Bitcoin Forum

ok guys this is my first post, and it may sound very noob to some people, and it's probably been asked before but still:

i am not that rich, but iwish to join a public bitcoin pool.yet when i start up my bitminter client, it asks this:

2013.12.22 [08:45]  No devices to start! Please connect mining hardware to USB port(s) and use devices menu to probe for them.

do i need to plug something in and if so how much is it?

i really wish that i don't need to plug anything in, i just wish to join a public server with.

thanks guys if you can help!

-Naked jedi (dont ask about the name

hello there fellow upcoming miner  8)
you get this plug-in msg because the program is looking for your ASIC or FPGA mining device
take a clue here
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/bitcoin-mining-make-money,3514-5.html

so CPU & GPU are useless for btc mining or for any SHA-256 coin,
in general CPUs are good for Quark or prime coin.

if you have a decent Ati gpu there is a light for some scrypt coins
have a good day :)

Hi NakedJedi - I'm in a similar boat - I'd suggest you start mining litecoin to see how it works, then spend some time around the forum and try mining some of the new altcoins that interest you.
From what I've seen so far, overall, if you want to make money from crypto you are probably best to buy and hold some litecoin, bitcoin and some new alt coins as a speculative move, but I see the appeal of wanting to mine.
Just realise the serious guys have 1000s of times the mining power you have and getting faster everyday.

Like others have mentioned, it's probably not worth your time and effort to mine bitcoins on a home computer. You're better off buying bitcoins on exchanges. You can try purchasing an ASIC if you really want a chance to mine a bitcoin, but those can be pretty expensive.

Here's a list of hardware comparisons if you're interested:
https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Mining_hardware_comparison

Best of luck!