Bitcoin Forum

Yet Another Probably Discussed Idea

There are a million email clients out there. Howabout combining an email client with a bitcoin wallet that allows you to send an email with a micro bitcoin attachment? This email client could also allow you to have the option to only accept email with a bitcoin attachment as well. If the idea catches on, it could become popular with people who hate spam as spammers would have to pay for their email.

Really? Nobody else thinks this is a good idea? I know that there is not a micro-bitcoin available yet, but isn't there a sense that this could become a killer app to be able to add "postage" to email to prioritize it as first-class, second-class, etc.? This could virtually wipe out spam.

Of course the idea makes much sense.
But how to make it happen? E-Mail is not insecure because it has to be, but because the users are lazy.
You already can make happen signed mail and so not to read unsigned mail or mails of ppl you doan know (most times spam).
So where is the benefit beside spam-protection in bitmail that wont be available with pgp only?
And what is the technical concept you dream of, whats the revolution in it?

apart from that.. I think this name makes much more valuable sense in the way "sending a private_key for some bitcoins etc. via cryptet mail".

These are great points, vv01f. Most email users aren't so much lazy as non-technical. They would understand the convenience of postage for securing email and would be willing to use nano-payments. Given that the "postage" itself would be a private key, it could also serve to send larger payments via email as well. I'm not sure what you mean about a revolution for a technical concept, but bitcoin needs concepts that exploits its strengths over traditional currencies i.e. micro-payments and no charge-backs.

by revolutionary I meant the innovation.. the whats new, the whats better on that case than on other solutions for the same manner (e.g. gpg with some gui)
it just has to be better, then it has a chance to be used by "normal" ppl.

do you already have some mental sketch what it could look like? I myself are still a bit confused about that idea, as I doan see an advantage to gpg for now.

the other usecase, I call it "money order" (traditionally by letter for many hundred years now) I can imagine much better.

http://www.hashcash.org/

This is much better if your objective is to cut on spam.

Good idea!

Start making it!

OK, so this idea has been around a couple decades. I guess if it was a good idea, it would have been done by now.

I think it is a much better idea than somehow attaching btc to an email, as far as cutting down on spam is concerned.
Sometimes, ideas don't make it to the masses, not because the idea isn't good in itself, but because the masses aren't ready.

This is awesome, I would definitely use this. Even just 4fun.

Even more it could be anonymous and independent. I suggest using a blockchain merged into bitcoin like namecoin is planning to do right from the start, so there would be no disadvantage mining in it (as for lost opportunity for bitcoins).
There could be lots of services employed in this matter, from usenet to ip (tor replacement srsly it sucks) over filesharing and even ospf routing for community networks.

This could become big... I all depends on the development of bitcoin popularity and the acceptance for such secondary currencies with a specific use and the general adaption within the community.   :)


PS: Is is right that the idea is about "A decentralized email system in the spirit of namecoin?"

I like the idea of hashcash, I think it deserves to be supported by popular mailing software. I also like the idea of using bitcoins to filter out spambots. I think it could be used in many different applications, not only email. Sometimes it could be easier for users to send bitcoins than to enter the illegible capthas :)