Though I am the greatest breaker of this rule, I agree so much with it.
Anytime I see a "Facebook killer" that has all the current features of Facebook I smile and tell the builder(if he/she is a friend) to observe that the sites after FB that ever got so big (Twitter, Instagram, Foursquare) had only one real feature before building out over time.
I am sure even Pinterest will become more complex, but for now, it is all about Pinning.
Nice article Joel, this point cannot be emphasized enough.
Absolutely. It's impossible to gain traction unless you simply your product and start with one feature. The problem that then arises is how to choose the "killer app" out of your entire model, something that is groundbreaking, evaluates the market opportunity, and leaves you with a cliffhanger to prepare for the next step in increasing complexity.
Anytime I see a "Facebook killer" that has all the current features of Facebook I smile and tell the builder(if he/she is a friend) to observe that the sites after FB that ever got so big (Twitter, Instagram, Foursquare) had only one real feature before building out over time.
I am sure even Pinterest will become more complex, but for now, it is all about Pinning.
Nice article Joel, this point cannot be emphasized enough.