I have been thinking about the relationship between Bitcoin and altcoins, and how people (including me) have a hard time convincing themselves that there is only one Bitcoin and there will never be a Bitcoin 2, and no altcoin will ever be able to surpass Bitcoin in terms of its fundamental properties (mainly decentralisation, scarcity and security).
Bitcoin is like wikipedia. Wikipedia is the only one that is authentic and indisputable.
Then there are many different wikis... you have the Pokemon wiki, the Starcraft wiki, travel wikis, and even a wiki about bitcoin. These Wikis, as you might have guessed, are the Altcoins. They fulfil a particular function, they satisfy specific needs that are not relevant from an encyclopaedic point of view (knowing all the items in a video game, the places to visit in Thailand or any technical knowledge). These altcoins do not have a monetary function as powerful as bitcoin, just as wikis are not as encyclopaedic as Wikipedia.
Wikipedia's hegemony as a repository of online knowledge is undeniable, being (in a sense) a consensus-based p2p network. No private company hiring top experts from all over the world can make a better encyclopaedia than Wikipedia. They have not been able to overcome the ability of millions of people around the world to selflessly contribute information.
Moreover, if they succeeded, the content of this new encyclopaedia could become part of Wikipedia's content if it really adds value to what has already been written.
Nobody believes that Wikipedia will disappear because of a better successor, as it is able to change and adapt. Just like Bitcoin.
That's the way I see it.
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