Re: Some interesting economic facts

["Matt Deatrick" <mattd@shocking.com>]

	That's no lie, Erick. This behavior is pretty typical and, unfortunately,
we are so used to it we accept it as the way things should be. People are
on information overload, unfortunately, the information is carefully
selected to make us good consumers, good workers, and quietly useless. 
	Matt

----------
> From: Erick Andrews <eandrews@star.net>
> To: Multiple recipients of list AM-INFO <am-info@essential.org>
> Subject: Re: Some interesting economic facts
> Date: Wednesday, April 22, 1998 5:40 PM
> 
> On Wed, 22 Apr 1998 20:12:13 -0400 (EDT), Matt Deatrick wrote:
> 
> >	Yes, and for most software the prices are declining. My main point
> >was that in economics Prices should equal marginal costs(the cost to 
> >produce one more unit). I am not in the mood to go through the whole
thing
> >again, but suffice it to say that prices are above marginal costs in
most
> >cases, even where they have fallen. Even though marginal costs in the
> >software industry are so near to zero as to be inconsiquential
> >theoretically. The argument, then, is that the reason M$ has had 20%
plus
> >profit margins, ie the reason Gates is so grossly wealthy, is because he
is
> >abusing our perceptions of quality by tricking the market. If it isn't
> >expensive it doesn't work? Not in M$'s case.
> >	Matt 
> >
> >
> <snip>
> 
> My God, Matt:  "...perception of quality..."?  ...you sure got that
right,
> spot on!  
> 
> How does one AMPLIFY that "perception of quality" that don't know
> that other apps and OS's CAN be consumed with a "knife and a fork"
> [or chopsticks, or properly with fingers]?
> 
> I'll tell you what I think the core problem is today:  all the worker
bees
> have no time, and many big-bad-corporate entities want to keep it that
way.
> 
> Erick
>