Successful Moonlighting For Geeks? 448
Lawksamussy writes "Having just bought a really old house that's on the verge of falling down, I'm now trying to find a way to pay to fix it up. I have a great job in software development that pays the bills, but I'm looking to earn some extra cash in my spare time. Whatever I end up doing has to be reasonably lucrative (or at least have the potential to be so), not require any specific time commitment, and be doable equally well from home or from a hotel room. I'm also keen that it should be sufficiently different to my day job to keep my interest up, so the most obvious things like bidding for programming projects on Rentacoder.com, or fixing up neighbors' PCs, aren't really on. Above all, it should appeal to my inner geek, otherwise my low boredom threshold will doom it to failure before I even start! So, I wonder if any of my fellow Slashdotters run little part-time ventures that they find more of an inspiration than a chore... and if they are willing to share what they do and perhaps even how much money they make doing it?"
Exposure. (Score:2, Funny)
Don't read the title too fast. "Mooning" isn't what's being asked.
Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
Reasonably lucrative, no major time commitment, can be done at home or a hotel room. Hmmmm...think, think, think.
Have you tried an ad on Craigslist? Make sure to post a picture of yourself, along with your "rates". Good luck!
Remember: (Score:0, Funny)
grow pot? (Score:3, Funny)
Gee.. uh.. (Score:3, Funny)
and be doable equally well from home or from a hotel room
Amateur porn site project perhaps? :P
should appeal to my inner geek
If "inner geek" is its nickname, he should definitively find some appeal to this project.
Home renovation? (Score:5, Funny)
Have you considered getting into home renovation? Granted, you won't be able to do it from most hotel rooms, but I understand there is a growing market for those services in your immediate area. It would certainly be different from your day job.
I run a global software company (Score:5, Funny)
"Everyone needs to run a software company."
Are you based in India? :)
Re:Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
It has to appeal to his geek side too though, so I recommend setting up a streaming feed from his webcam capturing all the action..
What would Tyler Durden do? (Score:5, Funny)
a really old house that's on the verge of falling down
Soap. Make and sell soap. Sell rich women their own fat asses back to them.
Re:Fix the house, skip the 2nd job (Score:5, Funny)
Re:I run a global software company (Score:5, Funny)
No no, he said "Everyone needs to run a software company."
If he were from India, it would be "Everyone is needing to be running a software company."
Re:Remember: (Score:5, Funny)
lol (Score:5, Funny)
Dear Slashdot,
I consider myself fairly well off but just spent beyond my means, making me like most of middle class America. I'm now looking for a get-richer-quick scheme, preferably that can be done at home sitting on my ass, and whenever I want. It must also appeal to the inner sense of superiority I give myself at my day job... but it must NOT be like my day job.
Sincerely,
R.A. Tracer, Jr.
Re:Obvious, really. (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, but it is the insane ones that makes it worth all the waiting!
Congress (Score:4, Funny)
Sounds like you should run for Congress.
Re:Fix the house, skip the 2nd job (Score:2, Funny)
Or investing in a bit aftershave, a bath, some flowers, and marrying a carpenter?
I thought the females in construction were all concrete masons and electricians. That is those that aren't "laborers" that get to wave the flag for $35 an hour since they take such good care of the foreman's flagpole.
Not sure how to add tags ... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
"should be sufficiently different to my day job ...". No penetration testing then!
I myself am into LaTeX, BSOD, backporting, deep throttling ...
Fork the jokes ... I think EVERYONE reading this summary had the same line of thought, I'm even wondering if the poster is not a troll ;)
"... it should appeal to my inner geek", I mean ... what are your other geeky interests? You can be curious, passionate and hack about anything ... if you're like me I'd suggest you glue lollipop stick model of things and sell them on eBay - good money! :)
Re:grow pot? (Score:1, Funny)
protip: if you grow pot, don't tell people on slashdot...
Drug Dealer (Score:5, Funny)
Seriously--there are not many legal options that meet your requirements.
I'd suggest you take a little trip down to the "bad" part of your town and start talking to the guys you see standing around on the street corners. I'm sure one of them would be more than happy to help you set up a franchise of your own.
You can try this... (Score:3, Funny)
Or, start up some web servers at your place and host content for some twisted yet legal sexual fetish. Or sell autographed pictures of your mom.
Okay, so I'm really not helping at all. I myself have earned extra cash repairing laptop hardware, cleaning up horrid computers running windows, and the occasional assisting of installing legal copies of OS X on the purchaser's PC. Mostly connected through word of mouth, so I don't advertise or anything like that.
If you have well built software programming skills (with your previous code as proof) you would be surprised about the people who want a program to do x, y, and z and will give you a nice check to do so. I've done that 4 times in my free time, all with lawyers who a relative knew of.
If you still have your foreskin, you can play "guess what's in the foreskin pouch" where you hide a random item by enclosing it with your foreskin. Not sure how much cash you can get from that - betting perhaps.
Easy Money (Score:2, Funny)
Well if it's money you are after I know of this man in Nigeria who has come into a large amount of money, and needs to transfer it off shore for Tax Reasons. You will get 50% if you let him use your bank account. All he needs is your Name, Bank Account Details, and SSN. It is all perfectly above board. I know because I read it in an email.
Re:I'll give you $50 (Score:3, Funny)
Mod parent up +1 Helpful.
I'll chip in $10 for the video.
Re:Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
Haven't you always wanted to be.... (Score:1, Funny)
....A Lumberjack?
(Ok, so a part time one)
Re:I run a software company (Score:5, Funny)
Our six core services
?
Re:Exposure. (Score:3, Funny)
Oh.... Successful MoonLIGHTing for Greeks!
My bad... so what did the Greeks invent again? Surely we can find SOMETHING hes naturally good at? ;)
Re:Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
You'd have to be a twisted pair to try that.
Re:I run a software company (Score:4, Funny)
Profit!!!
Re:Sell/ebay all your old tech (Score:5, Funny)
Great going, but how did you manage to find this guy's old tech?
Re:Let me think... (Score:5, Funny)
http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/orl/740493470.html [craigslist.org]
Re:Fix the house, skip the 2nd job (Score:5, Funny)
And my GF is a nympho
as written by Creepy Crawler (680178)
Somehow, that picture just makes me shudder! :)
Re:I run a global software company (Score:5, Funny)
That remonds me of something that happened when I used to work for a well-known IT service provider which, at the time, had a large contract with a major American automobile manufacturer. From our offshore support in Thailand, we got this gem:
Please do the needful. The customer is on fire.
It took quite some time to work out what it meant. Apparently, "on fire" was the literal translation of a Thai expression for "very angry".
Re:Eldercare-a legal way to sell to the less capab (Score:4, Funny)
What I'm describing is a boom industry
I am intrigued and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.
Re:Exposure. (Score:5, Funny)
Whatever I end up doing has to be reasonably lucrative (or at least have the potential to be so), not require any specific time commitment, and be doable equally well from home or from a hotel room. I'm also keen that it should be sufficiently different to my day job to keep my interest up, so the most obvious things like bidding for programming projects on Rentacoder.com, or fixing up neighbors' PCs, aren't really on.
Based on your stated goals and desires, allow me to be the first to welcome you to the exciting and lucrative world of drug dealing!
Re:Fix the house, skip the 2nd job (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Let me think... (Score:3, Funny)
Ouch that's pricey!
I use to use a 100m reel of waxed lacing cord with a small steel nut tied to the end. ...for cabling, that is!
Re:I run a software company (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Gee.. uh.. (Score:5, Funny)
"I noticed a free porn site and thought "God, that looks like a 3 year old made that". A month later I launched my own using free content and affiliate programs."
Ok..I'm curious. How do you make $$ off a free porn site????
You make it up in volume