Good morning, All, and you knew that was coming.

Ok, it may seem like semi-old news by now, especially with TechCrunch Disrupt going on. Still, attention must be paid. Linkedin IPO is the first so-called social media company to go public – and the biggest internet site to go public since Google – which naysayers also claimed, at the time, was overvalued. And the bubble talk is bubbling up once again.

There are huge differences between Linkedin and the sites that went public during the ‘90s bubble. First, Linkedin grew organically, rather than paying a fortune in advertising to acquire users. Next, Linkedin is a site one returns to time and again, and where one expands one’s own personal network in order to bring more value to the experience – and to Linkedin itself. In fact, between November 2010 and March 2011, the number of Linkedin users literally doubled. Next, Linkedin is profitable and has been since about a year or so after its launch – and has multiple profitable revenue streams: Paid job postings, advertising and a subscription model (CHART OF THE DAY: Where LinkedIn’s Revenue Comes From http://read.bi/kXIEQg)

Nor is Reid Hoffman your typical twenty-something Bubble 1.0 – or potential Bubble 2.0 – founder: Attn Entrepreneurs: Mark Zuckerberg Isn’t the Role Model. Reid Hoffman Is. http://tcrn.ch/jxzpTV) 13 Startups Facebook Acqui-Hired For Millions Of Dollars http://read.bi/l8MNJP

Bottom Line: While Linkedin is labeled a social media company, let’s not lose sight of what the platform really is; namely, a utility; a business tool: Linkedin changed the way people do business. We operate in an as much a relationship economy as in an information economy. It’s not just what you know but who you know, and when Linkedin came along, that was extended to who you know and who they know.

Finally, if you need a barometer as to how influential a company is, ask yourself: did they somehow change the patois? We google. We tweet. And to potentially reach someone we may not personally know, well, we can always send an inmail.

Onward and forward.

Deadlines:

Deadline for TechStars New York Summer program is this Thursday, May 26. Seattle, your deadline is June 1. Apply here, apply now: http://bit.ly/a7YCkV

Call for Top Innovators: Venture Summit early application deadline is May 31st 11th annual summit will showcase 50 of the hottest early stage and emerging growth Technology, Life Sciences and Clean-tech innovators.If you are a startup seeking capital and/or partnerships, submit your plan for the opportunity to present at The 2011 New York Venture Summit, the premier venue connecting emerging growth companies with active Venture capitalists, Angel investors, Corporate VCs and Investment Firms. Presented by youngStartup Ventures, The 2011 New York Venture Summit provides an unparalleled opportunity for startups to meet, network and showcase their innovative investment opportunities to a leading group of investors. For more information and early bird registration ($100 discount with your “sos” code: http://www.youngstartup.com/newyork2011/overview.php To apply to be a Top Innovator: iwant2present@youngstartup.com

CEO Perspectives on Navigating Venture Capital, deadline June 1^st:  If you’re the founder of a high-growth startup, Bain Capital and Chubby Brain are co-hosting. Join Managing Directors from Bain Capital Ventures and the Founders/CEOs of Rent the Runway, blip.tv, TargetSpot, Buy With Me, Magazine Radar and Stamped as they share triumphs and tribulations as well as insights on how the big idea is born, how to raise capital to fund it, and ultimately how to build a great business. Attendance is free, but by invitation only for 20-25 startups. For more information and to apply: http://www.chubbybrain.com/venture-capital-ceo/

StartupWeekend deadlines coming up fast, all over the world: NYStartupWeekend is June 10-12, and it gets sold out fast, so we’re giving you fair warning now. Heads up: there’s one in Hamburg May 27-29 and Toronto, SF, Madrid, Denver, Marseilles and Boston June 3-5. For more information: http://startupweekend.org/about/ To register for the next NY event: http://nyc.startupweekend.org/tickets/

Hacking Education: A Contest for Developers and Data Crunchers. Ten years ago, a teacher in the Bronx launched DonorsChoose.org. Since then, more than 165,000 teachers at 43,000 public schools have posted over 300,000 classroom project requests, inspiring $80,000,000 in giving from 400,000 donors. We’ve opened up that data, and invite you to make discoveries and build apps that improve education in America. We’ve got a list of suggestions to help get you thinking. We hope to build a community of developers and data crunchers, so we’re launching a contest! Deadline is June 30th, and more information is here: http://www.donorschoose.org/hacking-education

Silicon Alley Talent Fair & After Party is June 16^th. The recent surge of entrepreneurial activity in New York has created a surge in hiring. Now is the time to join some of New York’s most creative and industrious minds to bring the next wave of computer products and services to the forefront of daily use. Join us on June 16th at the Armory for a Startup Talent Fair, where you’ll have plenty of time to meet with exciting new startups and network with other talented individuals like yourself. Good back story, too: SAJF was born out of 80 + startups doing the entrepreneurial thing and leveraging an email mishap to rally around the concept of doing their own job fair. It took on a life of its own and has found mass support across the NYC startup community. For the full story: http://mashable.com/2011/04/05/nyc-startups-job-fair/ This event is organized and produced by startups for startups. To register as a jobseeker: http://bit.ly/SATFtalent; to register as an employer: http://bit.ly/SATFemployer

Startup Chile: tentative deadline July 4th. Start-Up Chile is a program of the Chilean Government, created by the Ministry of Economy, executed by CORFO via InnovaChile, that seeks to attract foreign, high-potential entrepreneurs to come to Chile to bootstrap their businesses with the end goal of converting Chile into the innovation and entrepreneurial hub of Latin America.  Start-Up Chile provides access to a mentors network, attendance to weekly networking events, and the support of the Program which offers all the necessary contacts to find the money, the talent, the expertise, the visibility or other support that you may need. The Program assigns a $40k grant per project ($20,000,000 CLP), a 1-year resident visa to every founding team member provided on the application, a temporary workspace (desk & wifi). And you surrender zero equity in your company. The program is conducted in English, and entrepreneurs worldwide are encouraged to apply. For more information: www.startupchile.org

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Pieces we liked this week:

From Mark Suster: You Need To Win The Battle for Mind Share: We are building a lot of stuff now that has no longevity. In a way, startups have become kind of like the video game industry. New stuff gets created, it’s fun to play with and talk about.. You play with it for a few weeks or months. Then you stop because it was game like. Non valuable. Not really helping you do something better. Not solving a real problem. Suster uses Linkedin as the example du jour on why/how some companies win: http://bit.ly/jtJoqT

Best Practices For Raising a VC Round. Chris Dixon gives his Top Ten points, and make sure to read Roger Ehrenberg’s comments for more clarification: http://bit.ly/knxJfK

The Right Investors for the Mission.  “How should I finance my start-up?” is a common refrain from first-time founders and serial entrepreneurs alike. There is no manual for how to best do this, and intuition can only get you so far in the absence of experience and mentoring. Roger Ehrenberg poses – and answers – three simple questions and is always a worthwhile read: http://bit.ly/iH8pih

Infographic: A Look At The Size And Shape Of The Geosocial Universe In 2011 It wasn’t so long ago that the International Astronomical Union booted Pluto out of the solar system or that MySpace was overtaking Yahoo! and Google as the most-visited site in the U.S. Well, a few rotations around the sun later, and that has all changed. New stars have been born and others have been scattered out across the cold recesses of Internet space. Today, Myspace is sputtering, Skype is part of the Microsoft solar system, and LinkedIn is being traded publicly. The whacky flux continues. http://tcrn.ch/m4z83R

Of course, there was the Linkedin IPO pissing match, if only just for fun: Now, The Truth About Linkedin – according to Henry Blodgett (http://read.bi/ldigC4) Yes, Henry did live through a bubble – and didn’t exactly distinguish himself admirably the first time around. On the other side: Jane, You Ignorant Slut: http://ow.ly/1t61AW; Even The “Smart” Arguments Justifying LinkedIn’s IPO Pop Are Bogus http://read.bi/ms1d4B

And speaking of help being on the way: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSdxqIBfEAw No, really, it’s that time again. We wish you all a wonderful (hopefully rain-free) Memorial Day Weekend, our next Find-A-Cofounder event will be in June, and help is on the way…