While this blog post certainly rings pleasantly in my ear (based in ATX), I think there's more to being in the valley than simply the success rate of a startup. I'm very envious of the enthusiastic community and people you meet in the area, whether you're at the bar, having a cup of coffee, etc. However, I'm not envious of the cost of doing business and basic living.
RE: 2008 stats, I think it's a reasonable assumption that the economic downturn is certainly being felt first by the east and west (capital capitols) before it hits other tech satellites like Austin, Boulder, etc. It will be interesting to see who bounces back first and at what velocity... Compared to Web 1.0 => Web 2.0, things could be drastically different this time around given the market's significant retraction, and displacement of VCs in web startups.
One thing about business here, we haven't had the luxury of big VCs so most startups here have a different challenge that generally results in a profitable web business, not big exits.
RE: 2008 stats, I think it's a reasonable assumption that the economic downturn is certainly being felt first by the east and west (capital capitols) before it hits other tech satellites like Austin, Boulder, etc. It will be interesting to see who bounces back first and at what velocity... Compared to Web 1.0 => Web 2.0, things could be drastically different this time around given the market's significant retraction, and displacement of VCs in web startups.
One thing about business here, we haven't had the luxury of big VCs so most startups here have a different challenge that generally results in a profitable web business, not big exits.