How Small Is Big Enough?

The high-power "amateur" rocketry folks have achieved some remarkable
altitudes with their vehicles.

IF it is possible for a "hobbyist" to put a very small package into
orbit, how big must that package be to perform useful, financially
remunerative work?

It seems to me I recall that one of the communications satellite array
companies of the 1990s proposed "coffee can" sized satellites.

What could be done with a package the size of a golf ball?

How about a project space the size of a thimble?

Let's avoid the legal and bureaucratic obstacles to such a launch.

How small is big enough to try a few technical ideas that might make
somebody some money?

Colin Keizer