|
I like it, and the idea makes me more likely to buy larger bitcoin bars.
Anyone who doesn't like it, or thinks it's confusing, can simply not buy it, possibly buying the "single authority" style instead, if it's an option.
The market will decide if this is a worthy method. And for the record, it will do so regardless of whether or not Casascius is the one selling physical bitcoins using this method.
|
|
|
|
.. or small transfers from some really large wallets but the 'change' amount is included in the chart??
The "change" is not included in that chart. Blockchain.info has one chart WITH the change, and then also they have the one I posted without. How is it possible to determine if there is change if the change address doesn't match one of the input addresses (and I would imagine most don't?) |
|
|
|
The problem is you still have to wait to check if the transaction actually took place.
I am not sure what problem you are referring to. Please elaborate. Maybe Findeton refers to a problem of sending couple transactions in quick succession? One needs to wait for each transaction to be picked up in a block then retrieve the TX outs again from server-side blockchain? Yeah, that is a problem with only having one private key. I tripped up on this with StrongCoin too (although a workaround was implemented of allowing a spend to multiple addresses--this makes the problem much less severe.) Allowing multiple spends at once will help BitcoinSpinner too, but considering the simple design, it should probably be something the user has to ask for specifically. Also... while a little confusing at first, it might help to list the change itself as also being "coins on the way" ("change on the way?"), with the balance of the mini-wallet being 0.00 for a while after a spend. StrongCoin and other alternative clients may have a limitation with change sent back to yourself. With BitcoinSpinner the change sent back to yourself is available for spending immediately, and you don't have to wait for a confirmation. In that regard BitcoinSpinner works like the Satoshi client. You can do a simple test with BitcoinSpinner where you: 1. Have zero balance in BitcoinSpinner 2. Send 2 bitcoins to BitcoinSpinner in a single transaction 3. Send 0.9995 BTC to another client two times right after each other with no intermediate confirmations. 4. Wait for the funds to arrive in the other client. I see. That's great then... another plus for BitcoinSpinner. (I checked the last StrongCoin transaction I sent earlier today, and while it worked, it seemed a bit confusing as to exactly why it crafted the two (!) transactions for my single transaction in the way that it did...) |
|
|
|
|
This is amazing. Great job!
|
|
|
|
The problem is you still have to wait to check if the transaction actually took place.
I am not sure what problem you are referring to. Please elaborate. Maybe Findeton refers to a problem of sending couple transactions in quick succession? One needs to wait for each transaction to be picked up in a block then retrieve the TX outs again from server-side blockchain? Yeah, that is a problem with only having one private key. I tripped up on this with StrongCoin too (although a workaround was implemented of allowing a spend to multiple addresses--this makes the problem much less severe.) Allowing multiple spends at once will help BitcoinSpinner too, but considering the simple design, it should probably be something the user has to ask for specifically. Also... while a little confusing at first, it might help to list the change itself as also being "coins on the way" ("change on the way?"), with the balance of the mini-wallet being 0.00 for a while after a spend. |
|
|
|
|
Very nice! I'm practically drooling.
|
|
|
|
|
Well, it took longer than I expected, but that actually seemed to work decently.
I will say, I tried downloading the white noise mp3, and got "earth.jpg". Maybe all the buttons provide the same file, but if not, well, something small did go wrong there.
This looks nice. Good work.
|
|
|
|
StrongCoin seems very safe.
here's the thing.... if you hack StongCoin you get everyone's bits! not a half bad incentive to hack away StrongCoin only stores your private keys in encrypted form. They never even see the unencrypted keys. if some points a gun to the owner of StrongCoin and says, "give me all the bits Bitch!"... the owner wont be able to give your coins for his life? No, he won't. |
|
|
|
1. Ability to import private key with QR on a smartphone app.
This can be done with either StrongCoin.com or with MtGox.com 1 - Read the private key's QR code with your smartphone 2 - Import the private key as a new StrongCoin account (you encrypt it, they never see it) OR 2 - Import the private key by associating it with your MtGox account (they sweep btc from it to your account) This might also be possible with BitcoinSpinner, as it only has a single private key, and lets you do backup and restore of that key. |
|
|
|
|
From my experience, the ways to use bitcoins on the go with your smartphone:
1) Instawallet.org - Quick, no-login online wallet. Provides an instant address for receiving, and allows spending via green addresses, with no transaction fees. Downsides are that you have to bookmark the page it provides, and if you lose it you're out of luck; and of course, you have to trust the owner, and his security, so using it with large amounts is unwise.
2) StrongCoin.com - Another online wallet, this one cleverly lets your browser do the transaction construction, so their servers never see your unencrypted private key. Clean look, simple to use. Main downside is that every transaction requires a fee, part of which goes to StrongCoin. Also, because the private keys are each treated as an encrypted account, rather than having an account be a wallet full of keys, there's a certain level of privacy lost. (And I'm not sure if aggregating funds from several accounts would require a fee for each move, but I would think so.)
3) BitcoinSpinner - An app for Android phones, this doesn't mess with the blockchain, so it's fast and light. And simple: you get a single address, the private key for which is stored on the phone and used to sign transactions, so again, the server never sees the unencrypted private key. The downside is that it's so simple, it lacks features like transaction history (or even just multiple addresses) which some might prefer to have.
Those all work for me so far, when used with their particular limitations in mind.
I can't comment on the bitcoin wallet app for Android (the actual full client, downloading the blockchain and everything) since I've not used it yet. Frankly, since none of the above require waiting for downloads, I'm not sure I ever will.
Also, to directly address question #3 in the OP: the number of confirmations is primarily a stat; anyone you send bitcoins to can act in whatever way at whatever number of confirmations they feel comfortable with. A restaurant may charge you at the start of your meal and allow you to leave after however many confirmations have passed during the meal. A friend may consider a debt paid as soon as you click send and the transaction gets broadcast, with zero confirmations. No one HAS to wait until a full 6 confirmations to do business with you, although the fewer confirmations, the greater the risk that someone can cheat the system. Really, 2 confirmations should be enough for most everyday bitcoin transactions.
|
|
|
|
I've been planning something similar, and have been wondering when the net offers enough smart people to pull this through. But it's not only about Bitcoin for me, it's about limiting government insanity in general. We must create a place on earth that is not drowning everything in idiotic dynamics. Unpunished corruption, patents + patent ceasefires, tax friction within productive cycles, government stealing and re-distributing funds in arbitrary fashion, hell, I HATE IT. I want to show these people the true power of a modern society, but the system is set up to throw as good as every cheaply available obstacle into my path. (They never throw expensive obstacles, the cheapskates.  ) I think of a country that makes only few rules, rules that can be proven or very strongly indicated correct. Then, it makes sure everyone who breaks these rules is hit hard, hard enough to satisfy the requirements from game theory. It is the only functional type of society I know, and the place of my dreams. I believe anybody truly awake should be longing for a place like that. But this is the sad part: exist enough people who are "truly awake" by my definition? You sound like a perfect candidate for the Free State Project. http://freestateproject.orgIn case anyone still doubts it, I am serious. I think a new country can be built from scratch that easily outperforms anything mankind has seen. All we need is the correct set of rules, a qualified population of 1~10k, a patch of land with trade access, enough know-how and funds to bring up basic infrastructure, and an international payment method not blocked by trade barriers (heh, guess what!  ). On the issue of building a new country "from scratch"... how would you acquire land that isn't already supposedly under the jurisdiction of (read: owned by) some existing government? |
|
|
|
|
I've downloaded it and am trying it out now.
As a minimalist interface, it looks pretty good. There's not much extra going on anywhere in the app to seriously confuse people.
I sent coins to the app, and it correctly showed the amount "on their way". I had intended to keep it open to see if it automatically let me know when the transaction was confirmed, but got distracted and re-opened the app to see the coins in-hand, so to speak.
All in all, this looks like an excellent, wonderfully simple app that should be great for mass market use.
|
|
|
|
|
A decentralized peer-to-peer email network, where everyone who contributes to the system (even just by running the client) gets a slice of the postage fee? Add in automatic encrypting of the mail and I'm sold. I can just see the ads: "Get PAID to use email! Use Bitmail!"
(Yes, I understand the OP was describing a typical email program that simply did things with bitcoins on the side... but I think it's possible to do much better...)
|
|
|
|
Which ones to avoid
- e-Wallet services ! (we'll talk about Mybitcoin)
There is no reason to "avoid all ewallet services." Instawallet has been amazing, reliable, and innovative. BTCinch.com is also really good, and I know the guys who run it personally - they will not be scamming anyone. Flexcoin has also been around quite a while without problems. With ewallets, people just need to be careful and understand that they're trusting a 3rd party. For small amounts, the ease of ewallets generally outweighs the security concerns. For large amounts, ewallets are probably not prudent. Mybitcoin was amazing, reliable, and innovative. but they got hacked. why is Instawallet or BTCinch any different? StrongCoin seems very safe. here's the thing.... if you hack StongCoin you get everyone's bits! not a half bad incentive to hack away StrongCoin only stores your private keys in encrypted form. They never even see the unencrypted keys. |
|
|
|
I'm pretty sure the comment came from a Zeitgeist-centric perspective, that all money is an unnecessary impediment to human interactions. Such a perspective really doesn't look at the concept of money realistically.
That said, I agree, current monetary systems are a scam; despite the investment in them and number of people using them, they're far inferior to bitcoin.
Animals don't use money. Humans are animals. Humans don't need money. It's really that simple. Everything else is just a complex web of fallacious constructs manifested through thousands of years of FUD. Humans use plenty of things that animals don't. Whether we "need" to or not. We don't need to use language... we could conceivably survive just grunting and hanging out in trees. We don't need higher math or music. But these are things humans naturally gravitate toward, develop, and make use of. No propaganda required. And, regardless of how some people might consider it an inherent evil, money (call it "advanced trade" if it makes one feel better) is one of those intellectual constructs humans develop. I mean, seriously. You can't have a complex society with advanced divisions of labor and support it through barter. Even if you could, no one would want to. People, as a general rule, want to simplify the process just because it's convenient. Hence, an abstract representation of the relative value of our goods and services. AKA: Money. |
|
|
|
tl;dr - what's the point? To fundamentally change the monetary system of the planet.
After that, hopefully we'll realize the pointlessness of a monetary system. Human beings naturally create and use money. If all monetary systems disappeared overnight, people would just begin trading cigarettes or something else. In any society beyond hunter-gatherer stage, there will always be some form of money. You missed the core issue. You cant create cigarettes or "some form of money" out of thin air. With current monetary system, ppl are effectively printing money EVERY DAY, out of thin air. Money supply never equals to (not even close) to production. This is why bitcoin is a proof of concept. Its finite, and cant never be created out of thin air. No corporations or government can control bitcoin supply. I'm pretty sure the comment came from a Zeitgeist-centric perspective, that all money is an unnecessary impediment to human interactions. Such a perspective really doesn't look at the concept of money realistically. That said, I agree, current monetary systems are a scam; despite the investment in them and number of people using them, they're far inferior to bitcoin. |
|
|
|
Which ones to avoid
- e-Wallet services ! (we'll talk about Mybitcoin)
There is no reason to "avoid all ewallet services." Instawallet has been amazing, reliable, and innovative. BTCinch.com is also really good, and I know the guys who run it personally - they will not be scamming anyone. Flexcoin has also been around quite a while without problems. With ewallets, people just need to be careful and understand that they're trusting a 3rd party. For small amounts, the ease of ewallets generally outweighs the security concerns. For large amounts, ewallets are probably not prudent. Mybitcoin was amazing, reliable, and innovative. but they got hacked. why is Instawallet or BTCinch any different? StrongCoin seems very safe. |
|
|
|
tl;dr - what's the point? To fundamentally change the monetary system of the planet.
After that, hopefully we'll realize the pointlessness of a monetary system. Human beings naturally create and use money. If all monetary systems disappeared overnight, people would just begin trading cigarettes or something else. In any society beyond hunter-gatherer stage, there will always be some form of money. |
|
|
|
at one point I was accused of being Bruce  because of my eclispe ellipses... lol anywho , who really cares. Bruce has done his time because we are the judge and jury I guess  I say we welcome him back to the community with open arms I mean really the price might go up lol I'll not be trusting the guy any time soon. The whole MyBitcoin thing was enough for me (and the aftermath... I'm still shaking my head at him trying to get involved with the bounty on the identity of the owner of MyBitcoin.) IMHO - the bitcoin community is far better off without him at this point than with him. |
|
|
|
How can bitcoin be used in the marketplace with all of its problems, and why do people stand by it when the pickings in the marketplace are so few, that the currency's only value stems from currency exchange, not the value of the goods and services it can provide.
I agree that the current incentives for the average consumer to use Bitcoin are slim, but there's entrepreneurs seeing the opportunities to create new businesses. Slowly it will become more attractive for customers as well - just not over night. Excellent point, I mean, there are tons of successful businesses that are based off bitcoin. I am one of those, with my plunder, bitcoin debit, but I have done thinking after making bitcoin debit, and that is when I came to this realization, that bitcoin, in my eyes, is useless at this time, and I need to stop investing in, or buying into, it. You're looking at it wrong. Because of those reasons, and the obvious potential, now is the perfect time to be investing in bitcoin—now, when the infrastructure is still being developed, and the price is still relatively low. Banking on a rather certain long-term gain is a better investment strategy than hoping to come out ahead short-term, wouldn't you agree? |
|
|
|
|
Show Posts
