I guess it matters because Carmack's opinion carries weight in the industry.

Carmack is one of my heroes but I don't think that's particularly true. He's famous for not liking deep stories and throwing people straight into the game.. yet most AAA titles nowadays have ridiculously elaborate stories and it can take an age to get into gameplay. His opinion is always worth listening to, but I'm not convinced most people follow it.

it won't vanish in a puff of smoke. but i have a feeling it will turn into the new internet explorer 6 of the web at some point