Last post, we shared a rundown of the concepts and language you’ll hear at Startup Weekend. To delve a little deeper into the philosophy behind Startup Weekend, we thought we’d share some of the writings of Steve Blank and Eric Ries, two major thinkers in lean startup scholarship.

Eric Ries is a technology entrepreneur, and the man who coined the term “Lean Startup.” It was this post in 2008, which has only been slightly updated, where he created and defined the term. Last October, Inc. Magazine ran a long story summarizing his book on the concept. Startup Weekend participants may also find his guide to the Minimum Viable Product helpful.

Steve Blank spent 21 years in 8 technology companies before retiring to become a consultant and write his book, The Startup Owner’s Manual. His “Customer Development” model and philosophy is used by startups worldwide. You can see a 2009  presentation by him and Eric on the concept on his site. His manifesto outlining the precepts can be found in five parts there, as well. Startup Weekend participants may also find helpful his thoughts on the #1 cause of startup death from a product development standpoint.