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Does anyone have any experience with crowdfunding?

I have an idea for a multi-media project (internet and television) and am thinking about crowdfunding to source the funds and get things rolling. There are some sites who organize this kind of effort but they need the disclosure of enough information that the idea could be stolen.

Has anyone here sought funds through crowdfunding, but as an independent entity? If so, what where the challenges?

Any other thoughts, ideas, et cetera, welcomed.

It's been my experience that many folks are really much too worried about having their ideas "stolen." If you create a clear and detailed description of your idea on, say, Kickstarter or some other site, and someone should happen to steal it (which is highly unlikely), you have a very strong copyright claim--you can easily demonstrate that your idea was publicly posted, along with dates and other useful information.

In any event, the two 900-pound gorillas of the crowdsourcing world are Kickstarter.com and indiegogo.com. I know people who've had good success getting funded on Kickstarter.

I'm backing two right now.

Amiigo Fitness Bracelet Raised $580 grand out of a startup goal of $90 grand (yes you read that in the correct order)

RFduino USB shield raised $352 grand out of a startup goal of $5 grand. (you thought IndieGogo got a shock, imagine their surprise!)

Good example of everyone just having no idea just how popular and in-demand their idea is going to be. I think this system is wonderful.

Two great examples of how pimply-faced startups just blew the doors off the bank vault.

Oh.
My.
God.

How is it possible I've not hard about the RFduino? What an amazing idea! Want, want, want. I've been using an Arduino Mini in a bunch of projects lately, but the RFduino looks massively useful for a few of them...

if you like the rfduino, also look at the Ardweeny. Yes that's a $10 arduino, using a ATmega328 chip. You will also need a FTDI Friend. (just one, to program your swarm, $15)

I have six Ardweenys here. I prototype on them or on my full size meg256. VERY cheap solution. Programs up just like an Uno, it's the same chip, and has a crazy small form factor. Stock up on 5v regulator ics while you're at it.

Also if you're into arduino, here's another Cheap Proc It's basically an UNO, but only $15.

The Ardweeny is amazing!

I'm actually searching for something about that size that has solder pads rather than pins or DIP headers for connecting to circuitry. The Lilypad is nice, but it being round is kind of annoying. What I'm doing is making "smart" sex toys, with an Arduino controller as the brains, that can fit together with batteries and other logic into a mint tin.

I have a full-sized Arduino which I pared with a Neurosky single-chip EEG to make a sex toy that you can control with your mind, just by thinking about it, and I've also used an Arduino/Neurosky combination to make a gadget that displays brainwaves in jets of flame from a Rubens tube. For the prototype mint tin sex toys I'm using an Arduino Nano, but I have to cut the pins off to make it fit in the tin, which is annoying. The Arduino Mini has solder pads but is a bit larger. Something like the Ardweeny would be awesome if it used a surface mount ATMega and solder pads--know anything like that?

the Ardweeny certainly has an appropriate name in that situation!