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From 2003 to 2013, the price of AAPL rose from $11/share to over $400/share. Rapid price increase doesn't always mean "bubble". Sometimes innovative things are

by jamoes 14y ago

From 2003 to 2013, the price of AAPL rose from $11/share to over $400/share. Rapid price increase doesn't always mean "bubble". Sometimes innovative things are created.

smsm42 14y ago
There's nothing that happened with BTC between when it cost $14 and now. Comparing it to the shares of Apple that created a whole new consumer industry and substantially changed the information interactions of the whole humankind betrays deep misunderstanding of the question at hand. Bitcoins did not suddenly turned into new way of living, did not produce hundreds of amazingly useful things and did not change how many people do things. They just cost more, because people expect them to cost even more in the future.
- jamoes 14y ago
  Bitcoin technology allows something that has never before been possible in human history: Two individuals, that never meet in person, can trade with each other without placing any trust in a third party. The implications of this are far-reaching, and will fundamentally shape how governments and businesses operate.
  - khuey 14y ago
    That's a fascinating point. It has me wondering if this is a solution in search of a problem though. When I do business with someone online, typically I trust the third party more than I trust the counterparty. That's definitely the case when I use my American Express card to buy something from a merchant I've never used before. It's why Ebay and Amazon Marketplace succeeded. They broker the transactions and ensure you don't get screwed in exchange for a cut of the value.
  - smsm42 14y ago
    So far I see absolutely zero effects of these fundamental changes. In fact, even finding a way to get bitcoins - without trusting one of those "exchanges" that constantly are getting hacked - looks non-trivial at best, and looks next to impossible to do it anonymously. As for using it for some common activity except selling/buying controlled substances and such - forget about it. When I am able to pay with Bitcoins on Amazon - then we'd be talking.
  - quasque 14y ago
    Not really. They still must rely on the Bitcoin peer to peer network, the code behind the Bitcoin clients, and the stability of the Internet. There is still a third party, it's just distributed more widely.
smackfu 14y ago
Glossing over the little trip AAPL took to $700. You can have a bubble and a real price increase, on top of each other.
vannevar 14y ago
Apple is a company that created a lot of real value during that period. Bitcoin is a currency that claims to offer some marginal advantages over other currency, but certainly not enough to justify the rocket ride. The biggest advantage that Bitcoin is offering these days is that it will be worth 50% more next month than it is today. That's a hard advantage for speculators to ignore, but it is ultimately an unsustainable pyramid scheme.
- etherael 14y ago
  Yeah, apple is obviously so much more valuable than bitcoin because having computers in prettier cases or phones with prettier user interfaces is incalculably more valuable than access to a provably fair and reliable financial system not captive to the global banking cartels or their crony governments. This place is really starting to depress me.
  - andyhmltn 14y ago
    Are you seriously trying to say Bitcoin has more value than a multi-billion dollar consumer company? Lol.
    - etherael 14y ago
      Not just any multi billion dollar consumer company, a descending and overvalued one that never really contributed anything I see as particularly worthwhile at any rate.
      - andyhmltn 14y ago
        That's your opinion. Many people disagree. Bitcoin hasn't contributed more to society than Apple. The wide adoption of the mouse, GUI and multitouch screens are just a few.
    - jamoes 14y ago
      Imagine reading a comment in 1995 that reads: "Are you seriously trying to say the Internet has more value than a multi-billion dollar retail company?" Bitcoin is like the Internet. It's an open protocol that changes the way we think about money, just like the Internet changed the way we thought about communication.
jussij 14y ago
And AAPL peaked just shy of $750-00 so that bubble may have a leak.

by jamoes 14y ago

From 2003 to 2013, the price of AAPL rose from $11/share to over $400/share. Rapid price increase doesn't always mean "bubble". Sometimes innovative things are created.

smsm42 14y ago

There's nothing that happened with BTC between when it cost $14 and now. Comparing it to the shares of Apple that created a whole new consumer industry and substantially changed the information interactions of the whole humankind betrays deep misunderstanding of the question at hand. Bitcoins did not suddenly turned into new way of living, did not produce hundreds of amazingly useful things and did not change how many people do things. They just cost more, because people expect them to cost even more in the future.

jamoes 14y ago
Bitcoin technology allows something that has never before been possible in human history: Two individuals, that never meet in person, can trade with each other without placing any trust in a third party. The implications of this are far-reaching, and will fundamentally shape how governments and businesses operate.
- khuey 14y ago
  That's a fascinating point. It has me wondering if this is a solution in search of a problem though. When I do business with someone online, typically I trust the third party more than I trust the counterparty. That's definitely the case when I use my American Express card to buy something from a merchant I've never used before. It's why Ebay and Amazon Marketplace succeeded. They broker the transactions and ensure you don't get screwed in exchange for a cut of the value.
- smsm42 14y ago
  So far I see absolutely zero effects of these fundamental changes. In fact, even finding a way to get bitcoins - without trusting one of those "exchanges" that constantly are getting hacked - looks non-trivial at best, and looks next to impossible to do it anonymously. As for using it for some common activity except selling/buying controlled substances and such - forget about it. When I am able to pay with Bitcoins on Amazon - then we'd be talking.
- quasque 14y ago
  Not really. They still must rely on the Bitcoin peer to peer network, the code behind the Bitcoin clients, and the stability of the Internet. There is still a third party, it's just distributed more widely.

smackfu 14y ago

Glossing over the little trip AAPL took to $700. You can have a bubble and a real price increase, on top of each other.

vannevar 14y ago

Apple is a company that created a lot of real value during that period. Bitcoin is a currency that claims to offer some marginal advantages over other currency, but certainly not enough to justify the rocket ride. The biggest advantage that Bitcoin is offering these days is that it will be worth 50% more next month than it is today. That's a hard advantage for speculators to ignore, but it is ultimately an unsustainable pyramid scheme.

etherael 14y ago
Yeah, apple is obviously so much more valuable than bitcoin because having computers in prettier cases or phones with prettier user interfaces is incalculably more valuable than access to a provably fair and reliable financial system not captive to the global banking cartels or their crony governments. This place is really starting to depress me.
- andyhmltn 14y ago
  Are you seriously trying to say Bitcoin has more value than a multi-billion dollar consumer company? Lol.
  - etherael 14y ago
    Not just any multi billion dollar consumer company, a descending and overvalued one that never really contributed anything I see as particularly worthwhile at any rate.
    - andyhmltn 14y ago
      That's your opinion. Many people disagree. Bitcoin hasn't contributed more to society than Apple. The wide adoption of the mouse, GUI and multitouch screens are just a few.
  - jamoes 14y ago
    Imagine reading a comment in 1995 that reads: "Are you seriously trying to say the Internet has more value than a multi-billion dollar retail company?" Bitcoin is like the Internet. It's an open protocol that changes the way we think about money, just like the Internet changed the way we thought about communication.

jussij 14y ago

And AAPL peaked just shy of $750-00 so that bubble may have a leak.