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Alternate cryptocurrencies / Announcements (Altcoins) / Re: [ANN] Grin | PoW Mining | Electronic transactions for all. Community driven.
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on: March 20, 2019, 11:26:11 AM
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What is going on with grin coin? I read some of the comments on here and they don't seem too bad, and the general cryptocurrency market is not doing bad right now but the grin coin price is down like 70% since it started trading on Poloniex. Are they diluting, company selling coins on the market, or no buying interest? I bought some, bought more then bought more and all I did was lose Thats completely normal for new coins regardless of inflation. Inflation is currently at 80% and that number will shrink at a significant rate forever. It really isn't that different from bitcoin, certainly not for the first 4 years. The inflation rate is miniscule compared to the typical gains during a bull run of 10,000% over a few months! I can't see how this monetary policy will stop massive price spikes. Therefore I can't see why this coin could be considered "price stable" either, unless i'm missing something.
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Bitcoin / Project Development / Re: HODLER Wallet - The Only Open Source Multi-Asset Wallet
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on: March 14, 2019, 03:09:21 AM
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Heres an idea...
With regards to the timelock feature, you could have multiple options. It could be literally impossible to access your funds, or there could be other options where the funds are accessible (in case of emergency etc) but you place a self imposed and self determined percentage penalty if you take out the funds before the deadline, (the percentage penalty should be shrinkable as you get closer to the deadline as well in a proportionate manner). So you have established the option for a disincentivising system for the user to remove their coins early, and created a source of funds for somebody too! Where should the penalty go? Well the user should be able to choose this too. Either to the developers, or to be distributed to other users of the wallet. This would act as an interest acruing mechanism for everyone who deposits funds in the wallet! So everyones a winner and it incentivises more adoption as well.
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Bitcoin / Project Development / Problem with hardware wallets - Much simpler solution?
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on: March 14, 2019, 12:30:52 AM
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Ok, having read about more potential vulnerabilites, with trezor, (the latest here https://www.ccn.com/trezor-defends-crypto-wallet-security-after-ledgers-mit-bitcoin-bombshell), this has triggered me to share thoughts i've had for a while. This is a combination of explaining my ideas for the solution to this problem, along with exploring the nuts and bolts of exactly how these hardware wallets seem to work. I'm sure there may well be cross over between the two. The crux of what I intend to get at is something similar to a hardware wallet, but that avoids many of what seem to me to be flaws. It does not need to be physically connected to a computer, does not need to update (or rarely), does not or cannot connect to the internet, does not store your private key inside (unless you chose for it to), cannot be used to empty your wallet if it is comprimised, and does not have a private key or recovery seed come with it, (to avoid the risk of it being comprimised). You would enter your own private key or recovery seed, and could enter a different one instead whenever you like. I will explore my thoughts and musings and the process I went through to arrive at this idea. Maybe this is novel, maybe it isn't, it actually seems fairly obvious to me, but you decide. We constantly hear about vulnerabilities in secure systems which are then "patched" and updated. But everytime I hear this it just makes my eyes roll. If you have created anything that can become vulnerable and therefore need an update you have already failed in what you are doing, because there is already a risk there. It just delays the inevitable until the next security hole is found and then patched and so we go round and round in circles with an insecure idea. Lets focus on hardware wallets specifically though, and the problem they are designed to solve and how it can be done in a much simpler way with a similar idea perhaps with subtle differences. Firstly, the fact it even needs to connect to the internet at all to "update" is a big weakness. There shouldn't be anything that needs to be updated ideally, and the fact that it is online at all is a security risk because of the potential for hacking. An ideal device would be airgapped and either never need to connect online, or literally not be able to do so. Thats the first point. I think I have heard that the secure areas of the trezor which contain private keys are totally separate from the rest of the operations, or at least the parts of the system which connect online. I am quite dubious on how 'separate' they can really be though. I also know the private keys never leave the device. Ok... that sounds good in principle... but wouldn't it be even better if the private keys were not even on the device at all?! I will explain how I came up with the more specifics of the idea before I go further and it is pretty simple really. I was using MEW, did not have a hardware wallet, and really didn't want to put my private key in to their website. So I used their offline transaction feature. This is a brilliant and genius concept. However it was extremely cumbersome. I was using an airgapped computer to generate the keys which I then would input in to the online computer. Because of the separation, I ended up just manually typing every letter of the private key and other long pieces of information when transferring between the machines. The next obvious thought was... how the hell can I do this more quickly and easily?... Wouldn't it be good if I could just scan the QR code or something with the offline computer to transfer the info between the 2 devices if i had the necessary software? Then I imagined how this whole process could be streamlined and simplified even more. What if you could just get a smaller airgapped device to do this much more easily without needing a whole pc? A device with the built in ability, (software and hardware), to scan the QR code and quickly without the need for any of the other crap involved in using an airgapped computer that is not necessary to this task. What I thought you DON'T want however, is a cable which connects the 2 devices together, then the airgapped purity could be put at risk from hacking or malware etc if it found a way to jump across if the other device was compromised somehow. If the communication method is simply through scanning QR codes then only the necessary information can pass between the 2 devices. Imagine if all this happened in a small device you could hold in your hand?! (not a phone obviously!) - You could avoid the need for any private keys to be stored on the device AT ALL, by simply having it keep a record of several one time offline transaction codes, (however many you felt comfortable with), or just do them 1 at a time. You would only need to scan the private key in to the device when you wanted to renew them and it would not be saved in the device. And even if it was somehow, the device will never be connected online so it would never be hackable anyway, and therefore never need a security patch or any other update so long as the offline transaction system protocol remained the same. There could be contingency to allow one way movement of data in but not out (like through USB slot) if it REALLY had to be updated at some point due to an important protocol change for example, or to add compatibility with more coins if you choose to have that, but that should be rare. Other crypto currencies could easily integrate an "offline transaction system" in to them like with the Ethereum/MEW one if they don't already have one. I then thought to myself.... Isn't this exactly what a hardware wallet is and how it works then?! - But then I thought no.... Because they still have to be physically connected to the computer, they still have to connect to the internet, and don't have a QR code scanner! So does anything exist like this? And would it not be a better idea in many ways? If the private key in the likes of a trezor was truly airgapped within the system, and the private key was inaccessible, then why all the vulnerabilities that keep being discovered in need of patching? Oh and also there is the massive risk of course that the company could have some backdoor way in, or some bad employee could have aquired the recovery phrases somehow before the device was bought, or the device simply doesn't really work the way they say it does etc etc etc - The flaws go on and on. If there is only unidirectional data transfer through QR code and usb slot, then that pretty much seems to resolve those potential risks. Of course one could then argue that you now have teh original problem of how to store your keys securely, but that is a slightly different issue not quite within the scope of this. I am happy to explore that issue also though if anyone wants to get in to that as well.
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Alternate cryptocurrencies / Announcements (Altcoins) / Re: [ANN] Grin | PoW Mining | Electronic transactions for all. Community driven.
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on: January 14, 2019, 01:07:13 PM
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I just wanted to comment here just in case that in a decade from know I can point somebody these quotes saying " I told you that the majority of cash like transaction on the planet will be done in GRIN" I wonder if that will ever come to reality. How are they going to beat bitcoin or eth or ripple in the first place? Because Grin can be added as a side chain to bitcoin? Therefore integrated within it. It also provides a different function to those coins, i.e privacy as well as greater scalibility. The main rivals in the privacy sphere are Zcash and Monero. I'm not sure what benefits ZCash and Monero can provide over Grin. Dash was a main competitor as well, but seems to have disappeared from attention for some reason in more recent times.
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Alternate cryptocurrencies / Mining (Altcoins) / Re: Alpha Technology Litecoin (Scrypt) ASIC Miner Order Batch 1 Now!
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on: December 19, 2014, 08:15:02 PM
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I remember a while ago someone on here saying how they were persuing 2 separate claims. One against alpha the company, and another claim against the individual, Akram. Whoever it was, did they successfully win the judgement against Akram individually? I've heard of the cases of Alpha losing but not paying up, but not of any cases of Akram losing. It would seem to me to be more likely to get your money back if you have a judgement against the individual rather than the business as the business can just wind down and dissapear. The person cannot as easily dissapear, and if he comes back to Britain, may be more easily traceable by debt collectors.
I was thinking a month ago about taking Alpha to court but it seems pointless if they are not going to pay and are untraceable, a claim against the individual would seem to have higher chance of success, if they are individually liable? Also can you claim the court costs that you have to pay to start the case, back from the court when you win judgement?... or do you only get that back if/when Akram/Alpha pay up too? If it is the former, then there is much less to loose. But if not, I don't fancy wasting another £70 to go to court if i'm almost certainly going to lose that too along with the rest of the money! What do others think on this? And who was the person who said they were suing Akram directly? Anyone remember? Did they win? What was their username? Please let us know what happened if it was you and you're reading this! Thanks.
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Alternate cryptocurrencies / Mining (Altcoins) / Re: Alpha Technology Litecoin (Scrypt) ASIC Miner Order Batch 1 Now!
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on: October 30, 2014, 07:52:07 PM
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I placed an order with Alpha on behalf of a small group of people where we agreed to a share of the profits. We are looking to get a full refund ideally, and considering court as a more likely option than getting a refund from alpha in full, or as a better option to even trying to get one in part, but want to consider all the options. We are just unsure of a few things. I have read some of the comments about the whole situation and gathered bits and pieces but there is a lot to read through. We are looking for help in clarifying the situation in more detail, in terms of what the current consensus is that has been learned amoungst the community, and would appreciate some advice on how to proceed.
Firstly, have there been any reports of them offering a settlement amount and then not actually paying it after it was agreed to it as a final settlement? I am worried in case we choose the settlement offer and agree as I have read suggestions that this can not only invalidate and legal claim for anything else, but could invalidate a legal claim for anything, and that they may not even need to pay you the settlement offer they just agreed to!
I am worried that if I email and ask them to pay up, and give them chance to respond, by the time they respond (or by the time it doesn't appear they will), it may waste valuable time and by the time a judgement is made, they may have disappeared? Also, I can be pretty sure that they won't give a full refund, so if we are not prepared to accept a partial refund, it is probably pointless to email them first in that respect too isn't it? It would appear to be a risky waste of time in that sense/
So therefore, we would prefer to just go straight to the small claims court, however we are worried there may be a requirement to try and resolve the matter with them directly first (i.e email them and given them a chance to pay up)? Could it invalidate a claim by not asking them for a refund first and giving say a week for them to pay? Is a week even long enough or is that generous do you think?
Also, has anyone explored the possibility and advantages/disadvantages of going to the financial ombudsman, rather than the small claims court?
Have their been any reports of Alpha NOT paying the money AFTER a court ruling? Has anyone had to resort to debt enforcers? This is where it gets a bit more worrying.
Have their been any reports of Alpha contesting claims, the grounds on which they tried to, and whether or not they were ever successful? Anything to watch out for?
Also, we/I paid by bank transfer. All anyone talks about on here is credit card payments, bitcoin, and paypal. What about those who paid by bank transfer? Are we in different situation? Obviously you can't reverse it the same way as a credit card payment I wouldn't have thought, but can you reverse a faster payment or BACS transfer if you didn't get what you paid for as an alternative (or quicker option) for getting money back? Could it cause problems in court having paid this way?
Finally, our claim, like many I would imagine, is for £1,635. However, it costs considerably more to claim over £1,500 with no guarantee to get the extra you paid to take the matter to court back from Alpha, (or do you get that back from the court it's self when you win?). So we were considering maybe just claiming £1500 instead as it is below the threshold. Could this cause some problem?
Thanks!
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Alternate cryptocurrencies / Altcoin Discussion / Re: Best coin to mine
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on: November 29, 2013, 04:36:11 AM
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I would 2nd the initial question. I would also like to know the most profitable coin to mine atm in terms of computing power/energy consumption to returns. I will say though that I tried mining LTC recentlyy using GUIMiner_Scrypt and it would not work for me. It can be very technically challenging from what i gather as there are many factors which can cause it not to work such as incompatible drivers, knowing the correct ports and god knows what else. I fiddled with all these and couldn't get it to work. but anyway, while we await more knowledgable answers, I have some further thoughts and extra questions that hopefully the good people here can help with... Based on what I just said, I think mining on your own machines may not be the best option for everyone, which is where paying someone else to do it for you might be a better option. Looking at this thread https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=232739.80 ...would anyone like to suggest the best offers out there for cloud mining/mining rig contracts for bit coin and other crypto currencies? The cloud hashing company doesn't seem to be going down very well in there for offering good deals. Ideally a company offering such services with the ability to mine a wider range of coins than just bit coin would be good such as lite coins and tag coins. Litecoin seems to me to be a good bet. Well known and established witout being to "sheepy" and bandwagony if you like. Tag coin seemed to me the most profitable based on my limited research and understanding in terms of the time likely to take to mine an amount equivilent ot 1 BTC at current exchange rates. And just to be clear I am not a sheep jumping on the bandwagon. I have known all about bitcoin since 2011 when Max Keiser started adoring it. I always planned to invest and mine and was convinced the price would soar in the future but thought I had much more time before the sheep found out about it and thus it wasn't a priority. My expected timescale was more like 2020 before we reached this point! To save myself from smashing my house or slitting my wrists at the missed opportunity, I can at least take confort in a few things.. Number 1 being in the fact that my logic suggests to me that with the huge price increases this week, mining should be a lot more profitable.... This is of course based on the presumption that the number of miners or the difficulty has not increased at the same rate, but I wouldn't have expected that it would as i gather that altough a lot of these new sheep investors have come along and invested cos they've heard about bitcoin on the news, a small percentage are likely to be the kind of people who are technically minded enough to understand mining or even know much about that aspect of bitcoin and other crypto currencies. Does this logic appear to be correct and sound? Also, I still think in the long run these are very early days and we will still be looked back on in years to come as (relatively) early adopters. Also, I feel the price is likely to rise far more above where it is now in the coming months and years. Not only due to the likeley increased awareness and usage but also due to the 21 million coin limit of BTC so there is still much to look forward to I think. Also, finally just a slight technical question about BTC... Does the hash rate for X amount of computing power.... A.) Go down as mining difficulty increases over time and thus the mining rate goes down by the same amount or B.) Stay the same, but you just need to have a higher hash rate (and therefore more powerful hardware) in order to achieve the same rate of mining BTC? Thanks!
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