Here's further proof that no matter how out-there your idea is, there's someone to fund it. SpaceX, a "space exploration technologies" company secured $20 million in funding this week. Its goal is to "reduce the cost and increase the reliability of space access by a factor of ten." Nevermind that the most recent space ship they constructed—and launched—crashed in the Pacific with the ashes of 208 people, including the actor who played Scotty on Star Trek aboard (Don't ask us...). Three other rockets that they've launched have also gone down in flames.

If you're wondering how a business like that could get more than a dime from a VC, there's a simple answer. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is the former co-founder of Paypal. And the VC firm funding SpaceX is operated by Peter Thiel, the eccentric other founding half of Paypal. While obviously Thiel's relationship with Musk played a role in his decision to fund SpaceX, he's nonetheless known for strange investments. He most recently invested half a million dollars in the Seasteading Institute, a company whose goal is to start "libertarian ocean colonies." Need we say more?

At what point are copyright laws damning to entrepreneurship?

Think about it: it seems that almost every company that holds the copyright to a name/image/what-have-you is willing to fight for its right to be the sole operation who uses it. And these days they're not just asserting their right to use a name or image as a whole, but every aspect of it. In some cases, it's gotten to the point of ridiculous.

A few years ago eBay threatened legal action against the owners of the URL gotodepoebay.com because—you guessed it—"eBay" is in the URL. As it turns out, the owner of the site was a realtor in the town of Depoe Bay, Oregon. That still didn't stop eBay. Other notable instances of major corporations questionably flexing their copyright muscle include Starbucks going after a women's roller derby league in Seattle for using what they perceived to be certain aspects of their logo. Most recently the makers of the Facebook game Scrabulous were taken on by Hasbro, who owns the rights to the board game Scrabble.

But there's a fine line between protecting intellectual property and policing creativity. Let's face it, there are only so many ways you can draw a circle, and if you use a ring in your logo, does that mean that Starbucks has the right to sue you for trademark infringement? And if that's true, doesn't that seem inhibiting to entrepreneurship?

We're going to go out on a limb here, but it seems like copyright law might now reach farther than originally intended. While sure everyone wants to have their ideas protected—and it's fair to a point—the real issue is public domain. At what point is it more beneficial to have that drug, song, or game available to the public?

Original American copyright law extends the rights and securities to authors and inventors, and sought to create an ownership of an idea for up to 25 years, after which (or upon the creator's death), it passed into public domain. It's since been revised to extend up to 70 years with the Sonny Bono act (no, we didn't make that up). So to the makers of Scrabulous: we'll look forward to seeing more from you in the year 2063. That is, if the laws aren't extended again.

Here's a common scenario we hear from our readers: I've got a great idea. And I've got a business plan that could persuade Bill Gates to invest his fortune in my start-up. So how do I get a VC to take notice?

Know this: it ain't easy. But that doesn't mean it's impossible. One of the first things you should do is thoroughly research the VC groups you're interested in. Check out sites like VCDB, the VC database we wrote about earlier this week, which gives you the biographies of a firm's managing partners and information like the types of businesses they've previously funded. It makes sense to focus on venture capitalists who've worked with other start-ups in your industry, or who are familiar with your technology/innovation/brilliant idea. That's because it saves you the time and trouble of having to persuade a VC who's not familiar with your industry that it's hot, growing, and profitable. Save your breath for the important stuff. Like having to convince an investor that your idea is potentially profitable.

Once you've nailed down several VC firms that you're interested in pitching, start networking. It may seem unfair, but the reality is that a referral—no matter how tenuous—is always better than a cold call or email. Speak to as many friends, family members, and other business owners as you possibly can. Find out if anyone has worked with a particular VC group and ask if you can drop their name in an email or a phone call. Locate business owners who've gotten funding to see if they can either give you a referral or tips on how to get an investor's attention. Use social networking—particularly business sites like LinkedIn—to figure out who's linked to the VCs you'd like to meet, and shoot them an email to see if they'd be willing to talk to you about their experience. If they're a friend, all the better.

If all else fails, you still have the option of contacting an investor without a referral. The best way to do this is either via the submission forms that some investment firms have on their website or email. If you choose to go this route, it's critical that you keep your email concise and exciting. This is not the time to ramble. Pinpoint the most riveting aspect of your business and figure out how to convey it in the fewest words possible. And most important, get right to the point. Remember, these guys get hundreds, if not thousands of submissions each week. And if you want them to notice your idea spending a paragraph blathering on about how you located their website and settled on pitching their firm isn't the way to do it.

There's no question that if you're starting a small business, you need a computer. The real dilemma is figuring out what kind of computer you should buy. If you're in that place, here's a little tidbit that may help make your decision: gadget blog Gizmodo recently wrote about a new study that revealed that the price of an Apple computer is on average TWICE as much as a PC. And no, they weren't comparing the MacBook Air to a Dell circa '04. We're talking computers of equal specs. So is the Apple worth the cost for your small business? And if it's not, why would you pay an unnecessary premium?

Here's the reality: as far as the hardware is concerned, there really is no difference. So, that double-cost multiplier is attributed to two things: an operating system and an aesthetic. The cost of the Vista operating system is about $225 for Home Premium (where you can plug your computer into the TV and have it act like a TiVo, and all the rest of it). The cost of Apple's OS, priceless.

Or at least that's what Apple fanboys would have you believe. The fact is that with Apple, you're paying nearly double for a pretty container and an arguably better operating system (arguably being the operative word there). But for a small business owner operating a standard start-up though, none of that really matters. And for a user like that, Vista and OS? It's frankly all the same.

Ubuntu anyone?

-Tabula secured an unspecified (!) amount of second round funding this week for its educational games. The company specifically makes pre-algebra and algebra software games for K-12 schools, which we're sure are a ton of fun.

-Crowd Fusion is living the dream this week after raising $3 million in first round funding. The company operates a web publishing platform, and is working on building tools that will help users build vertical destination sites. You can check out the company here, but may we suggest that they use at least part of their funds to build a better website?

-Enigmatec, an enterprise data center automation vendor, raised another round of funding this week, closing a $14 million deal. The company plans to use the cash to establish a "Centre of Excellence" in Scotland. No word yet on what that specifically will entail, but hey, it sounds cool.

-Flypaper Studios closed $3.5 million in second round venture capital funding. The company is a rich media software creator and has two products, Flypaper and Flypaper Pro. The company intends to use the investment to expand its marketing and product line.

-BitGravity, a two-year old start-up that delivers Internet video, announced that they'd raised $2.5 million in first round funding this week. What's different about BitGravity is that they provide Internet videos that play immediately and without any buffering. The hope is at some point that it can be used in conjunction with Internet television.

-While it's not exactly funding, DailyCandy, the saccharine fashion-trends-and-more newsletter for women, still cashed in this week—big time. They were acquired by Comcast for a whopping $125 million. That sum is actually less than Daily Candy's most recent valuation, which was $140 million. Nonetheless, it's still a sweet little deal (heh) for a company best known for making up words like "textual frustration."

Having a hard time coming up with a name for your web start-up? We have a site for you. Check out the Dot-o-mator, a website that generates potential names for your Web 2.0 company, and then lets you check whether the domain name is actually available. Whitefly, Babblelist, Quado, Chatshare, and Javu were some of the options it gave us. Our favorite? Zoocera.

While the Dot-o-mator is a fun little toy more than anything else (and a great procrastination tool), the site actually has a tips section that doles out useful - if not kinda obvoius - advice about choosing a good domain name for your online business like, "Search for your prospective name on Google," "Shorter is better," and, don't put a trademarked name like "Amazon" in the URL.

Yesterday Delta Airlines announced that they have an "aggressive plan" to wire their planes for Internet access. They plan to offer Wi-Fi on all domestic flights by the middle of next year and will charge $9.95 for the service on flights under three hours, and $12.95 on longer flights.

Now, while it's great that Delta is keeping up with the times and is going to offer a service that should have been available two years ago, at what expense are we getting the Wi-Fi? What we'd like to hear instead is Delta's "aggressive plan" to lower ticket prices and to get their planes off the ground on time. Certainly funneling the millions that they'll likely spend wiring their entire fleet toward that would do more in the way of customer satisfaction than giving people the ability to check their email in-flight?

Beyond that, where is Delta getting the millions they need to complete the project? As anyone who bought a ticket this past year knows, prices have hit the roof. That's a result of rising fuel costs, the airlines say, coupled with the fact that most of them are bleeding money. While they say the Wi-Fi will eventually pay for itself—are they going to jack ticket prices further to cover the cost until that happens? This is one of the airlines, mind you, who is nickel-and-diming it so much that they're charging customers who've earned enough miles for a free ticket a $25 surcharge.

While we're as big of a fan as surfing the Internet as much as anyone else, we'd like to see the airlines actually work on doing a decent job of their main function: getting passengers from point A to point B as quickly and efficiently as possible. What do you think?

One of the most common mistakes that entrepreneurs make when they launch a start-up is trying to do too much. Thinking about starting a pedicure shop for dogs? Maybe it's best to put off the canine bakery/juice bar until you actually generate positive cash flow. Have ten so-so products you'd like to launch? Why not start by releasing the one consumers-can't-live-without-it product you've got and roll the rest out over time?

You get the point. And it's one worth remembering. It's an impulse that even large, successful businesses can fall victim to—with the same, predictably bad result. To wit: in a leaked email from Steve Jobs to Apple employees, he admits that maybe launching the 3G iPhone, along with iPhone 2.0 software, the App Store, and MobileMe maybe wasn't such a great idea:

"It was a mistake to launch MobileMe at the same time as iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 software and the App Store. We all had more than enough to do, and MobileMe could have been delayed without consequence."

While sales of the iPhone have been excellent, Apple's MobileMe has been plagued with bugs and outages since day one, prompting the Washington Post to proclaim that "Apple Bites Off More Than It Can chew" and ZDNet to exclaim, "Shut Down MobileMe Immediately." Them's fighting words—but they could have been avoided if Apple had simply rolled out the iPhone and its new goodies, followed by MobileMe when it was ready. Er, Steve Jobs, take note.

(Via Ars Technica)

So, typically the biggest obstacle entrepreneurs have when it comes to VCs is getting an appointment—not being able to track them down. But for what it's worth, check out VCDB, a neat Guy Kawasaki-approved database of venture capitalists throughout the U.S. Not only does the database quickly show you where a particular venture capital firm is located, but it also gives you the quick and dirty on the firm's various investors, including their investment history, affiliations, specializations, and more.

While it's not necessarily information that isn't available elsewhere on the web, it's nice to have it one place. And the fact that the site's run by a VC who works at Chrysalis Ventures adds to its legitimacy as a useful resource. Could be a helpful tool to begin your research if you're seeking VC funding.

We need questions for our Q&A feature that runs every Thursday! Please send in any questions you have related to business plans, small business, or entrepreneurship using the box at the right. If we select your query, we'll post it this week.

Seriously, what are you waiting for?

Like everyone else, we've spent the past month screaming about the crimes committed by airlines. U.S. Airways is now charging $1 for coffee! Delta Airlines is levying a $50 fee against passengers check a second bag! And, worst of all, American Airlines is no longer offering free in-flight food (translation: how we used to pass the time more quickly).

Here's where things get interesting though. Yesterday Jet Blue Airlines, an alternative darling among major airline carriers, announced that they'll no longer offer free blankets and pillows to passengers. But instead of framing it as a negative, the airline tried to give the change a positive spin: it's eco-friendly!

Passengers can now purchase a reusable $7 set that includes a 10-by-12 inch pillow, a fleece blanket, and a $5 coupon good at Bed Bath & Beyond. Says a Jet Blue rep (via the New York Times):

"Replacing our old, recycled pillows and blankets with this state-of-the-art, high-quality take-home kit is an eco-conscious, health-conscious and customer-conscious decision."

Okay, so that's a lot of fluff. But beyond that, it seems like they actually did make the cut in the right place—blankets and pillows aren't necessities for most travelers. And frankly, is anyone keen to wrap themselves up in a something that a stranger was likely swaddled in just hours earlier?

While we realize that Jet Blue has effectively pulled off a sleight-of-hand, we don't feel tricked, nor do we [surprisingly] feel any of the outrage we experienced when Delta announced it was hiking the fee for checking a second bag. We're hoping you can answer what gives.

This week's survey question is whether Jet Blue actually found a palatable way to introduce what's effectively yet another new fee for fliers? And if you agree with that, what made the difference? Was it the fine tweak on the way they presented what's effectively a cost-saving measure for them, or was it where they made the cut? Then again, maybe we're just softies for Jet Blue. Tell us what you think in the comments section below.