There’s one question the Space Elevator FAQ doesn’t seem to answer - how does the payload get its “sideways” velocity?
Does the coriolis (I think that’s the right concept) force cause the ribbon to “lag” the launch point, with the sideways component of the force exerted by the distorted ribbon then provide the sideways acceleration?
It doesn’t need any sideways velocity, because the elevator’s center of mass is located at the geosynchronous altitude, where the orbital speed relative to the surface of the Earth at the Equator is zero.