Ask HN: How do I share an idea with a company but still receive credit?

[Wadsworth]

It is a great little idea- that I would give away if it meant that it would be used. I do want to be in a position where I am able to take credit. What do I do?

Should I build a prototype? And then just start knocking on doors? Cold-emailing founders?

This is a complementary idea-- it would be something that companies like: SCVNGR, 4Square, Facebook and even Color.com will one day adopt to improve service for their users (and add value in their partnerships).

[vectran]

Quoting Paul Graham "ideas are worthless" (ref: http://www.paulgraham.com/ideas.html)

I would suggest cracking out a prototype and go from there - "ideas are 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration".

[Wadsworth]

I ended up building the prototype this morning (a bit of insomnia). Now I've got this cool little demo (fully functional) running on my iphone--- now what?