[ardit33]

If everything was "just timing and luck", then we would be using friendster, myspace, ICQ, AOL Chat, and bebo today, instead of facebook/twitter/instagram/snapchat/linkedin

There is something more than that, and good execution is crucial, and it is good to know on what worked well, and what didn't work out for both the current winners and past losers.

I think Reid has good things to say about what worked for them back than, and take it like that.

There is no rulebook on startups, as all of them have different patterns, but reading on what worked 2003-2010 (pre-mobile times), is not going to hurt anyone.

Dismissing the success as just being merely 'dark patterns' + timing, seems a bit short sighted.

[alkibiades]

you proved that not everything is just timing and luck but you didn’t prove that nothing is. The difference between it and myspace is something so much better than it came out that is surpassed the network effect. while there isn’t really anything compelling to replace linkedin in its base feature set that it started with.