> and the pattern is the same. Those people
> with best opportunity to 'get rich' are the
> ones that are providing the TOOLS to the
> MINERS.

> This analogy goes back to the gold rush
> days, and hundreds of thousands of people
> started mining ventures, seeking their
> fortunes, a hand full of people got rich...

> the merchants selling the picks, shovels,
> mules, and supplies to the miners.

> Not much has changed.

Gordon, I agree with you here!

I didn't even think about this until a couple of months ago....

I went to visit the guy who was my Ph.D. supervisor -- Professor Charles Osborne.

He's a very friendly guy though, so to everyone he's just "Charles" -- he's not one for formalities.

Anyway, I always enjoy speaking with Charles. He's very diverse.... He's a professor in physics, yet through some of the work he's done (to do with visual processing by neural networks), he was also in demand by the robotics department, and did other high-tech contracts too....

And that's not all! In addition to that, he has some qualifications in psychology, and he has a psychology practice after hours....

He's a truly unique guy, and I felt very lucky having him as my Ph.D. supervisor.

Anyway, I mentioned to Charles that I was working in business.... And he told me pretty much what you mentioned....

He said, the key is to "Sell shovels to gold miners"....

These are the ones who got rich from the gold rush!

Okay, some prospectors for gold may have gotten rich too, but it was hit-or-miss....

But those selling shovels to gold miners had a sure thing!

And you mentioned Bill Gates.... But even on a smaller scale, it's what Bill Myers does....

Bill Myers saw the internet business "gold rush," and went about creating and selling the shovels....

It's a very true saying.... Thanks Gordon for mentioning it.... :)

Dien Rice