I recently introduced someone to Bitcoin and they asked about buying it anonymously. I didn't really have an answer as I can't think of a way to do that effectively. Does anyone know the best (and most reliable) way to buy Bitcoin anonymously?

Good morning fellow bitcoiners!

I'm in a silver buying mood this morning and a friend told me about a company called APMEX. They sell gold and silver coinage and bullion at pretty decent prices. I'm wondering though if anyone has any experience with them? What do you think about them?

Thanks!
Rage

Hi Everyone,

I'm a pro level software and web developer with over 15 years development and administrator experience. I design software for Windows, Linux, and Mac as well as administer Linux and Windows servers. My rates are cheap and I'm looking for BTC only work.

If interested, send me a message novemberman35@ymail.com.

Feel free to reach out!

Rage

Hi Guys,

Putting together the final touches on a new Bitcoin project and need someone who's versed in RealBasic and encryption to help me make sure things are secure. Work would only take a few minutes or maybe hours time for a pro. I'm not versed enough in writing encryption code in RB to do make sure it's secure.

Any volunteers?

Rage

Hi Guys,

So I'm trying to file my claim with MyBitcoin and I ran into a snag. I know my username, but I don't know my password. The site isn't providing any way for me to request a password reset. How can I file my claim??

Thanks!
Rage

I've been locked out of my account since the MTGOX hacking incident and I've sent them email from another account with enough validating information to prove I own my account. It's been almost 3 weeks and I've heard NOTHING back from them.

What's up? Anyone else know what's going on?

I have a very good quality 1723 Woods Hibernia Half Penny for sale. I will ship anywhere in the world (you pay shipping). Price is $200.00 USD or 14.35 btc. Contact me if interested.

There's been a lot of talk about submitting the Bitcoin economy to governmental regulation and, frankly, it scares the hell out of me. One of the reasons I'm so excited about Bitcoin is because it presents the same promise of a fully free market that cash does without all the problems surrounding a fiat currency.

Personally, I am strongly against Bitcoin regulation. I believe the market is completely capable of caring for itself and regulation would simply expand government intrusion into people lives. I can see no benefit and a lot of detriment.

What do you think? Do you think the Bitcoin economy should be regulated? If so, to what extent?

Rage

Subject pretty much describes it all. Only used it once, has two controllers and is in GREAT shape. Comes with original box, manuals, cords, etc. 

Asking: 2.77btc

Contact: feeltherage@ymail.com

So I'm slowly working to a solid understanding of economics and I've got most of it down except one thing that I can't seem to answer:

What gives a fiat currency its initial value?

Let's take the US dollar for example. When the dollar was first issues after the founding of the Federal Reserve, what decided what its purchasing power was? Was it some arbitrary number set by the Federal Reserve? Was it a collusion between the US central bank and others around the world?

Thanks!
Rage

Bitcoin is anonymous as long as it stays in the digital realm. As soon as we try to convert it into the physical world, we lose a good part (if not all) of that anonymity. Does anyone know of a bank anywhere that doesn't require any hard ID requirements? One where one could open an anonymous account?

Just thinking...

Rage

Is anyone else having problems accessing their MyBitcoin account? My username/password are being rejected and I haven't changed them and I'm sure the account hasn't been hacked. Also, I noticed that both fields are now asterisks like they'd be password masked. Anyone got a clue about this?

Thanks!
Rage

Do you need a video edited or scripted? If so, get in touch!

In my continued effort to build a viable business around Bitcoin, I'm taking the plunge and offering this service to the community in addition to my web development and software skills.  I've done tons of video editing and short form video scripting (1-10 minutes) and would love to help you craft that winning video for either Youtube or even television distribution.

For pricing and more information, get in touch and let's talk!

[EDIT]: I've gotten a few messages asking if I can write scripts for video blogs (vlogs) and yes, I can. Video blog scripts are generally 1-5 minutes long and on a single topic. If you want to cover multiple topics, I can do that too. Just let me know.

Rage

As some of you may know, I'm an experienced software and web developer with about 11 years experience in pro level development. I've been selling and buying in BTC for a while now but I'm wanting to start seriously offering my services to the community.

I work in a variety of languages and technologies and can do everything from development to server configuration and management, etc. My rates are very affordable and I'm flexible.

For info please email feeltherage@ymail.com

Thanks,
Rage

My external USB hard drive cable has been chewed through by my dog. So I need a new cable and thought it might be a good time to spend some BitCoin. I need a Y cable that has two standard USB connectors on one end (power and data) and a Micro USB connector on the other. I can buy them at Walmart online for about $7 USD but I'd rather get them through the community.

If you have some, please feel free to contact me and let's do business. You can see what I'm looking for here:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Startech-6-USB-Y-Cable-for-External-Hard-Drive/14659917

Notice that it is a MICRO USB and NOT a Mini USB (which is smaller).

Please get in touch if interested in selling.

Rage

So I'm getting ready to release the first beta of BitCoin Backup (a program that lets you securely backup your wallet to the cloud) on Monday and I'm looking for testers. Ideally, you should be comfortable running beta software and maybe even have experience testing beta software in the past. Right now, the program will only be open to Linux and Windows users but a Mac version will be out week after next.

If you're interested in participating in the beta, please use this form to express that interest:

https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dHcxRHo3bEtXNk4wak4wSmhEUnIyOHc6MQ

Thanks!aRage

So I've been thinking a lot about banking lately, specifically how it could be done within an anonymous, secure, community where fraud is so freaking easy. All-in-all, I don't think it would be that difficult to set up a BitCoin bank. The problem I see is incentive to continue running it.

Traditional banks make money mostly in three ways:

- Loans paid back with interest
- Fees associated with accounts
- Other associated 'services' like a safe deposit box, financial consultations, etc

By far, I'd say the primary driver for a banks revenue stream is probably loans. Loans are done through a series of complex financial manipulations where banks are allowed to lend out roughly 9-10 times what they have in the vault at any one time (called 'fractional reserve banking' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fractional-reserve_banking) and I see that as a major problem with our current banking industry. I don't think it's a good idea for a BitCoin ban so that leaves only two major ways for a bank to earn money.

Obviously, offering things like safe deposit boxes is complex in an anonymous system (though not impossible) as are financial consultations (they can compromise a customers anonymity and the consultant would need to compromise their anonymity to prove they're not a huckster). So, really, that leaves only fees associated with accounts (holding and withdrawing) as a reliable way for a BitCoin bank to make money.  This is certainly doable but definitely (probably?) won't make a banker wealthy (which might not really be the goal).

What challenges do you think need to be overcome before we can see First Bank of BitCoin open its doors?

Rage

So I'm building a couple of mining rigs (probably 3 and, yes, I'm looking for investors) but I've got a question that came out of a discussion I had earlier today with a fellow Bitcoiner:

The Playstation 3 is a nice machine and has a decent GPU. I've heard rumors that there's mining software for it but I've not seen any yet. What do you think of using a few PS3's as rigs?

Rage

So a few months ago, there was a guy talking about writing a program to securely encrypt and backup your wallet to the cloud. I don't think I've seen any movement on the project so I've taken it up myself. BitCoin Backup will allow you to securely backup and restore your wallet to and from the cloud. Your wallet file will be encrypted using AES256 encryption before it's transmitted (no Dropbox funniness here!) and will be stored on a Truecrypt secured Linux file system.

Here are the first screenshots. Should be available by tomorrow night. I'll need testers so if anyone is interested just let me know.

http://picpaste.com/bitcoin-backup-backup-wallet.png
http://picpaste.com/bitcoinbackup-main-screen.png
http://picpaste.com/bitcoinbackup-restore-wallet.png

Rage

As someone who's really interested in privacy (it's part of my job!) I have been thinking about how to use Bitcoin completely anonymously. Over the last few days, I've put together a basic 'guide' that I finished today and would like the communities opinion on. I want to find errors, make the guide better, that sort of thing. Of course, if you find it useful, feel free to use it.

Here's the link.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/29228271/HOW%20TO%20MOVE%20MONEY%20ANONYMOUSLY%20USING%20BITCOIN.pdf

Rage