If I had to guess why your response was downvoted (wasn't me) I'd say that it's because you didn't make this clear in your post. That said though:
In my opinion(!!) hacking out a minimum viable product (MVP) should still go through an up-front design phase. Before any UI work or data modelling is done.
Anwering those questions will help determine what that MVP will look like, and whether it will annoy users or have them wanting more. Apart from the obvious technical benefits it provides direction, motivation, and (one scenario) if you're looking for funding will help you articulate not just the product vision, but the technical roadmap, risks and, above all, provide a reasonably-informed estimate that will drive your financial models.
Comments
If I had to guess why your response was downvoted (wasn't me) I'd say that it's because you didn't make this clear in your post. That said though:
In my opinion(!!) hacking out a minimum viable product (MVP) should still go through an up-front design phase. Before any UI work or data modelling is done.
Anwering those questions will help determine what that MVP will look like, and whether it will annoy users or have them wanting more. Apart from the obvious technical benefits it provides direction, motivation, and (one scenario) if you're looking for funding will help you articulate not just the product vision, but the technical roadmap, risks and, above all, provide a reasonably-informed estimate that will drive your financial models.
It's awesome that you go MIT.