Ignorance is bliss!

Don't know how often people encounter this experience, but I've gone through this a handful of times. With a lot of enthusiasm and vigour, I will start chasing a new idea or concept thinking that I am the one who has thought of it. But after spending some time and by talking to others about your idea, you realize that there have been others who have attempted a similar approach or a variant of that idea that is significantly close to my idea or they are chasing the same end goal as I want.
Current culture of starting with search, posting in a forum or high response alias to get quick answers or atleast a jump start definitely goes a long way to avoid this problem. Still one has to get lucky to get the right answers or atleast right pointers.
Much of one's worries can be simply wiped off by checking doing a quick poll of what others are going through or by observing solutions adopted for similar problems. In these days of public discussion, data and human reach, the worst thing is to assume that you are the only one having that problem. Still there are many people who suffer from "me and my unique problems bog me down" syndrome.
Another point of view to look at this ignorance is that it gives a chance for something new - a new dimension or a new combination or a new insight or a better understanding - to be born.
"Ignorance is bliss" is indeed true provided one stays abreast with rest of the crowd; but total ignorance can be too costly and painful.

Ra