RE: Why Monero (XMR) is going to be the next big thing in cryptocurrencies
Like every altcoin, what Monero (XMR) needs is:
1.) a program that mines the coin
2.) a wallet for the coin that is at least as good as other wallets, with a pleasant GUI, ease-of-use, as well as speed-of-use; this includes desktop wallets, multi-wallet acceptance, litewallets, and USB-key wallets and paper wallets
3.) an online exchange that trades in more than just Monero (XMR) and one other crypto-currency
Monero (XMR) fails more than one stipulation above. The Monero desktop wallet (https://getmonero.org/downloads/) is above average compared to other wallets such as Bitcoin Core/QT or Bytecoin wallet. It has a separate daemon service for the blockchain, which is still quite large and clunky, requiring weeks of synchronization for the new user. You can mine with the desktop wallet, check payment, see your history, and see the seed for your wallet. I have not tested any Monero smartphone-wallet (https://freewallet.org/), so I have no opinion as yet. You can mine Monero (XMR) on MinerGate (https://minergate.com/a/1cb3993ff6b8eff7393d2e1f), with the added bonus of "merged mining" with Fantomcoin (FCN).
Monero is also not on Exodus (https://www.exodus.io/), a multi-coin litewallet, nor any exchange for USD. You can swap XMR for BTC on a variety of online exchanges, Poloniex and Shapeshift doing multiple altcoins (http://monero.org/services/exchange/).
These obstacles still need to be overcome to promote Monero (XMR) above other altcoins.
You are totally right, especially regarding the XMR/fiat exchange and a lightweight wallet. Fortunately, the development seems to be going in the right direction and since Monero is most of the time within the Top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, it is probably just a matter of time when some fiat-trading exchange will list it.
There are lots of programs to mine Monero already, using the cryptonite algorithm.
I can use monero wallet with few minutes of sync.