very wow, much supersize, very surreal.

Google Wallet is "working to figure out how to incorporate bitcoin into our plans". http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1vvfxz/google_confirms_their_payments_team_is_working_to/

You can go up now, price.

Not if you are Francesco Schettino...

Edit: Or is there some 'Spirit of the Titanic' thing going down here that I am missing?  Is it the case that you all know its going down but your are holding all the same, and putting on a brave face?

Can somebody explain to me the CCMF joke ? I dont get it...

I wouldn´t put my bids over 500$. More likely 2-300$

But... but... if everyone sold waiting for the price to drop so they can buy back in, won't the market move in the opposite direction?  

Not sure. I think it's what you would call market sentiment. Anyone clued up on bitcoin, or that has been following it for at least a while, knows that the China question is like the elephant in the room.
I think a lot of people, me included are hodling off to see how that plays out.

I agree that it is ridiculous that so much importance is given to China and what will/will not happen there.
For me, China is just one aspect of it. I wasn't convinced that the bubble pop had fully played out, and still expected up to re-visit ~$500 on stamp before rebounding and moving back up.
So, i'm taking a patient wait and see approach. It will be interesting to observe the market around 31st.. and the first week or so of Feb. I've got my fiat waiting on stamp to take advantage.

I keep thinking, now that we know bitcoin can't work in the real world, as confirmed by sources, we really need to focus on the development of a new cryptocurrency that is like bitcoin, but better.  And, everytime I think about how bitcoin can be significantly improved, the main thing I keep coming back to is its volatility and that its supply needs to be controlled by me.

I bet that they are making a lot more money now.

Exchanges generally earn more when there is more USD volume.  Falling prices may create a momentary surge in volume, but smaller income in the end.

Bitcoin exchanges are unusual among stock/commodity markets because they basically trade only one item. Unlike NYSE or CME, their future is tightly bound to the future of that item.

Once there was a man (we’ll call him JD) who made his living any way he could. He never really stayed in one place or held down a job for very long, although he was more than qualified for a wide range of occupations. No, JD instead relied upon taking things a day at a time and usually ended up wherever his free spirit took him. He liked to claim this was the only way a person could truly be free.

JD just spent the last few weeks visiting a nearby public library where he could log a few hours here and there on a public computer. JD, not having a lot to his name preferred to utilize public resources whenever he could, both due to necessity and to his credo of not being tied down to any particular place.
 
He does know a thing or two about computers and navigating the “net” and would often go to the library to research the places he visited or learn more about things he heard about. He once briefly considered a career in IT, but found that would not lead to the type of life he was looking for.

One morning while taking in the sunrise at a small coffee house, JD recently overheard a conversation about something called Bitcoin. JD often would like to seek out new places from which to view the sun rise and felt this was one of the ways he could more closely feel part of the wider world around him. It offered him a sort of solace as it was a familiar face he could count on wherever he may be.
 
His curiosity piqued, JD scoured the net to find out about this new form of currency. The more he read, the more he became intrigued. As you can imagine, when one tries to live as a free spirit, it is hard to reconcile this with the more traditional means of storing and securing money.

While JD was not particularly obsessed with money the way many people are, he did realize it had its place and was almost as much a requirement in the modern day as having clean air to breath, food to eat, and a warm place to sleep. JD spent the next several days thinking about what he read, but he decided to take action when on his next visit to a coffee shop, he noticed a sign indicating they now accept Bitcoin.

On his next visit to the library, JD is able to assume an online persona. He creates an online e-mail account and signs up to a popular Bitcoin forum. Here he tiptoes around carefully, initially reading many of the posts and learning how to create online wallets. He likes the idea of something he can access from anywhere, as this fits in with his lifestyle, so establishes himself with a few exchanges that provide a means to accept coins into an online wallet.

JD gets his first taste of Cryptocurrencies by participating in a few giveaway threads, which are commonly used to help introduce people to new cryptocurrencies when they launch. Having explored the site for a few days, JD recognizes these as Alt-coins, and knows that this probably the best entry into the crypto-currency world. As he has no physical means to mine coins, or the financial resources to purchase any outright, he seeks ways to become more involved.

Another week or so passes and JD comes up with an interesting idea. In order for it to work it will require some form of community involvement. Even with his little time spent on the various online sites, JD knows this will take some doing and incredible patience. But with plenty of free time, JD feels up to the task.

While the general community is war weary and sees scams at every turn, JD manages to convince a few souls into participating in his endeavor.

(to be continued…)

He looks kinda scared, is there a gun pointed at him while he´s reading his text from a teleprompter.  

because their Goxbux are stuck in there

I´m just wondering about the fact that someone also must put in these 10-25 BTC asks all the time. As soon as one gets bought another one appears for nearly the same price.
I doubt that this is a pure coincidence.

Edit: The news that Gox isn´t doin JPY withdrawls anymore is also "funny".

Just struck me that a possible explanation for the "Willy" buybot on Gox is that Magical Tux does not have enough coins to make his depositors whole. If he is indeed illegally operating as a fractional reserve, then he would need more and more coins to keep the illusion going.  With the fiat withdrawal backlog, the bot could be buying with money that is supposed to be pending for withdrawal. For all we know, he already left town. When was Mark K's last known public appearance?