Dammit, don't steal my lines!

Been using that one for better than 20 years now

and @Rassah, I loved that write up. Very similar to how I see things going. I haven't time right now, but I want to respond in detail to that.

Untrue. They could do almost every subassembly prior to receiving the chips.

C'mon now, who hasn't taken out the LARGE cluebat once in a while? It's hard not to feed the trolls. Especially when they make it personal.

And I like books!

-Kevin Biomech

I voted for legalization, as "other" is too vague. Also, I consider the legalization of marijuana a step in the right direction, particularly, rolling back the state.

Unfortunately, legalization opens the door to taxation. That's less egregious than jailing a guy for smoking a joint, or killing him because he "resisted" (which in modern American Government Speak" means not immediately pissing yourself when the pig cop ball licking scumbag Law Enforcement Officer shows up). It is a less violent solution than the current mess. In a poll conducted nationwide about 15 years ago, 1/3rd of those polled said they had tried marijuana at some point in the United Socialist States of America. Extrapolating that to the general population, it would outstrip any other recreational drug except alcohol and tobacco, and equals them. So obviously the "general" sentiment, whatever expressed where big brother is listening, is against regulation, or at least prohibition. (I cannot find the source of that poll right now, but it was conducted by gallup for NORML. It's out there, I'm sure. )

The so-called war on drugs irritates me on many levels. La Mota just being one of them. But it is probably the most egregious as it affects all sectors of society. Even sectors who CLAIM to be in favor of sustainable industries. I'll focus for a moment on just one industry, but an extremely important one in the modern world. I'll leave out the other thousands of uses of the plant l.cannabis sativa for the moment.

That industry is paper. Generally, not a specific type. Paper is made primarily from wood fibers at the moment. this is a wasteful, highly polluting, expensive proposition, but the demand is such that economies of scale make it possible. I wish to note that I am not what is generally termed an environmentalist, because I believe the survival of my species is of paramount importance TO my species. That being said, I like the wild places, and I am a conservationist in the sense that I hate waste. Making paper from trees is a waste. Why?

Because it is better to make it from a more renewable resource. It takes more than a decade to replace a tree. It takes three months to replace the equivalent amount of hemp. That is just one issue. The chemicals necessary to make paper from trees are ridiculously dangerous. By making the paper from the longer more pliant hemp fibers, you eliminate several of these processes and reduce all of the others. Thus the danger, both to humans and the environment at large, is greatly reduced.

Those same long fibers make much more robust paper prodcts, so hempen cardboard, for example, is stronger than tree cardboard. Same with writing paper. Also, to get very white paper such as we have become accustomed to takes less dying. The overall costs associated with managing a forest for harvest vs. the cost of growing hemp is massively different. Hemp grows easily, almost in any climate, and contributes a great deal of oxygen to the atmosphere by comparison to trees (which do the same thing, but slower).

In this same vein, medium and high density fibers made from hemp can be used in a great deal of construction where tree lumber is currently used. These fibers can also be made from trees, and MDF is becoming commonplace for trim work already. My brother was involved in building luxury houses a few years ago, and I briefly worked for him. In million dollar houses a lot of the trim work was made from medium density fiber, rather than actual lumber, and this by the choice of the builders and buyers. It's very malleable. HDF's are suitable for structural timber, in fact are somewhat stronger in compression and tortional strength than pine or spruce, and only a little less than oak. All of these can be made from hemp as either a primary product, or a byproduct of other processes as they are with lumber. The reduction in costs ALONE demands that the idiotic laws making hemp illegal because some of us like to smoke the flowers be not only rescinded immediately, but that the people who made, enforced, and advocated such bullshit laws should stand up in public and apologize. Especially those on the so-called "left" with their constant harping on environmental issues that they neither understand nor care about.

I could go on for pages, but I shan't bother. Suffice it to say that there are thousands of uses for hemp that are not only commercially viable, but superior. Superior quality, lesser cost, more sustainability. The only thing standing between these industries and the benefits they would bring are stupid laws backed by stupid people carrying well made expensive weapons bought with YOUR money.

There was an increasingly despondent tone in his more recent posts, plus it has been his character to never be gone more than a few days.

In addition he had stated that he had a number of personal issues that needed resolving in his home. Him disappearing without even logging in is out of character, thus the concern. To this point his behaviour has been above reproach, even exemplary. For somebody like that to just vanish raises a lot of questions, but also a fair degree of tolerance because it IS out of character.

Well, someone back at page 500 was hoping the hashrate was going to be equal to the number of pages on shipping day. Just doin' my part :LoL

Ok...

I don't believe, in those hundreds of pages, that he claimed impartiality. Maybe I'm wrong, as to be honest I skipped about 50 pages after I moved, but He has always since his visit been very positive about KnC, and has flown his bias in the open. He also advised caution. Being happy with a company, or even wildly optimisitic (which he has not) isn't the same as shilling for them.

For an example, which hasn't been shown on this forum but still applies as an example, I am a fan of Glock firearms. I love 'em, I recommend them for experts (not novices), and I rarely miss an opportunity, in the correct venues, to discuss them. I'm certainly not a shill as Glock has never paid me a dime or a round. I don't have the money to buy their product currently, yet I still love the weapons. When asked for a recommendation on firearms, they are the SECOND gun I recommend, even though they are my personal favorite, due to the twitchiness of their decocker. A novice could easily shoot themsellves in the foot.

By comparison, Bitcoinorama has been very positive in his estimation of KnC, yet has consistently advised that you do NOT purchase from them in any manner that can't be reversed or legally disputed. This doesn't make sense if he's in on a scam, now does it?

I don't know what started this snit, nor do I care, but damn if you're gonna attack somebody, at least get your facts somewhat in line.

Oh, and just because I know you're gonna go there, Yeah, I like him. He was cool to me from the second day I was registered on this board, he's intelligent and easy to converse with, and he usually makes good sense.

If they did give him a miner for his efforts, he earned it. If they deliver, and he takes the job, I wish him nothing but success. My only beef with him is he got to go to Stockholm, and I didn't.

Hey again.

In light of the above (and your many efforts on the subject) do you have an opinion on Black Arrow? Pretty good prices, from what I've seen, and as of today paypal.

Also, sent you a PM.

Read the whole post. Cherry picking has it's place, but in this case is an obvious fallacy.

I see.

So, you have no cogent argument, just a dislike of non violent solutions.

There is no reasoning with the unreasonable. Since you clearly believe that no system can exist without the initiation of violence, we cannot reach a reasonable compromise.

Have a nice life, far from me.

Are you familiar with the concept of ostracism?

One scenario that has been widely accepted as valid by anarchists is that a court would be convened and the person ASKED to appear before them. Should they be found to be guilty, then a compensatory ruling would be handed down. If they failed to perform, they would be ostracized. Few, if any, people would do business with them or allow them in their lives until they at least made an effort to make the situation right.

This is not a theoretical model. It's how the Law Merchant worked during the renaissance. There was no central authority, they simply relied upon each other for compliance. It was not perfect, but it worked well for well over a century.

Do note that this is a model of COMPENSATORY justice rather than punitive. The penal forms don't work well. They generally end up punishing the victim at least as much as the aggressor.

Also, within such a system, if a person killed another they would need to appear before such a court and prove that it was indeed self defense, or face permanent ostracism. Humans in general do not do well when isolated completely from companionship. This is a working model.

The NAP is not a suicide pact, it's basic tenet is that you do not INITIATE force, not that you never use force.

Don't paint a caricature without at least learning what it is you're caricaturing.   

I'll agree with that. I in fact often lament that. The modern concept seems to be, at least in the USA, to keep people in a toddler like state, minus the curiousity, until they reach age 18. Then they are expected to know all the shit that neither their parents nor their "teachers" bothered to teach them. Working in food service, I have seen the result of this again and again. You get a supposed adult that needs supervision to tie their shoes.

In most of our preceding history as a species, regardless of what (if any) system of rulership applied, parents or a master (in the sense of master craftsmen) taught their children the value of and details of work. A farmer's son likely became a farmer, or at least new HOW long before he was an adult. I actually think this a far better model. Given modern communication, we can even take this many steps further. Kids coming online at 18 should be hyper competent rather than the tabula rasa piles of goo that they often are.

In my own background, I had parents who gave a shit. I have a wide ranging skill set and a burning curiousity still, at age 44! I do regret not specializing at anything at an earlier age, as the paper makes it easier to make money, but I do think that ALL children should have salable skills before they leave home. And not just "would you like fries with that?" (FWIW, foodservice is an extremely difficult job, but not very intellectual and not profitable anymore unless you are the owner.)

My son is six years old, nearly seven. It is my intention to have him educated in at least two salable trades by the time he's sixteen. One will be welding, because I think everyone should know how. The other we're working on, but probably something to do with farming because he loves it. I think this will give him a huge boost in life. If he chooses to go on to college and learn even more? More power to him. I see it as my duty to prepare him for a better opportunity at life than I had. I did alright, he should be able to do better because I can show him which mistakes I made, thus removing those mistakes from the ones he has to make. (doesn't mean he won't, I didn't always heed my dad's advice. Sometimes I was right, too, but still...)

In the non money making skills, he WILL know how to safely use firearms, knives, swords, and his body as a weapon. This will give him a better defense than anything on offer from even the two or three sincere politicians, and the confidence to hold his head up in any situation. *I* hate physical conflict, but I am not afraid of it, because I have the free man's mind set. Don't start shit, I won't either. But if it's you or me? It's YOU. That's the NAP in a nutshell. Or the Gadsden Flag, for that matter.

Yes, I'm quite familiar with Zubrin. I have The Case for Mars on my desk I think it's a good start. By starships,I don't mean FTL, though I don't believe it impossible. Something that would push at about .9 C would get us to the nearest stars, even though "on ship" culture would probably vary radically from the land bound due to time dilation.

I don't agree on terroirsm being the biggest risk. Well, not small scale terrorism anyway. Nukes are a terror weapon. But the big nuclear arsenals still exist, and they are still targeted on the various perceived enemies of each country that has them. The plans remain in place to destroy everything. I actually think the focus on guerilla warfare (what the modern state terms terrorism) detracts from that awareness, which in some ways heightens the danger.

I'm not on my own computer right now, so I can't watch the video till later. I'll get back to ya on that

That has always been the beauty and horror of sci-fi. Some of it is pure fantasy, but the really good stuff is rooted in science and the extrapolation thereof.

While I like Space Opera, my favorite authors have always been the "hard" writers like Robert Anson Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Ben Bova, G. Harry Stein, C.M. Kornbluth, and others of that ilk.

Growing up in the seventies and eighties, I (and a great many of my generation) expected the world to end in a nuclear fireball long ago. By some miracle, it hasn't happened.

That being said, the actions taken by the sons of bitches who rule my nation are doing their damnedest to make it happen. Our only saving grace is that their power greed is matched in at least equal part by their stupidity. About the only good thing about a democratic republic is that the elected are mostly idiots. Powerful idiots, but idiots nonetheless.

What I fear above all is that at some point a SMART politician who is mad as a hatter gets the nuclear control codes. The modern Pol is a power hungry sob, but not too bright. They don't seem to understand that deliberately sowing hatred and provocation of every potential enemy has drastic and long lasting consequences. One who did, and could unite enough of the haters, would be the most dangerous thing that earth could face.

This, aside from all my romantic notions, is why I think that we, as a species, need to develop starships. Our survival as a race, Imao, depends on us getting a viable population far enough offworld that one madman with access to nuclear weapons can't pull the plug on us.

The technology is in our grasp. We've had the technical ability to build starships since I was born, other than the necessary computer power for long range navigation. That now exists on most everyone's desktop. At this point, all we lack is the will to do it. Nations are not going to, as it's not in their interest to have free colonies offworld. They might get notions of independence, after all.

But the corporations, whatever you think of them, do have the power if they had the will. I suspect that men such as Sir Richard Branson might have the will, and they certainly have the power.

My father's generation was the first to see a time when humanity had the power to destroy itself, and most life on the planet. That is the legacy we have, and which we must undo. Obviously, we can't put the genie back in the bottle. But we can go forward and find a way to live where these terrible weapons are no longer a threat to absolutely everything.

There is a term in sci-fi and some philosophy that applies. The Nuclear Decision Threshold. The point at which a species that has developed nuclear weapons finds a way past their awful power, or perishes. We have been on that threshold for 63 years. Not a long time, but the threat looms large. And while it is not on everyone's minds and lips as it was just two decades ago, the threat has not diminished. If anything, it has increased because America thinks they can win a nuclear exchange, and there are several new players.

Conventional wars are horrible, but they are nothing compared to a full scale nuclear exchange. Because of the time frames involved, the idea of a limited nuclear exchange is pure madness. If one country launches, the others will too. They have no choice as the system sits. "riding it out" is simply not an option. It's launch on detection, or lose. But there are no possible winners, so it's lose period. Mutually Assured Destruction. When the USSR and the USA were playing their games of brinkmanship, that was always on the minds of the leaders and the proles. Now, it's not so much, especially in the public eye. That, in my opinion, is a more dangerous state of affairs than the two "superpowers" eyeballing each other over gunsights.

Wasn't intended to be rude, he said it himself that he had never designed an ASIC before.

I think that says a lot about the talent and dedication of the man, actually.

We of course don't know. However, their recent announcement that the chips do indeed hash faster than advertised would tend to indicate that they had sample chips to work with.

Also, both BFL and Bitfury (regardless of their morals, which seem to be on opposite poles) are essentially amateurs, whereas the KnC/OrSOC team are ASIC engineers. The only thing new to them on this, aside from the venture itself, is the Application that is Specific to the Integrated Circuit. Seasoned professionals generally get better results for the effort involved than amateurs. No offense intended toward Bitfury, as that is one TALENTED amateur.

I can't.

KnC, HashFast, Cointerra, Alydian, Bitfury, yeah. BFL? By the time they deliver, based on past performance, ASICS will be at 14nm and the best process available will be at 5nm. Quantum tunneling will be solved with 1nm gates.

Not saying your concern is wrong, I'm just sayin' that particular dog ain't gonna hunt.

Well, not always. I had a post deleted by the mods a couple days ago for swinging a club at Eve. Usually I can resist the trolls, but that one gets on my nerves. But I do try. And thanks for the kind words. I'll write up a couple of things and send them your way in a bit. I have to find my notes, and perhaps should start a thread on the subject.

Actually, OrSOC is the older respected company. KnC was formed specifically for this venture.

Before I get jumped, that's for the sake of accuracy. Had I been able, I would have bet on this horse, and I think they will deliver nearly on time. Those who are trumpeting Bitfury? Well, you're right, but they had a bit of delay in their deliveries as well. Yeah, they made some of them on time and as advertised. They missed by a day or two on some of them as well. Up to a week on some of Megabigpower's orders. Does this make them a scam? No, just hit a speed bump. I suspect it will be the same with KnC. I think they are likely to deliver a fair number of their day one orders on time, and be a bit delayed (a few days) on the rest. While that may be either good or bad on the people who had bitbets (depending on how you bet) it doesn't make them a scam or unreliable. Or even untruthful, since they have stated that they are on track for their promised deliveries, not that they are absolutely certain.

Throughout their public history, KnC has been pretty transparent and very conservative in their estimates and promises, with some optimistic hints. From a purely marketing standpoint, they have perhaps been a bit TOO transparent and TOO conservative. I find that refreshing, though they might want to hire PR people for the next generation

It's a great milestone. If they get the chips packaged on the timeline they've stated (tight, but possible), then they may surprise me and actually make all of their september orders by the 30th. In the event that they are a day or two late, I will not be screaming about it, as it's STILL better than anyone but Bitfury, and on par with them.

I hope you get your apology. As you are aware, I was in your corner from the beginning. You took the time to talk to and educate a newbie. Plus, I got no issue with enthusiasm. May you mine a mint, sir!

In the longer term, I've had some ideas on the things we discussed regarding wider adoption of bitcoin. May be re-inventing the wheel, but if you're interested in my thoughts, fire me a PM.