A Must-Read List for First-Timers

Each day, Inc.'s reporters scour the Web for the most important and interesting news to entrepreneurs. Here's what we found today:

A list every first-time entrepreneur needs to read. We've already given you a head start by highlighting the best industries for starting a business today. Now, at VentureBeat, VC and former entrepreneur Don Rainey provides would-be entrepreneurs with a fantastic list of the eight things he wished he knew before starting a business. In short, successful projects show positive signs from Day 1; bad employees never quit; and when something isn't working, cut your losses quickly.

Does the U.S. education system foster entrepreneurship? Our education system may not be perfect, but a recent Gallup poll shows that Americans credit their schooling for instilling an appreciation of entrepreneurship far more than our European counterparts. 51 percent of Americans polled said their education made them interested in becoming an entrepreneur compared to only 25 percent from the European Union. Surprisingly, China led the polling with 57 percent of respondents saying their education helped them value entrepreneurship. Check out the complete survey data here.

Inbox Zero is the new Nirvana. Inbox Zero is that elusive but peaceful state of having trimmed your overflowing e-mail inbox down to a manageable level. To help you reach that state, Digg founder Kevin Rose has 5 tips on cutting through the clutter (via GigaOM). For starters, keep it short--like haiku short. When you add "Sent from iPhone" to your e-mail signature people are more forgiving of your brevity. Don't forget to create a VIP filter for friends, family, investors, and business partners. Check out our guide for more advice about keeping your inbox slim, as well as 25 tips for perfecting your e-mail etiquette.

Facebook knows your every move. Just when you thought Facebook and privacy would be able to live happily ever after, Zuckerberg and his team went ahead and introduced Facebook Places. The widely anticipated location-based service, which is sure to give Foursquare a run for its money (note that its logo is a "4" in a square), was announced yesterday at a press conference in Palo Alto, CA. Not only can users check themselves in, but they can also check their friends in, as well. Can you smell a breach of privacy? Already, The New York Times reports groups like The American Civil Liberties Union are back on Facebook's case, releasing a statement saying, "Facebook makes it very easy to say ‘yes' to allowing your friends to check in for you...But when it comes to opting out of that feature, you are only given a ‘not now' option. ‘No' isn't one of the easy options.' In defense of the product, Zuckerberg relied on the old familiar "sharing" excuse again, telling conference attendees, "The main thing we are doing is allowing our users to share where they are in a really nice and social way." Can't say we didn't warn you.

A grade-gambling start-up? You betcha. A pair of recent college graduates-turned-entrepreneurs have founded Ultrinsic.com, a website that allows college students to bet on how well they'll perform in a class. Or, if an academic outlook isn't so sunny, a student can place a wager they'll do poorly that semester. Founders Steven Wolf and Jeremy Gelbart got wagers from 600 students from the two colleges the site launched at last year; this month the site expands to 34 other campuses, the Wall Street Journal reports. Ultrinsic is being met by predictable outrage from university officials, and its unclear how the site will stack up against laws that restrict online gambling.

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Staff writer Kasey Wehrum has written for Inc. magazine on subjects ranging from the businesses behind professional bull riding to gadget inventor and father of the infomercial, Ron Popeil. His work has appeared in the New York Times, Worth, Budget Travel, and on MSNBC.com. He lives in New York City.