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701  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Feature Request for Exchanges on: July 31, 2011, 06:52:21 PM
When buying bitcoins, I want to be able to express an order in terms of the price I'm willing to pay and the amount of dollars I want to spend (with an option to spend all dollars in my account).  The exchange should figure out for me what amount of bitcoins that is.  I'm tired of having to calculate this by hand (which is further complicated by the trade fee).
702  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Announcement from Dwolla CEO on Blog (today) on: July 30, 2011, 04:36:51 AM
It's very simple really...Dwolla is selling something they can't deliver.
703  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Bitcoins will become Betamax if we don't do THIS on: July 25, 2011, 11:58:23 PM
In addition to that, people need to keep searching for that critical niche where bitcoin's unique design gives it a clear advantage and address that market.

But for goodness sake, don't run out and try to start one of these businesses.  Just because you have a great hammer, it doesn't mean you should run out and start a construction business.
?

Smiley  ...the point I was trying to make is that it's great if bitcoin is useful for some business, but apply bitcoin to that business, don't necessarily try and go into that business yourself but focus instead on enabling the existing businesses with bitcoin.  Sell your great new hammer to construction businesses rather than start your own construction business.
704  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Bitcoins will become Betamax if we don't do THIS on: July 25, 2011, 10:05:52 PM
Elections are for politicians, leaders make things happen.  I don't think a "business lead" is what's needed (and really, I abhor that "business" vs "technical" type casting BS)...no committees, no votes.  We just need people with good ideas and initiative to run with it.

So, let's discuss that.  I really don't like the sort of undisciplined, in your face kind of marketing approach that many are advocating (plastering bitcoin here or there, etc).  And, really, the software is not quite there yet for a mass audience.  So any marketing efforts should take that into consideration and evolve as the software evolves.  The worst thing from a marketing perspective is having a lot of people get exposed to it too early and rather than recognize its potential, they can't see past its shortcomings (stolen wallets, poor exchange security, regulatory uncertainty, use for illegal trade, etc...there are plenty of shortcomings). 

I think if you want to expand the use of bitcoin, you're better off focusing energy on the people who are already sold on the potential of bitcoin, but for one reason or another can't quite make it work or aren't able to use it as much as they'd like.  These are the people that are already trying to look past the current shortcomings, and if not for one or two missing things, would be using bitcoin or using bitcoin more often.  This will address key pain points for many people.

In addition to that, people need to keep searching for that critical niche where bitcoin's unique design gives it a clear advantage and address that market.  But for goodness sake, don't run out and try to start one of these businesses.  Just because you have a great hammer, it doesn't mean you should run out and start a construction business.
705  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: What is the BEST Bitcoin article? - I want to spread the word... on: July 21, 2011, 05:08:47 AM
Be careful how you present bitcoin to people.  Most people don't like to be sold on something and will put up resistance if you try to push bitcoin in a very direct manner.  People are much more receptive when they feel they've reached an epiphany on their own and with bitcoin, anyone that is reasonably intelligent and somewhat literate will ultimately arrive at the same conclusions as you have.  Think more in terms of the movie Inception.  

Bitcoin doesn't actually need any more "marketing" in my opinion.  We already have a self sustaining and growing economy.  People just need to try and spend their bitcoins a little more often than they sell them on the exchanges.  That alone is all that's necessary to keep expanding the bitcoin economy.  If people do that, then bitcoin will be impossible for people to ignore.
706  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Bitcoin and inherent value on: July 20, 2011, 10:57:07 PM
But nothing is saying that those people aren't cashing out. You as an individual did a great job in passing off your coins without selling them, but the problem isn't with buyers. It's with retailers. Personally, I made an investment in creating a Bitcoin-based business because I believe there is something there in the future worth striving towards. Right now we're nowhere close, but every little bit helps. My storefront should be ready by september, and my plan is to sell something with real value (as opposed to just stickers and patches that say "BITCOINS") at a pegged rate to Bitcoins. I think the feedback I receive from that will be very telling.

Correct, nothing is saying that those merchants aren't cashing out and in fact many will need to because the merchants will need to pay expenses for which they'll require dollars.  However, at least some commerce in bitcoin (aside from exchange) has taken place.  If the merchants then try and pay some of their suppliers with bitcoin, the use of bitcoin grows by that much more.  This is the way to make bitcoin a success IMO.  At bit-pay.com we're trying use bitcoin as much as possible to pay vendors we use.

Glad to hear you'll be opening a storefront!
707  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Bitcoin and inherent value on: July 20, 2011, 09:13:14 PM
Personally, I think the future of Bitcoins is dependent on convincing people to stop cashing out.

For people that are unsure about the success of BTC (and don't want to or aren't able to invest much in buying coins), but would like to see it succeed, here's what you can do to help bitcoin:

First, don't ever sell bitcoins on the exchanges.  Instead, look hard for ways you can spend it on things you need.  There are several market places that are already operational and there are various goods and services that people are willing to provide in the marketplace forums.  People will even let you pick things on amazon or barnes and noble, pay for them in BTC and then ship the goods to you (I've done this myself before).

And, when you need to buy something, always ask yourself first whether you can buy it with bitcoin.  If you can, go buy some bitcoins from an exchange and then buy the product or service using bitcoins.  It may be a bit of a pain right now, but it's getting much easier and the selection of goods much better.  And enduring a little bit of hassle in the short term will go a long way to helping bitcoin succeed (and help make it much easier to use in the future).

708  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: idea for namecoin on: July 19, 2011, 12:01:45 PM
Yes, I think you can basically register anything you want (it's basically a trustworthy distributed key-value dictionary).  But the emphasis right now is on DNS entries, but if namecoin wants to make something really novel, forget ip addresses and DNS, decouple websites from the physical topology.  It might even be useful to facilitate IPv6 transition.  Also, using hashes for website distribution makes it very convenient to verify you're really looking at what the publisher produced.
709  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / idea for namecoin on: July 19, 2011, 11:48:47 AM
A very simple one...instead of a mapping of names to ip addresses (which would be usually be very static), instead map a name to a content address (like a bittorrent address or a git SHA1).  You create your website (or whatever) and publish all of the content based on their content address (when browsers support it directly, links could even be based on the content address).  When you need to update your site, you update the namecoin entry to map to the new content address.

This can decouple websites and other content from the physical topology of the internet.
710  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: How would bitcoins for businesses work? on: July 14, 2011, 02:02:27 AM
How would you use bitcoins for a business if someone who has access to the company's wallet is able to just take it and drain it without anyone knowing?

Say Walmart starts accepting bitcoins, they pay for new stores with bitcoins, pay vendors, pay for merchandise, etc.

Their accountants are writing checks, keeping track of purchases etc.

If one of the accountants decides to just write himself a check for a buttload, there is a paper trail and the person is prosecuted.

If Walmart is using bitcoins, the accountant takes the bitcoin wallet, makes a copy, takes it to the nearest library and uses it to send to hundreds of new bitcoin addresses of his own, and he is rich.

How is this prevented?

Investigate the scripting capabilities of bitcoin transactions.  You can create transactions that require multiple signatures for the recipient to spend them.  The receiving department of a company could forward incoming payments in such a way that any further spending would require the signature of the CEO, CFO and a number of others as desired.  The current client has no UI to create such transactions, but the scripting capabilities in the block chain allow it.  This feature enables many other interesting possibilities.
711  Bitcoin / Project Development / Re: www.btcbalance.net - View your balance easily online. on: July 13, 2011, 11:43:45 PM
Here's a nodejs script I use to check my balance.  Could be useful for those that are concerned about the having wallet info online.  Install nodejs (nodejs.org) and run:
Code:
$ node walletmon.js

The script (just substitute your wallet's address...these are just a few random ones):
Code:
var http = require('http');
var currency = 'USD';
var addresses = [
    '17xxoEVft19Rg2V4vqop92Az7Hp7vbtttV',
    '13kEG7RopYCSqgG1T1YsULpTQx5sW1PLTy',
    '1MWYjCaMunK2rERswXxiNTV641y23k38BS',
    '1GaLzoNQbuJB4hDgY4YBgvjxzPqHkCebgj',
];

function getReceived(address, callback) {
    getData(address, 'received', callback);
}

function getSent(address, callback) {
    getData(address, 'sent', callback);
}

function getData(address, method, callback) {
    var options = {
      host: 'blockexplorer.com',
      port: 80,
      path: '/q/get'+method+'byaddress/'+address,
    };
    http.get(options, function(res) {
        var answer = '';
        res.on('data', function (chunk) {
            answer += chunk;
        });
        res.on('end', function (chunk) {
            if(chunk) answer += chunk;
            callback(answer);
        });
    });
}

function getWeightedPrices(callback) {
    var options = {
      host: 'bitcoincharts.com',
      port: 80,
      path: '/t/weighted_prices.json',
    };

    http.get(options, function(res) {
    var answer = '';
            res.on('data', function (chunk) {
            answer += chunk;
        });
        res.on('end', function (chunk) {
            if(chunk) answer += chunk;
            callback(JSON.parse(answer));
        });
    });
}

function fetch(index, callback) {
    getReceived(addresses[index], function(received) {
        var bal = Math.round(received * 1e8);
        getSent(addresses[index], function(sent) {
            bal -= Math.round(sent * 1e8);
            console.log(addresses[index]+' received: '+received+', sent: '+sent+', bal: '+(bal/1e8));
            callback(bal);
        });
    });
}

function main() {
    var total=0;
    var count=addresses.length;
    for(i=0; i<addresses.length; i++) {
        (function(index) {
            fetch(index, function(bal) {
                total += bal;
                count--;
                if(count == 0) {
                    getWeightedPrices(function(prices) {
                        var p24h = Math.round(total * prices[currency]['24h'] / 1e6) / 1e2;
                        var p7d = Math.round(total * prices[currency]['7d'] / 1e6) / 1e2;
                        var p30d = Math.round(total * prices[currency]['30d'] / 1e6) /1e2;
                        console.log('');
                        console.log('Total: '+ (total / 1e8) + ' BTC ('+addresses.length+' addresses)');
                        console.log('USD: '+p24h+'(24h), '+p7d+'(7d) '+p30d+'(30d)');
                    })
                }
            });
        })(i);
    }
}

main();
712  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Bitcoin's dependancy on physical currency on: July 13, 2011, 07:30:16 PM
One thing you can do is you seek out vendors willing to be paid in bitcoins.  These forums are probably a good place to start looking!  Let people here know what you are in need of.
713  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: [Podcast] NPR's Planet Money - The Tuesday Podcast: Bitcoin on: July 13, 2011, 04:41:19 AM
I'm amazed at how certain some people seem to be that bitcoin will fail.
714  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Can bitcoin fill the void in a bank run? on: July 12, 2011, 06:21:01 PM
Wait, I thought FDIC, or federal deposit insurance, that banks actually pay premiums into, is where the money to cover bank runs comes from, not newly printer dollars?
It doesn't cover a bank run, it covers deposits in the event of insolvency (which can help prevent bank runs).  The banks do pay an insurance premium and the FDIC uses that insurance fund to cover deposits and resolve failed banks, however the fund, as of the end of 2010 had a negative balance of about $7.3bln (it was over $20bln in the red at the end of 2009).  Shortly after the 2008 crisis they had to raise the premiums they charge banks to cover the shortfall.  Note: the FDIC itself is backed by the US gov't, so when the fund runs a negative balance, they are basically just expanding the money supply.
715  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: USD *is* a virtual currency on: July 11, 2011, 06:42:34 PM
Another non bitcoin thread. Admin please move this fed bash trash.
My original post was about how bitcoin being virtual doesn't make it unique among the world's national currencies (other things make it unique, yes, but not the fact that it's virtual).
716  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: USD *is* a virtual currency on: July 11, 2011, 02:53:21 PM
Quote
But you understand why there is vastly more risk in Bitcoins than USD, right?  For every risk to the USD there is one thing going for it: it is accepted almost everywhere that your audience goes to.
Yes, of course and it's an important point.  My point was that USD is a virtual currency and as such is evidence that virtual currencies do in fact work.  And gold is evidence that currencies do not necessarily need gov't backing to work.  However, USD is a vastly larger market than BTC, so absolutely there is much higher risk and people should deal with it as such.

Im pretty sure banks have whatever amount of currency they got somewhere as "real" currency. Coins etc.

LOL...I'm pretty sure this was a joke people.  And a good one!
717  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / USD *is* a virtual currency on: July 11, 2011, 12:44:19 PM
I encounter a lot of people that are skeptical that a virtual currency could work.  This is a very odd position for someone to take because the USD is a virtual currency (and clearly has worked to a degree for quite some time).  Most people keep their savings in bank accounts, which are nothing but book entries in a database on a computer system.  The banks themselves have accounts at the FED or other banks that are also nothing more than database entries in a computer system.  The difference is that this virtual system is rife with a haphazard design cobbled together over the the years and full of vulnerabilities, whereas bitcoin was designed from the ground up to be secure and trustworthy (time will tell whether it meets this goal).

I point this out to people because it sometimes dramatically changes their perception of bitcoin.  They are then basically left with the question of whether a currency not backed by any gov't or institution will work...and of course, for that you have the example of gold.
718  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: Bitcoin Value At The End Of 2011? on: July 11, 2011, 12:19:16 PM
was just doing calculations and thought some lazy people might like to know the hard numbers.  Grin

2017 inflation will be under 4%.  IMO that is when things will get VERY interesting VERY quickly.

Well, it's already very interesting now...but 2013 at only 12% inflation and with lot's of commerce enabled by well developed and easy to use infrastructure looks very interesting to me.
719  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: How Many Here Wish to Remain Anonymous When Making Bitcoin Purchases? on: July 10, 2011, 02:41:58 PM
What I really don't like is having to remember the goddamn zipcode of the house I rented the last time I changed my debit card bank info in order to buy a pair of fucking socks.

I want to: Pay, give the address I want the thing (if it's a thing) shipped to.
+1

Identity verification for using credit cards is a never ending escalation.  Used to be all that was needed was the number.  The very information merchants have to collect to verify identity is what the criminals need to steal it.  It's insecure by nature.  Bitcoin solves this problem quite elegantly and you can always add back all the trusted third party or escrow type features that you need for the particular situation.  Merchants only need to collect the information they require to conduct their business (there's no need to collect information used solely to verify a customer's identity).
720  Bitcoin / Bitcoin Discussion / Re: What programming language to learn? on: July 10, 2011, 01:25:27 PM
A good understanding of C/C++ is pretty fundamental for everyone (and in particular calling conventions and how various OSes approach linking).  A general understanding of processor instruction sets and how you go from a high level language to machine code helps as well.

Here's one language no one has mentioned (or maybe I missed it): JavaScript...every major web browser runs it, it has many advanced features (i.e. closures), and it has a server side implementation (nodejs.org).  Google's v8 team is very talented and making JavaScript very fast (I've read that is it 10x faster than PHP right now and 3x faster than Python and likely to continue getting much faster).  
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