Bitcoin Forum

Searching google for bitcoin reveals nothing in the news or on blogs about the London Conference.

What's up with that?

Maybe because its the weekend?

Maybe because reporters present at the conference need to process their material and write up articles still?

Maybe there was just nothing interesting going on.

Stallman is usually good for a mention on a geek blog.

No argument there.

Maybe because this is exactly what happened at the last conference?

Do people forget so soon?

Bruce Wagner: This conference will be awesome! There will be billions of press! This is going to take bitcoin to the next level!! We gonna be rich! Join me on an around the world cruise!!

What actually happened: Forums went silent, complaints started to pour in that there was no online coverage. Then some shitty streams with poor sound popped up. There was no press reaction at all. Then a couple of weeks later some shitty vids with poor sound and video quality got released.

Perhaps the hosts could have been expected to hire some guy to film the presentations, but then didn't and thus managed to manouver their whole conference around the bitcoin community. Big point to improve on next time.

Yeah, I am sure they will learn and improve just like they did last time...

I LOLed   :D

It's the third major conference and again, no coverage. I understand that partecipating is more funny than reporting everything, tweeting everything and recording everything but that would be a very useful thing. It seems this conference doesn't even exist... what is happening? What is being said? Dunno

This is turning into the Bilderberg of bitcoin. LOL

All the talks were recorded, and should be posted $Somewhere, $Sometime.

Perhaps the conference was signed off on, allowing it to go into liquidation.

Seriously, I'm looking to viewing/reading the happenings at the conference.

~Bruno~

I dropped out of bitcoin right before this guy made his presence known and have only heard him about since dropping back in a couple of months ago.  I still have a hard time believing how anyone fell for his bullshit.

I just want to know how many laptops were stolen this time.

His stupid music on his stupid website told me all I needed to know.

Bitcoin will change monetary mechanics but human beings are still vulnerable to falling for narcissists. That can't be coded into any system.

It's really silly that there's no press.

Next conference, I will try to raise funds to go myself (hopefully it'll be in the US), with the promise that I'll live blog with text/pictures the whole thing.

IMO they aren't taking the potential of bitcoin serious if they aren't streaming it live or posting information as it becomes available.

Horrible and such a let down.

Great. Another dumb smart person.

I love Stallman, but this blindspot in the eyes of some of the Technorati is always disconcerting to run across.

Was he then laughed off the stage?

We need someone recording every talk and quickly uploading it on youtube as it end.

Sounds like a great idea for next year:  pay some bitcoins for this service, rather than complaining about not getting something for free.

"Guys, guys, we need to promote BTC to the public to help it catch on."

"Shut up and pay monies."

You really wouldn't like the spin on things I would give this.

I'm sure uploading a video on youtube cost at least 100$

Kinda like TEDtalks, eh?

  I've done press for a few different conventions over here.  Unfortunately not sure if I could afford a ticket and acommodations to London if it's held there again but we'll see.  Certainly wouldn't mind doing photos or video for the event but again, it all depends on what's happening.  If it's all out of pocket, I'd probably have to decline.

Probably far more than that, if you include obvious costs external to the youtube upload, like the videographer's time.

Do it like every other non-profit convention out there.  Press person gets a badge and freedom to cover the events.  Usually press at small events like these cover it for free (even though I'm sure everyone would love to pay them).  

You kinky devil.  :-[ I thought this was a family friendly forum.

sorry to kick a horse when it's down, but no live blogging type coverage means bitcoin magazine did something wrong

I'm sure placing your smartphone somewhere and letting it record the talk while you listen to it is very expensive. Or a digital camera, i'm sure someone already have it.

On a side note, with higher coverage, sponsors too get higher coverage
->they would pay more for that.

So, go ask them the money for the cam.  :D

There were guys from Bitcoin magazine, they took photographs, maybe also recorded video, I dont now. Also there were several cameras that recorded video. So I think that the records of speeches will be available soon.

I also took photographs, but I need some time to process them.

I think some of you ppl think about it the wrong way.

It's not about promoting bitcoin towards new people, it is about providing entertainment to the existing community.
The conference is just a way to make some quick coins.
From that point of view there is absolutely no reason whatsoever to go beyond "Pay us for entrance."
They have no message of salvation for potentially new users, they have a message of "pay up" for existing users.
All this grandeur about how it is helping the press coverage of bitcoin is only to make existing users confident enough to cough up the dough.
 ::)

Lol.

Yes, the poor are so well represented in seats of power around the world.

What is this process of which you speak? Do the speakers need Photoshopping?  ;)

At least I need to select the best shots and resize them, but now I'm going to go for a walk through the city, sorry.

  Regardless of press, usually any admission fees for a badge just go to simply paying the hotel for room rental and the basic equipment needed to run these events.  Guests may or may not be paid but I doubt the organizers are lining their pockets with [bit]coin here.

  I'm sure media will show up in a few days' time.  People need time to process footage.

The Conference was well attended by over 300 bitcoin enthusiasts from all over the world!

Unfortunately the Internet connection really sucked, so most people spent the time networking and meeting everyone in person.  The speakers were good, but the networking and meeting other bitcoiners was by far the better use of the time here.

I enjoyed meeting Vladimir and Mihai from Bitcoin Magazine, Josh from Butterfly Labs, Nejc from Bitstamp, Ben From BlockChain.info, Henry and Roni from Bittiraha.fi, James from GLBSE, and many many more.

If you think the conference is all about the organizers or the speakers, you are missing the point completely.

I agree completely!
My reason for going was mainly to meet interesting and smart people and to network with fellow bitcoiners and the conference was great for this.

Not a crazy idea at all. The poor in industrialized countries with strong governments are far more protected from the rich then you might think. No more slavery for example, or indentured servitude in western countries, or companies with small private militias killing their workers. All not so distant history examples.

I should also add the Conference was great. The lack of internet sucked, but I think in the end it was nice to have people focusing on meeting other people in person rather then checking email. Excellent event!

Right! Now the slaves are paid, and the police who kill the workers are now publicly funded, but controlled by private interest. Much better!

hahaha, I didn't say they have MUCH more protection by the government, just that there exists some. For example, you can't kill one of your workers anymore arbitrarily with violence. Whether or not you can work them to death while letting them handle deadly chemicals without proper protection....well that's something for your surviving relatives to sue in court about.

Thats true.

And incidentally, so many people and especially Libertarians confuse "the state" with the government, which is only one of the
forces within the state. You shouldn't forget that legislative and especially jurisdiction can and will effectively protect the weaker
members of the state, even if there seems to be massive "public interest" turning against them.


We shouldn't forget further, that tyranny, mafia, manipulation and exploitation aren't created by "evil forces", they are just natural altogether. There will always be yet another twist, which creates yet another twist. Erecting something for the better is uttermost against nature, and is constantly endangered to turn back into tyranny itself.


In the end it boils down to realizing that the state isn't about "them" (the government) --
rather the state is us, amongst others, and we shouldn't stop trying to convince those others  ;)

This leaves out the simple fact that in the past 100 years, the power of states and governments have been responsible for the deaths of well over 150 million people:

The Hemoclysm (http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/atrox.htm)

Centralized power is and always has been an extreme danger to humanity. I have belief in the fact that decentralization will continue to be an evolutionary trait of human societies.

You mean the state protects the rich from the poor?

If so, I would say that you are both right.  Without a state, there is a cyclic loop whereby the rich enslave the poor until they've had enough and break out the pitch-forks.  The one thing one rarely sees in such a world is 'freedom' except in the most primitive hunter/gatherer societies (which are deeply 'commie' to their core since that's the most effective survival setup in such an environment.  Your typical Libertarian would last a matter of days in one if he stuck to his principles.)

While I feel that most stated degenerate over time (with mine..the US...being a poster child for the phenomenon) I do see very distinct advantages to having one and having it work as well as can be hoped for...For the good of the poor, the rich, and those in between.  Clearly having a state and having a fair degree of 'freedom' are not mutually exclusive, but it is just as clear that a balance is hard to achieve on an ongoing basis.

Stallman was there? I would have went out of my way to attend if i'd known that, would love to meet the guy.

I agree there has been a lack of press coverage, and online coverage, just as there was last year, and certainly this is an opportunity missed.  I could not go to all the talks and that's regrettable.

I was there and I can tell you, I felt the speakers were in the main awesome, I really enjoyed meeting and talking to people that I know online. It was a great experiance which will stay with me for a long time.

I was not at last years conference, and for a while I didn't get it. To experience it you need to come to it!! I also happen to belive that bitcoin conferences like this are a fairly transitory thing - the way things are going, in 5 years time bittcoin will be way too big to have this style of conference.

Having said that I think it would be a worthwhile aim for the next one if video cameras where set up, and that evening some minimal indexing and editing was done, and the aim was to have talks on line by next day - say within 6 hours of the end of the last talk, probably served from a specially set up server not at the hotel location. This would be a great thing to do in my opinion.


The comments about Bruce Wagner and earlier ones about Intersango I understand, but life goes on and Bitcoin is way bigger and more important than either of these two. I would, very much like to thank Amir Taaki and the other organisers for making this happen, overall I think they did a stunning job, and I am sure at times this was stressful. You know organising an international conference in your spare time is not such an easy thing.

For next year, I feel possible changes could be:
  * More online of the presentation.
  * More press and TV interface locally. No BBC report? Bah!!
  * The auctions were great fun, and I think this ought to be expanded. Its clear that a more professional approach to the auctioning would be useful, perhaps with pre registration, or at the very least your ticket comes with an auction registration number. I'd like to see this as a bigger item with more items for auction and more parties involved.
  * The stalls we had were great, but we need more of them and perhaps a separate room for "The Market" as it did interfere with talks going on in the same room.
     I think a lot could be done with the sale of bitcoin "novelties"

Once again I want to say Amir, thank you for doing this.

Nefario found one (in other thread): http://www.vice.com/en_uk/read/printable-guns-grey-matters-and-masked-hackers

lol, the guy goes there after hearing about buying drugs, guns, explosives on silkroad.

First thing he sees is a guy that wants you to be able to print guns.

Yeah...

"omg they want to make guns, it's dangerous  :o"

/facepalm

Just FYI: Streaming was impossible since the WIFI (ofcourse) was loaded and would not make up for a highish quality stream.
What do you want with 400~ computer people at one place. It would not suprise me if the hotel guests where complaining there internet sucked that weekend.

London conference, uk hasn't even got a functioning exchange, I'm tying to trade using bitcoins and cant even sell them. I must be missing something, not quite cutting edge more blunt spoon  ???

Maybe you're not trying hard enough. :D I had a handful of trades during the weekend, most of which came through https://localbitcoins.com/

I see, this is face to face with cash ? The profit on the stuff I sell is so slim, to cash my bitcoins by siting in a coffee shop with a red carnation waiting for a face to face would blow any profit out of the water  ::) it's true I haven't looked into it closely as of yet I just need bitcoins to cash in a couple of mouse clicks

You are missing something:  Bitcoin is still VERY young.

Come on! This is a laughingstock. It's a fricking technology conference. They should be able to stream this thing live!

Need to move to the US  ;D Wait hang on ..... I think not  ::) working exchanges should be pretty high on the to-do list

On whose priority list?

I concur that that is a significant danger.
 

My suspicion (and observation) is that mastering and controlling technology is much more realistic for the rich/powerful than the poor.  In order for the 'poor' to make good use of the information and technology available to them things would have to get pretty bad for them, and a majority probably simply lack the native abilities to do so effectively no matter what their incentive.  Happily it would not take a straight 'majority' to have sufficient impact to produce a reasonable outcome though.


I appreciate your optimism but am dubious that people will leverage their potential to the necessary degree.  If they do, I suspect that doing so within the framework of a 'state' (vs. conditions of anarchy) will be both most likely to produce a good outcome and maximize 'freedom' which is high on the list of priorities for those of a range of political philosophies.

It is also worth noting something you allude to in the quoted above (I think.)  That is, that we are currently in a fairly good spot wrt 'freedom' relative to past times.  It is easy to neglect the rather atrocious conditions present in the not to distant past when it comes to 'freedom' (of speech, thought, information, etc.)  That said, in my society at least various frameworks are being put in place to clamp down on some of these so it behooves us to not let our guards down and rest on our laurels.

Nonsense, as the poor make quite effective use of mobile phones.

Gareth you should have come!  I've met everyone at BitInstant except you.

...in exactly the manner as the rich and powerful have designed.

Tell me, are more people:

 - running Carrier IQ and related technologies, or

 - flashing a custom build OS who's source is peer reviewed (not to mention the radio firmware...)