Isn't it the case that legal issues are often a bottleneck to getting products to market? The traits listed for "taking the plunge" have been described elsewhere (I think by pg) as the "rat" phenomenon. Basically there are a new breed of super rats which will persist and bootstrap or gain traction, to the detriment of conventional or historic VC interaction.<p>The advent of online trading (with the floor traders going bye bye) is another peg in the coffin, I think. It very well may be possible to day trade as a primary means, with only a secondary concern of bootstrapping or working on a startup. With priorities like that the startup just becomes a passionate "can it be accomplished?" pursuit, because by comparison the profit incentive just isn't there.