in many places, the police have terrible response times.
The idea of mace, pistols, self-defense courses, etc. Are to prevent the woman from being raped. Not responding with help after she was raped. I feel like that concept is being ignored. I'm much more interested in a device that would prevent a rape rather than respond to one after it has happened.
>We believe that we're not successful until there's no longer a need for these type of products.
Society will always need these type of products because there will always be those in society who do not wish to follow the same code of conduct as the rest of society. Until society has a crime rate of 0% (government brain washing has been a success!) we will need these devices.
Maybe I should have that as an actual question. It's basically combining the functions of a rape alarm and an emergency kiosk (like those in campus) to sound an alarm and call for help, sharing the location of the wearer. Is that better?
That'd be a great addition, showing the product on the landing page and listing its unique features in a way that can be glanced over and understood is essential.
Here are some pictures! http://imgur.com/a/O85fs. I wish there was a quarter next to the chips to show its size but I can share it's 40mm x 25mm - comparable to a small key tag.
Thought it would be interesting to share my Ask HN: Rate my startup thread I posted 2 years ago, esp. for those that didn't have nice things to say :-) http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1511198
Thanks. Our tech and focus were different initially. Our main differentiators now are that we take a smaller cut (not that we want to compete on that) and we funnel traffic to the best performing pages. We're moving to a different ad model too that I'll be able to talk about in a couple of months.
As far as tips, I'm writing a post on that now actually!
I'm not sure. Poker players love to brag about their wins/hands, especially online. It'll probably depend on the person. I for one specifically look to play with better players so I can improve. You can probably also use it as a strategy to bluff others.
Moving along, thanks! I would still purchase that bookmark although the market for it now has decreased substantially with the rise of ereaders.
As far as the staffing agency, it would solve the problem international students face in getting sponsored. I'm not sure how much you know about the process but it's time-consuming and costly. The agency would work with big companies who can afford it and are looking for top candidates to add to their team as well as students who need to be placed and meet their specifications in regards to grades, achievements, etc. Think of the traditional model except focused on people with visas.
