Hello!
Most people are stupid, lazy and conventional.
Acknowledging this is the first step to developing something with broad appeal, and I'm assuming most people here would actually like to see Bitcoin become widely adopted.
Bitcoin would benefit from iOS-like simplicity in my opinion. Currently it's .. Linux-like.
I'm one of those stupid, lazy, conventional people, though I've made some extra effort over the last few days to understand and get started with Bitcoin... on my stupid Mac.
Sorry to the hardcore computer science graduates who consider me a dumb pleb, but most people aren't so keen on cryptography, documentation, anarcho-capitalism, or whatever Bitcoin tangent one could obsess over... People want to consume, and get from A to B with as little effort possible. "Marketing" Bitcoin will help adoption, but I feel there are other factors that are holding Bitcoin back.
1
Education
Bitcoin education seems usually a** backwards
Imagine trying to teach a Caveman how to use the internet. Would you start with HTML and PHP or just show him how cool Skype is?
So much Bitcoin education out there focusses entirely on MINING, BLOCKCHAIN, HASHRATE, FORKS ... things an end user shouldn't have to give a damn about.
How about starting with a demonstration of transferring some Bitcoin from a cellphone in Florida to a cellphone in Manila, instantly.
Bitcoin videos and articles, IMO, focus far too much on (excuse the analogy) the engine design, not the places the car can take you
2
Entry
It's just not easy enough for a mere mortal (non techie) to buy Bitcoin
It would be great if Paypal allowed users to buy Bitcoin from their site, or if some entity (perhaps a mobile network operator) introduced prepaid BitCoin Cards of some sort.
Remember, most people are stupid, lazy and conventional. As long as obtaining Bitcoin means you need to scan your passport, take off your clothes, make an international bank transfer, pay a large instant transfer fee, or generally wait around for days or read a lot of documentation ... Bitcoin has a big problem
I expect I'll get some slack for expressing these opinions. I've no problem with that, but please don't call me a troll. I'm really impressed and excited by Bitcoin, but equally frustrated with the hoops I've had to jump through just to get started.
Apparently we're still a long way away from people being able to "jump right into Bitcoin", but I can't help but feel the situation isn't helped by a hyper-intelligent community who hold the rest of us up to their high standards of cognitive ability.
Thanks for reading.