How about a startup where one can dial a 1-800 number from Japan and get someone in ,say, Europe, who is also bored, and the two can rant to each other about how bad things are , and then go back to their lives ? International PainBuddy program, Dial-An-Agony . 1800-call-pain !! Best part, we pay a couple of life coaches to analyse some rants and provide anonymous advice

I was going to comment that you'd have language issues but then I realised, most people who want to vent don't actually need to be understood they just need to get it out.

Good idea!

It might actually work better if a European makes soothing noises and a Japanese person makes soothing noises at a European in exchange, without either side knowing what the topic is.

there's also google translate to help out

I cannot agree with you enough. I must add that, personally i feel more comfortable discussing problems with total strangers - this avoids the social ramifications part. do hope someone picks this idea up seriously.

>> Takes me back to the good old days when Kiko was killed by Google Calendar

What would happen if someone were to try a startup doing what Kiko did ?

or for that matter, repeating any of the startups that users loved but were acquired and killed by Yahoo or Google ?

If I were to create (yet another) photo sharing site, what obstacles would I face because of Google already having Picasa/Photo and Yahoo owning Flickr ?

aren't these the 8 reasons people stop being Javascript programmers and become vacuum cleaner salesmen or something ?

nooo !! that's why research into the hover-skateboard stopped !!

you'll need yahoo ids to see the images ? will it be shut down, like flickr ?

Subcultures are genes mixing and matching and exploring corners. Sentience burdens us with the ability to understand connotations of 'status', 'outcast' etc, but otherwise nature is on track with her research & development

> The gooey nougat of the hikikomori phenomenon is, it's sort of a quiet rebellion against the complicated and restrictive social protocols that are part and parcel of being Japanese. It is the same with otaku: however trivial their interests may be, they are determined to follow their own interests and choose their own path, rather than simply do what is expected of them.

I thought Zen was the quiet rebellion before it got stratified/institutionalized. I feel that the other phenomenon are more emergent, and they emerge from the mainstream not cracking down on them ,or not being able to..

division of labour is passe. It's a thorn people have forgotten to remove