vvvv

I agree. In the realm of games, Starcraft and Counter Strike changed the world, largely contributing to the creation of a new industry, where e-sports professionals can make a living playing games. 2048, while a great creation, has not changed the world in any significant way.

Have you never seen kids destroy each other's sand/Lego castles? Motives: curiousity, impulse, social exploration etc.

Personally, I think there could be sufficient demand especially if you consider this:

Microsoft has traditionally been in the business of developing and selling user-centric (as opposed to advertiser-centric) software. Why wouldn't they develop a user-centric browser and sell it like they do the Office products? I'm genuinely wondering. Would it be hated by developers as it'd limit their earning opportunities?

Let's say $40 per annum, i.e. $3.33/month, to pay for a browser like we do for an OS. I'd be willing to pay for an essential piece of software that needs to be independent and look after me and my data.

Simplifying, 39% of the world's 7.1bn population is using the internet [1]. That's 2.8bn people. Opera, the least popular major browser, has a 1.8% market share [2].

If the $40 browser could match that share, it'd be a $2bn p.a. business.

Why hasn't it happened already? Are we so enamoured with "free" software that this couldn't get off the ground?

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Internet_usage [2] http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp

How much would you pay for an independent, non-ad supported, privacy-focused browser?

I completely agree with you. As Uber gets more popular, there's statistically more likelihood for assaults and rapes to happen (it does happen in some countries where taxi services are less regulated). What collateral would a distributed service like Uber have if one or more drivers turned out to be harmful to consumers?

1) the only solution is an online wallet

2) those businesses will need to be paid for their service, and face security risks as well

3) government will regulate

4) some businesses will start wallets/vaults, which will enable you to open a wallet free of charge in exchange for depositing your bitcoins

5) those businesses will use the deposited bitcoins for lending, investments and speculation

hello brave new world...

>People don't use credit cards because they are convenient, people use credit cards because they do not have the extra money

I use my credit cards because they don't cost me any more than using cash (I pay off the full amount each month) and I get a lot of various perks in return, like cashback, airmiles and insurance. They are convenient and I use them whenever I can.

I've done both and I'd agree that Vipassana is more thorough and lasting, although more difficult. Doing it even just once and not following through with daily meditations is still a life-changing experience.

It's never so bad, that it can't get worse ;]

While I wouldn't downgrade to a dumbphone just yet, people keep poking fun at my old Blackberry. I do hate it a lot of the times when it crashes, when the GPS signal fails, when my thumb has to cover 500m distance on the annoying little square to read one webpage. However, it does (barely) what I would like my gadget to do: calls, emails, occasional map check and sending of a dropbox link.

The experience is painful enough, that I don't treat it like a toy and hence feel no compulsion to baby it in my hand all of the time.

Sometimes I feel like I miss out on all the apps and general development in the area, but that hasn't gotten acute enough yet for me to get a smartphone.

>A company can be spending more than they make, and still be profitable

What?

Anyway, Amazon has razor-thin margins on some products but they're not loss making.

Actually, Tesla is not the first auto company that is attempting to dispense of dealers. When Daewoo entered the UK in 1995, "their market research revealed that car buyers disliked dealers on commission, hard-sell, aggressive sales techniques, over exaggerated promotional campaigns and poor after-sales service" so "Daewoo set up its own dealerships with staff paid a salary rather than commission – trained, helpful sales advisors providing information rather than pressing for sales. Showrooms had crèches and children’s play areas and offered coffee. Cars were not serviced at the same location, but rather by the well-known retailer Halfords in their out-of-town service centres. The themes used by Daewoo to further differentiate itself included good value, reliable cars (3 year warranties, AA breakdown cover) with additional safety features (eg ABS brakes and side impact protection) and additional features and benefits that would otherwise be extra cost (eg power steering, no-fuss guarantees, courtesy cars or pick up and collection for services). The result was that in the first six months Daewoo sold a remarkable 14,000 cars in the UK."

http://www.palgrave.com/business/ebm/lecturers/session4/4-da...

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=33HpNgHUkb0C&pg=PA144&lpg...

We may be witnessing the genesis of plastic-based lifeforms :P

"That is all just value-added services that protect their reputation and deepen their relationship with customers. That's all."

Surely, delighting your customers in the provision of your product/service is what a successful business is all about...

That's premium economy, although actual value for extra money depends on an airline. In fact, the whole experience depends massively on the airline of your choice, with US airlines, in my opinion, being well towards the bottom of the pile.

Whatever you think it'll cost to allow somebody else to go on the 10 day course in your area.

> Trying to tackle programming and English at the same time makes for quite a barrier.

That's how I played all games as a kid :) Civilisation + dictionary FTW