I think the real issue is that from an economic perspective, getting someplace faster, isn't necessarily better anymore.

It used to be that travel time was down time. Whatever the mode of transport was, you couldn't really be productive (in the traditional sense) while you were on the move. The less time you spent in the metal tube meant more time you spent someplace where you could do something other than pick at "chicken ala mystery". The Concorde was better, because you spent less time in the plane doing "nothing".

Now you can be connected wherever. Sitting on the plane is no different than sitting in an uncomfortable office. How much is it worth to get there faster now? Some? Maybe. But not very much. And certainly not the difference in fare prices between First/Business class on a 777 and the Concorde.

There's obviously more to "productivity" than "presence", but for the sort of folks that are forking over that kind of money for a plane ticket, it's pretty important.

I'm not sure how far he's gonna get with $27.50, a bag of skittles, and an old copy of 2600.

Slashdot users think Linux is awesome.

I read this exact story in '98. Y2K. All those mainframes with COBOL code and nobody to write it because CompSCI majors didn't learn it anymore.

We always seem to muddle through.

My first computer didn't even have 8-bits. It had 2, but you couldn't use both at the same time. You had to go up 7 floors to get the other bit and then swap them out.

"Ladies." Right.

I'm as much of a Mac fanboy as the next guy, but I do want to point out that the "on-site" service isn't as amazing as it sounds.

I have a Mac Pro and recently discovered that the on-site service is provided at the discretion of the local store/repair center and not Apple. If you call with a problem and want on-site service for it, they'll give you a list of local stores that you can then call and try and convince them to come out on a Saturday (it doesn't work, btw). I imagine if you bought all your systems from a place they'd be more interested, but just as a random guy with AppleCare -- the earliest I could arrange was some 36 hours later at an Apple Store (that Mac Pro was fun to lug on the subway, too).

It's a great computer and all of that, but if you have business critical needs, you need something way more than AppleCare.