I have a bad habit of buying many books even I don't have time to read.(I'm an avid buyer not a reader). The one of books in such case is 'Hackers and Painters' (Paul Graham). I read it recently though bought long ago. I think It's good to read for a startup.(I like the book of Joel Spolsky too. There is an interesting article for Joel and Paul.) In the book, Paul Graham emphasizes the importance of a programming language to winning in the competition, and says LISP is the one. I have met LISP in the graduate but didn't pay attention at it. But having get old, I start to learn LISP with SICP(Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs). I hope this journey will finish with success.
artilla's personal blog. Sorry for broken English, just in practice