Bitcoin Forum

How many of you hail from Portland, OR? This would be a useful number to have if I'm to start trying to get any local businesses to accept bitcoins.

When I'm in the US I'm in Portland and I think it's a great city for this type of thing.

I live in Portland and would be thrilled to spend Bitcoins on things locally.

Obligatory Portland reference : http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1919

My brother is quite the geek, and I think he'd be very interested in this if I told him about it. He lives in Portland.

Portlander reporting, I've seen you pop up a few times on Bitcoin maps Ryan. I'd love to buy some stuff with bitcoins, Not sure how you or I would handle it tho.

About to move to Portland.  Not sure I'd part with my bitcoins though.

Yeah, I operate one of the grinders.

Whoah, looks like I got some more replies on this thing! Awesome.  ;D


Well, we could meet in person and exchange, if either of us have things the other wants. I was also thinking of starting a Meetup group and then using the leverage to get a local coffee shop or microbrewery to let us buy their products with bitcoins. From there we can start expanding the local bitcoin economy. My only issue right now is one of time. I tend to take on too many projects. My girlfriend was just complaining to me this morning about never getting to see me or really talk to me because I'm always either off doing things or working on my laptop.  :(

But if I can pare away my biggest time sucker (getting my mining cluster to stay up for more than 12 hours at a time) as well as the most pressing of my backlogged client projects, I'll definitely have to get something going here.

I was born in Portland, but I moved away. Some day I will buy me a big house way up in the West Hills.

Let's organize a meetup!  I'd like to see pictures of your mining setup, ryepdx.  Maybe you can give us a description of what you've done.  We could try meeting next week.  What if we tried Tuesday, 6/14, 6pm at the Green Dragon on SE 10th and Belmont?

Count me in.

Our first meeting.  Keep Portland Weird Mining!

http://pdxbitcoinjamboree.eventbrite.com

Awesome.  See you there.

Great choice of venue. Never been there myself, but the literary reference is rather apropos.

I'll try to get some photos of my mining operation posted. I have some old photos on my phone, but I've added three cards and a couple PSUs since taking them. Still trying to get things stable, too. Those things draw so much power I'm going to have to get another circuit put in to power them all. I keep tripping the other three available to me. :-p

Has anyone contacted The Green Dragon to see if they'll take bitcoins? I thought about doing it myself, but figured it might be easier with more of a group present. That and it kept slipping my mind. :-/

Wow! This place is packed! We should've come up with some way of IDing each other. I'm the guy in the brown long-sleeved shirt, jeans, and brown boots, if anyone else is checking the forums about now...

Edit
Look! I made a sign! http://www.flickr.com/photos/60160670@N03/5834225937 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/60160670@N03/5834225937)

I hope it is not too little too late...

Edit 2
Half a beer later and I'm wandering around flashing that sign to everyone like I'm some kind of idiot. "Are YOU into Bitcoins?" :-p

I'm not in Portland but feel free to stake out a spot on the Meetup community map. (http://www.meetup.com/bitcoincryptocurrency/)

Apparently Tuesdays at The Green Dragon are Tropical Tuesdays, as I overheard a patron say. Wear a Hawaiian shirt and get a free beer. Also, finally found the meetup. Yay!

I never managed to find the meetup!  I was sitting out back with a Bitcoin sign stuck in my hat band.  Oh well---next time.

Oh no! When did you arrive? I totally came by about five minutes early. Wandered around for about half an hour trying to find the group before finally making that sign. Finally sat on the bench out back for a while, then did a circuit around the whole place holding the sign out in front of me before staking out a position by the door. Where out back were you?

We should definitely organize another one to give people who couldn't find us another chance and to perhaps draw in some new blood. We actually ended up gaining another member at our meetup. Someone who was curious about Bitcoin approached me while I was standing by the door. He'd apparently just gotten off a long flight during which he'd found out about bitcoins. Awesome timing for him, methinks.

I also found out today that my girlfriend's ex-boyfriend is now mining bitcoins, so he might be interested in attending the meetup as well. He's only pulling 49Mh/s, but if the bitcoin bug has bit him hard enough he may be interested in bitcoin activities beyond mining.

Wow, lots of folk from Portland. I myself am from Bend.

Professional computer geek. My buddy and I found out about bitcoins about a week ago or so. Don't have the hardware for mining. Still super interested in the concept though.

Awesome. Nice to meet you!  :)

Wondering if anyone would care to buy (with BTC of course) some Bitcoin Business cards that I'm going to make and bring to our next PDX Bitcoin meeting?

Great way to spread the word about BTC.  If there is enough posts I'll order a 1000 cards, and sell them at cost (BTC to USD).  By the time we meet up and get them out to people hopefully the client will be in better shape and be more user friendly.

 :P

Please PM me if you are interested in buying some business cards for BTC.  I'll post the design here if I get a few people who are interested in the Portland area.

Next meeting is on the 6th of July.

http://pdxbitcoinjamboree.eventbrite.com/

 :D

Here in Portland as well. If I am in town I would be happy to join a meet up.

What merchants in the Portland are are a good target to see if they will accept bitcoin? I have started talking to the guys at Webbers Crossing diner in the SW area. They are considering it. It may help if some other customers asked about bitcoins. Could be interesting to be the first merchant in Portland to accept bitcoin.

osmosis

.

Damn i wish I was in Portland.

Feel free to vote this up on reddit.

http://www.reddit.com/r/Portland/comments/k15s8/portland_digital_cash_bitcoin_meetup_on_sept_14th/

I am from around Portland, so its not far =P

I've had to miss the last few meetups.  Can we organize another?

watching...

Sure, what date do you want to suggest. Last last one was only a few people. We also need to know what part of town is best for everyone so that the most people can show up.

BTW...I have been talking to a farm just outside of Portland, and they are interested in selling the meat and milk they have for bitcoins. Let me know if you are interested.

Any merchants, food trucks, etc in Portland area that accept bitcoins? An actual fixed location with a bitcoins accepted here sign?

msg me if you want to coordinate efforts to getting Portland merchants on board. I have some leads.

And make sure to mention to the merchants about Portland100, a group consisting of no less than 100 Bitcoin users who've pledge to spend Bitcoin at establishments that accept Bitcoin. Now, who in Portland is willing to start and maintain such a list?

.

I think instead just asking merchants to accept it, a good idea would be to ask them to accept it, and come by on a regular basis offering to buy the bitcoins off of them for cash. If bitcoin exchangers were stopping by the food carts willing to take bitcoins off of merchants, then merchants would have no qualms about taking the coins.

So here is how I would pitch it if I were a portland local (I am in Beaverton, so I am not in portland enough to do it)

* Read
https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/How_to_accept_Bitcoin,_for_small_businesses
and create a sign from the image on that page

* Stop by a merchant and ask if they have an android phone. I might move on if they don't, because I don't know a better handheld solution than Bitcoin Wallet for android, but feel free to chime in iphone users.

* Give a little pitch for Bitcoin, but try not to get too technical. Basically, state it is a type of money that can be transferred via their smartphone. See if they will install the software on their phone, and give them a bitcoin (wait till they have the full blockchain first... wait times are embarrassing). Try to act out a simulation with them so they can work out the kinks with you.

* Pull out your little sign, and ask them if they would run an experiment with it up for a little while. Give them your phone number and email, and be willing to act as tech support.

* Come by once in a while and collect bitcoins from them for cash. They need to feel that they can rely on this. If you feel you can make a little profit, go for it, but don't undermine the cause.

* Set up additional merchants, and make your rounds once a week. Create a web page or just a text document listing all of the locations in town that accept it, and print this out. See if the merchant will also have this next to their sign (after they are established). This can be a handy directory that will make consumers realize how usable this currency is.

So simple, an SA troll caveman can dot it. Great bullet points. Remember, folks, this will work in any city. Whether is be Portland100, LA100 or Houston100, having a core user base would add credence to the approach, thereby improving the success rate.

I am continuing this discussion (and added bullets) on this thread:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=53401.0
As I realized it is not very particular to Portland. I just think a lot about all those food carts, and how easy it would be to go down the line and convert them all. Especially if one does it and gets business because of it.

That is great. I'll have to stop in and buy something. For a non-new-age person that might be tricky :)

No it won't! If they sell New Age music, purchase Kitaro's Light of the Spirit as a gift to someone you know is into New Age music. Or candles, or incense, or a book. Once you walk into the store, some item will be calling out to you--literally.

I am checking with them to see if they have any unscented beeswax candles. If so, I am there.

If I lived in Portland, or there about, and the store wasn't that far away, I would just visit it and look around. I'm sure some product will call my name, whereupon I'll pick it up and carry it to the counter. When asked if I'm paying cash or credit (I'm thinking the teller will forget to ask about Bitcoin until they become more accustom into doing so), I would reply, "Bitcoin". Wave my droid over the teller's droid, and away I go. And, BTW, when you do this, don't forget to videotape it.

Oregon to the heart!

They thankfully don't have much of this ...

http://hotchickswithdouchebags.com/

always good for a laugh - oh, the rest of america

Another Portland person here.

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I've done the same for Vancouver: http://vanbtc.ca/

If any of you are ever up this way, drop me a line.

r r r r r r resurrection!

http://www.meetup.com/Portland-Bitcoin-Group/events/131192192/

See you there!

NICE!