A mix of luck and people having access to incomplete information. Seibel says this: 'Though not about computers per se, The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are

A mix of luck and people having access to incomplete information. Seibel says this: 'Though not about computers per se, The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies, and Nations by James Surowiecki (Doubleday, 2004) contains an excellent answer to the question, "If Lisp's so great how come everybody isn't using it?" See the section on "Plank-Road Fever" starting on page 53.' http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/conclusion-whats-next.html http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/conclusion-whats-next.html A Google Books search for Surowiecki's book yields a preview with those few pages uncensored (just search for "plank-road fever") and a detailed discussion about "information cascade."