Jurgis

A friend recommended "Ultralearning" as having some practical ideas supplementing "Peak" "Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career" by Scott Young " is on sale for $2.99 at Amazon today: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07K6MF8MD/?coliid=I36OAZYU0ZXCRK&colid=22BZEZ4H8JQEA&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Thanks! Bought it. Nice patience, just like a good value investor waiting for your price! I bought it two days ago :( LOL, thanks. I buy some books at full price too... ??? Got $5 for ebooks if you spend $20 on ebooks deal expiring tomorrow. Not sure if I'm gonna figure out another $15.01 to spend on something. ::)

Thanks! Bought it.

I actually tried searching before I created this post. Thanks! I wonder what went wrong. I just went to General Discussion page and searched for "10 year financials"... ::)

There's a search box at the top of the page accessible to everyone. https://www.cornerofberkshireandfairfax.ca/forum/general-discussion/10-year-financials/msg334575/#msg334575

LOL. I realized the same thing this guy did: that a lot of places use bad incorrectly simplified formula. There are some places that have correct one that I also used. I think I wrote about it on CoBF at some point. But not as nice an article as CFA institute did. At least I feel smart and corroborated. 8) And I now have a link to give anyone who uses wrong formula without writing an article myself. 8)

Would you mind sharing the idea? I am pretty sure he means the longest thread on CoBF: https://www.cornerofberkshireandfairfax.ca/forum/general-discussion/fnma-and-fmcc-preferreds-in-search-of-the-elusive-10-bagger/14520/ I've done Kelly on this couple years ago. The key part here is couple years ago. As you've observed:

This is partly true: yes, people can invest in private companies with way less info, way less liquidity, and way less business results (and quite often pre-business) compared to public companies or even pink sheet companies. OTOH, even in this world of money sloshing around, it's not that "easy" to raise money as private company. Depends a lot on your business and your numbers. Although for companies that have the numbers to go public it's likely possible to raise and stay private.

Some fun Buffett MSFT tidbits on John Huber website: http://sabercapitalmgt.com/warren-buffett-1997-email-exchange-on-microsoft/ (John has an account on CoBF but posts very rarely.)

Here is the Cigarbutt we love. 8) You know what side your bread is buttered on. ;)

$2.99 on sale at Amazon today.

AI Superpowers China Silicon Valley and the New World Order, by Kai-Fu Lee $2.99 on sale today at Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/AI-Superpowers-China-Silicon-Valley/dp/132854639X/ref=sr_1_2?crid=EN8UTCBQOB4I&keywords=ai+superpowers&qid=1577393419&smid=A1KUURLZXZKET0&sprefix=ai+super%2Caps%2C157&sr=8-2 I browsed, but I did not buy. Seems like not much new for decently informed person.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/12/10/a-self-driving-truck-delivered-butter-from-california-to-pennsylvania-in-three-days/

Happy Holidays! I was browsing my old stuff pile today and came up with this nugget from Forbes, March 30, 2009: All I can say: good luck to everyone at CoBF! 8)

I found this startup that provides online configuration and quotes without registration: https://renoviso.com/entry-doors/c3 They have quotes for windows/doors/siding/roofing. I think their prices are close to bottom prices you can get for particular project. Might be a good resource to get pricing even for people not in their area. I'm not sure we gonna go with them, since there's a risk that their contractors are not that great. We'll see if we gonna get any quotes that are at least close to what their quotes are. For our project, their quote for Therma Tru door is about $1.6K (we have a quote from contractor for $2.6K!). Their quote for ProVia door is about $2.9K (we have a quote for ~3.4K).

The only cheap connection I have is Vietnamese hardwood floor guys. They've done our floors couple times and it's really well priced. Unfortunately they specialize in hardwood floors only and don't do anything else. Maybe they'd recommend someone if I talked Vietnamese, but I don't.

Thanks. Some estimates do not split the price of the door and the price of the work. And they don't specify the door model/number/extras exactly, so it's tough to lookup just the door price and subtract. I have a feeling that they are charging way too much for either door or work, but I can't prove that without being able to price compare the materials. At least the 2.8K door-only guy tells directly that the door is 2.8K. So I know he's not overpricing the work and can decide whether he's overpricing the door. Most installers don't (like to) install prepurchased doors. So you can't split door/install cost that way easily either. I guess I could go Spekulatius way: buy the door at HD and get HD install service. This has some drawbacks too.

Seems expensive. I got my front door replaced a couple of years ago for ~1.5k. This was for a larger door (~60” double door with glass). The door cost was ~1.1k ( Home Depot) and installation ~ $400. This was a couple of years ago when contractors were really hungry for jobs. I am hearing nowadays that people get outrageous quotes for all sorts of things. Home Depot also has an installation service, so it’s worth getting A quote from them. A door installation isn’t really a difficult job as long as the size doesn’t change, so even a good handyman might be able to do it. Thanks for the numbers. Some quotes I got do not split work and doors cost. The one that does has $800 maybe discounted to $400 for work. The door is way more expensive. It's a Provia and it's at ~$2.9K just for the door. Of course, they claim this is way superior to HD door. What I've seen suggested as OK prices online is $1.5K installed for a-bit-better-than-HD (Therma Tru) door. Haven't found anyone who would give a price close to that though. Anyway, this is helpful. I still wonder why garage doors are so much cheaper. ;D

I have a specific question, but perhaps this can be a topic for any home project questions/answers. We are looking to replace couple back entry doors. We are getting quotes in the area of $2.5K-3.5K per door installed (fiberglass Therma Tru / Provia). I have a value investor 8) ;) question: how come a garage door costs ~1.5K installed while entry door is 1K-2K more expensive? Both are doors, garage doors are way larger and IMO more complicated (multi panels), both doors have glass, insulation, etc. Is it just that people are ripping off the entry door customers? Curious value investors want to know. ;D

AFAIK, the cloud gaming is not only about computing, but is also has a different revenue model. You pay $20 a month for example and can play any game on their servers. This revenue model has been around for ages. Stadia Pro does not allow to play "any game on their servers". It allows you to play a selection of games. Xbox Games With Gold, Xbox Game Pass, Playstation Now, EA Access all offer the same. With differing selection of games of course.

I don't see what Stadia brings to the business side of things that Steam has not done ages ago. Stadia is completely different technical solution, but business-side wise, it's not there there.

https://possector.com/management/restaurant-failure https://possector.com/management/restaurant-failure "Watch the video to hear the hosts of “Restaurant Startup” discuss why restaurants fail." If someone suggested a 'buy and hold' investment to you that could make a lot of money, but which also might well result in a capital wipe-out within a 3 year holding period, they would be scoffed at. An example being OBE ... ;) But 'package' that same risk of capital loss as 'owning a restaurant' - and suddenly it's a great idea! There is nothing wrong in taking a risk - but be very clear on if/how you are going to mitigate that risk, and whether the expected return is ultimately worth the effort. One can swing-trade a stock; with the objectives of either recovering capital, or averaging down the cost base. Sometimes it works, sometimes not so much, but you have the ability. Don't have that with a restaurant. Every publicly listed equity comes with a professional board of directors and management, that know their business. You may think them idiots, but they are paid to 'run' the business, and they do it professionally all day, every day of the week - so that you don't have to. You can own the business, and at the same time - make as much as you wish, someplace else. Can't do that with a restaurant. Just a different POV. SD What you said applies to a lot of other startups and angel investing, not just restaurants. So QFT. 8)

I think restaurants are kind of like sports team. The New England Patriots just finds a way to win and the Cleveland Browns just can't get their act together. McDonald's for whatever reason is kind of like the NE Patriots. Culture is a real thing. My interns are sick and tired of me talking about how my HS wrestling team went undefeated my senior year. Yes, I am living in my glory days. But what I am trying to get at is that there was a change in regime. We had a new coach who came in and got us to buy into the system. We had 7-8 coaches where half of them were grown men volunteering when they could be working overtime. It is telling you a ton about the people involve and frankly the sacrifices that they made. They bought us hundreds of dollars of free dinners on Thursday nights so that we can build team chemistry. We use to eat like 30 boxes of pizza for dinner. A successful restaurant is likely a place where everyone knows their role and there is pride in what they do. They is a common core value. This is likely the case for every business. Not having power hungry assh@les are really important in businesses like this. If you want to run a successful restaurant, whether it is physical or cloud kitchen, you likely have to be a good coach who is dealing with employees who aren't the most motivated. It's hard to convince 16-17 years to run full speed at someone and hit them with all their might. This is probably the equivalent of asking a high school drop out to show up on time, not smoke too much weed, and get the orders right. I'm not trying to be condescending, I am trying to be realistic. Def! 8)

Honestly, wrong forum. People doing scale up businesses don't hang out here (with very few exceptions). I beg to differ. I think things have changed. I know of a few people who are both value investors and heavily utilize Instagram and Social Media to grow and promote their businesses whether it is selling products or selling subscription. I think most CoB guys are a bit too "old school" to realize that social media has lowered the barrier to entry in a very meaningful way. I know of ice cream people who use Instagram to heavily promote all natural ingredients and they have done very well. I misread what you asked. :) I thought you were asking if someone was building product similar to Instagram or in that space. :)

Honestly, wrong forum. People doing scale up businesses don't hang out here (with very few exceptions).