Bitcoin Forum

Hello. So ive been hearing about the incidental recentralisation of the mining network, and although I am not mining and don't have money for it, my newb question is: am I doing anything to contribute to network security by just running the Qt instead of using a light wallet?
Cheers.

Definitively not to network security. If you can keep running Qt 24/7 for many months you can help other new nodes download blockchain

Fair enough. Thanks. Are there any other reasons I should run Qt?

AFAIK by downloading the full client you essential get a vote whenever a new version of bitcoin is released. Your vote is whether you decide to download and use the new client, or reject it and continue with the old one (because you don't agree with the new developments or whatever).

But what it changes? Using (or not) new version by miners can change a lot, but what can change a node?

I downloaded it anyway because it allowed me to use Armory and because I believe in decentralised democracy!

It not only helps other nodes downloading the blockchain,
it's also relaying transactions.

Check out NXT then.

Bitcoin is super, but when it comes to decentralization it failed due to the mining. Mining is based on proof of work, and working is always more efficient when done on a larger scale, hence why the mining is more and more centralized.

NXT is based on proof of stake, in order to validate transactions you don't need proof of work, only proof of stake, and since everybody that has coins has a stake, everybody can validate. And since you don't need lots of processing power you can do it with a simple pc for ever.

Interesting... Then how are the coins originated? I will read.

Not specially but you contribute to the new ones downloading the multi-GB blockchain and for broadcasting transactions for blocks to later be carried by miners (I think).

All the coins were created upon inception, 1 billion for NXT, and were bought by 72 people that believed in the project and payed btc for it.

Some of them own 50 million coins, but most have sold a considerable amount already. Here you can see the top accounts:
http://87.230.14.1/nxt/nxt.cgi?action=34

There will be no new coins created, so no inflation. Miners are not miners but called forgers and do not mine for new coins but only validate transactions and secure the network, they are payed with the transaction fees that is currently 1 nxt per transaction.

Very likely transaction costs will remain very low compared to bitcoin because validating transactions and securing the network does not need any processing power, just coins and simple pc. Forgers therefore will bid up the price of coins if they want a bigger stake of the transaction fees, so the coin holders win instead of the asic companies.  


NXT is still very early phase, you can only buy it at dgex.com and another much smaller exchange. This is because the code is brand new (in contrast to most other altcoins that are forks) and existing exchanges cannot easily implement the coin for trading.

I don't download this because I believe in decentralised stuff !