This is deviating a bit from the initial post topic but I felt inclined to jump in...

How does one buy Steem? and/or acquire it? Are there other uses for, or platforms using #Steem, besides #Steemit?

(excuse any novice or redundant questions/comments)

The high value of Bitcoin is due to it being -obviously- a base coin if not the base coin, and because it is a means for people to buy/trade/invest in other cryptocurrency/coin. Which is aside from it's ideological value and its (relative) efficiency as a cryptocurrency. This is what makes BTC a power player more than it's efficiency as a blockchain or currency.

From my rather basic understanding of the #Steem blockchain and it's capabilities (based on the few posts I've read so far and previous convos with @motoengineer) it appears to be far #superior to those of the top base-coins and most other coins.

However, no one knows about it. Or how good it is. Or how to get it. And to be frank I wouldn't imagine the majority of people who would potentially use (buy/trade/invest/purchase with) it, even care about anything more than the face value of it and how they can use it for their own personal benefit.

This brings me back to my initial (semi-rhetorical) questions up top...
Getting the word out there on what Steem is, where it can be used and how to acquire it, is cyclical (like someone may have mentioned above) almost chicken and egg like. So while the value of Steem is in its mechanics, it cannot function at the moment without Steemit or a similar platform to help it get exposure and continue to rise.