As I continue to play Tycoon$, the popular Facebook game, I am struck by how useful it is as a learning tool. Many people write it off as a stupid or unsophisticated game, but I think that it holds many lessons for those of us who discover them. It is interesting to see how things have changed since my first post.
One interesting thing that has happened is that inflation has taken off within the game. Prices are up about 25% in the last month. What has caused this massive inflation?
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Business Strategy, Internet, Investing, Money, Success, US Economy
business, economy, facebook, games, inflation, learning, Success, tycoon$, tycoons
Recently, I discovered the Tycoon$ game on Facebook. It is an economic simulation game, where you build a business and grow your “empire”. It is still in beta, but I found it very refined and completely bug free.
One thing that is really interesting about the game is that it gives us insight into how markets and economies work. Most people who make the rules for an economy (politicians) do not really know the effects of their policies. They have an idea about what they think is right, or what they think will happen. However, these ideas are based on opinion, or the unproven theories of economics.
What can we learn from such a “game”?
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Accelerating Technology, Internet, Investing, Money, US Economy
facebook, fun, games, Internet, Investing, Money, Success, tycoons
Recently (I know, I must be the only one who was not playing!) I discovered the phenomenon of Mafia Wars. I call it a phenomenon for two reasons:
- The game (and games like it) are a paradigm-shifter for online games.
- We can learn so much from them.
Why is this game so powerful? Why is it a paradigm-shifter?
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Accelerating Technology, Business Strategy, Internet, Money, Success
addictions, facebook, Internet, killing, mafia wars, online games, Success
Recently there has been so much talk about Twitter. And Facebook. Before that it was YouTube. The rates of adoption are greater than anything mankind (and womankind) has seen before. It got me thinking.
If this is the web 2.0, perhaps it took a few years to mature. Let’s say 3 years. So it started in 2006. That means web 1.0 which really got started in 1995, was 11 years old in 2006. So web 2.0 is happening perhaps 2 -4 times faster than 1.0. I don’t know how much longer 2.0 will last, but 3.0 is on the horizon.
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Accelerating Technology, Internet
Accelerating Technology, computers, CPU, facebook, social media, twitter, youtube
is one of my favorite financial books of all time. It's an allegory about a guy who has a terrible job, and how he overcomes challenges to achieve his dreams.
