If someone wanted to create another bitcoin currency exchange site / service...

What are the relevant USA laws and/or regulations about operating a currency exchange, money transdfer system, etc., etc... within the USA?

What potential nightmares could one have, if operating within the USA?

For example, the horror story that became of e-gold....

Is it even worth attempting?

What are the potential reward, benefits, etc...?

I like the idea that perhaps they could be persuaded to SELL bitcoins for CASH.
Stores like selling things.  Especially things their customers keep asking for.
And stores LOVE cash.
If they were to keep being ASKED, "Do you sell bitcoin digital currency?"  Before long they'll be seeking it out!
I know the guy who owns the convenience store in my building.  I could help him set it up.
I wonder how much his transaction fees would have to be... to make it worth it...?

You've seen the...

Graph of Total Bitcoins Over Time

I'm curious. Isn't that just sort of an ESTIMATE based on TODAY'S CPU speeds?

The more I think about it.  The more I think.... an even better idea would be:

A Bitcoin App for Android.

This Android App could send bitcoin directly --- exactly the same way the desktop app does.

You'd likely want it to be its own separate "wallet", possibly, in case you lose your phone.

Also, there needs to be a "URL shortener" for Bitcoin addresses.

For example, built-in to the app could be a look-up function. 

I enter a person's phone number (or a store's phone number), and it automatically fills in their long bitcoin address.

Alternatively, the app could use my Android phone's camera to scan the QV? (square) barcode to enter the recipient's bitcoin address correctly and quickly.

Thoughts?

I want to see a super simple way to send bitcoin payments via sms.

You developer geeks out there:  Consider This a Challenge.  

I envision the ability to instantly send $4.95 to my local non-starbucks coffee shop... from my phone... via sms.  

I see my coffee shop having a tiny sign near the cash register saying, "Send bitcoin payments via text message to:  212-580-0022."

I send a text message to some central "BitcoinByText" server number.  Like:  send usd4.95 to 2125800022 Bruce Large Capachino
T
It Replies to me:   Sent US $4.95 to 2125800022. Confirmation Number: a8x6q3

Instantly it sends confirmation to the Coffee Shop's phone too:    Received US $4.95 from 9173857394 for Bruce Large Capachino. Confirmation Number: a8x6q3

And the bitcoin send happens automatically in the background.  

Both parties would have to have an account set up with "BitcoinByText", presumably.   This means they'd both be trusted.  

The larger the amount of the transaction, the more "confirmed" that would be required before the transaction is confirmed and the texts sent to both parties as "confirmed"  

In other words, a $19.95 purchase could be confirmed immediately.  

A $19,900.00 purchase might take two or three hours to confirm.

This could also depend on the level of trust that person has earned with "BitcoinByText".

Yes, I already read the fine manual... before I posted.   

If I had found the answers to any of my questions in the manual, I wouldn't be posting them here.   

And I didn't post these questions on the first day I joined this forum.  I've been reading and reading and reading this forum...   

And I finally decided that it SHOULDN'T be this hard to find the answers to  -- what I consider to be -- very fundamental basic questions.

If I have this much difficulty finding these answers...  I can only imagine how difficult it must be for the average person.

And, by the way, RTFQ.

You misread my first question.  I didn't say, "Is it open source?"  /   I said, "Is it ALL open source?"  (referring to the bitcoin software) 

In other words, are there any versions, or any components of any versions, that are NOT open source?

What does the posting option "Return to this topic" do?

Normally, I've seen an option to "Notify me by email of new posts to this thread." --- which I like.

However, in this forum, that seems to be replaced with:  "Return to this topic"  -- which I have no idea what that means?

Yes, of course.  My post was really only to give people some "food for thought".   To make people think...  If the value of gold were to continue to increase...  and the cost of energy to go down...  It is possible that gold could be manufactured for less than it's "worth".   

Of course, next year's technology will change everything.   Nothing is forever.

That was my point...

I also wonder, with the exponential advancement in computing power, will bitcoin's cryptography become hackable.   If so, that'll be the end of it.   Nothing is forever.

Why does everyone rave so much about gold....?

I've heard things said like:

    "Bitcoin is the 'gold standard' of digital currency."

    "Bitcoin is not suitable as the money of the future because it is not backed by gold."

I only wish that Gold was backed by something as secure as Bitcoin.

So you think Gold is the ultimate infallible material as physical money....?

___

An Example of a Precious Metal That Became Common

Up until the late 1800's, Aluminum was extremely valuable due to the fact that it was very hard to procure.  It was, in fact, more valuable than gold!  Bars of aluminum were exhibited alongside the French crown jewels at the Exposition Universelle of 1855.  Napoleon Bonaparte was said to have a special set of aluminum utensils only to be used by his most esteemed guests.  His gold utensils were for more casual occasions!  Also, atop the Washington Monument sits an almost 3 kg pyramid of aluminum, placed as a symbol of how strong and wealthy the U.S. was.

In 1886, the Hall-Heroult process was invented as cost-effective way to produce aluminum. Since then, the value of aluminum has been significantly reduced.

Still wanna invest in bullion bars of aluminum?

___

Another Example of Technology as Game Changer

Synthetic diamond is diamond produced in a technological process; as opposed to natural diamond, which is created in geological processes. Synthetic diamond is also widely known as HPHT diamond or CVD diamond, denoting the production method, High-Pressure High-Temperature synthesis and Chemical Vapor Deposition, respectively.

The properties of synthetic diamond depend on the details of the manufacturing processes, and can be inferior or superior to those of natural diamond; the hardness, thermal conductivity and electron mobility are superior in some synthetic diamonds (either HPHT or CVD). Consequently, synthetic diamond is widely used in abrasives, in cutting and polishing tools and in heat sinks. Electronic applications of synthetic diamond are being developed, including high-power switches at power stations, high-frequency field-effect transistors and light-emitting diodes. Synthetic diamond detectors of ultraviolet (UV) light or high-energy particles are used at high-energy research facilities and are available commercially. Because of its unique combination of thermal and chemical stability, low thermal expansion and high optical transparency in a wide spectral range, synthetic diamond is becoming the most popular material for optical windows in high-power CO2 lasers and gyrotrons.

Both CVD and HPHT diamonds can be cut into gems and various colors can be produced: clear white, yellow, brown, blue, green and orange. The appearance of synthetic gems on the market created major concerns in the diamond trading business, as a result of which special spectroscopic devices and techniques have been developed to distinguish synthetic and natural diamonds.
___

So, do you think that gold (or any other precious metal or gem) is immune to new technology...   technology that could manufacture it artificially, or find massive reserves of it?

I think there might even be a HIGHER chance of that happening...  BEFORE technology is able to crack the cryptography of bitcoin.

Of course, as the saying goes:   "Perception is Reality."

So, if people BELIEVE that gold will preserve its value and that nothing can change that...  Well, that will help gold.

However, if they come up with a way to manufacture gold as cheaply as Snickers bars...  Gold will be in trouble.

I only wish Gold was backed by something as secure as Bitcoin.

Who maintains the bitcoin software?

Is it all open source?

Is it possible that someone could corrupt the software?

Is it possible that someone could use a modified version of the software to corrupt the bitciin chain?

I've seen references to some sort of security flaw which was fixed in the latest version of the software.  When a problem like this occurs, who steps in to fix it?  How does that process happen? 

Where can I read more about what happened, what went wrong, and how it was resolved?

Does one person (the creator?) have "the Master password" which could "unlock" the chain... allowing him to do such things as... modify the limit of 21 million bitcoins, for example?

If Intel were to release a CPU 1,000,000 times faster than the fastest current CPUs on the market today, (and internet connections suddenly became 1,000,000 times faster too), how would that affect bitcoin generation, and the bitcoin economy?

Who's most "in charge of" or most "in control of" the bitcoin network?   What person(s) or entity(ies)?

Today's spot gold price for 1g of gold is USD45.19

Today's Mt Gox last price for Bitcoin is USD0.14

Does that not translate into:   322.78571 Bitcoin = 1g Gold

I think this kinda sums up how I feel too...

What about "speculation for the sole purpose of LOSING money"...  Are you saying that That's ok with you...?   ha ha

Speculation and "Ponzi schemes"... are simply gambling.  Nothing more and nothing less.   Gambling.    By DEFINITION, gambling involves risk -- great risk.   That means they often LOSE all of the money they're playing with.

You can say that gambling is "morally wrong".   But I totally disagree.   If the player of the game understands the terms and rules of the game, then it's certainly fair for them to play that game.

It harms no one.   (Unless they do it compulsively, to their own detriment.  But that's an entirely different topic.  Like drinking so much water that you drown yourself.  Too much of anything can kill you.)

In fact, YOUR very own bitcoin holdings are likely worth much more today than they were last month.  Likely, that increase in value is at least partially a result of investment by speculators.   So, since you believe that that increase in value is "morally wrong"...  Obviously, it would be "morally wrong" to profit from it (even though you took no risks at all, by the way. none whatsoever.)...  Who are you going to donate all that increased value to?   Some charity?  Some anti-gambling organization?   Of course, by your own logic....  It would be "morally wrong" for you to keep any increase in its value.    Right?!?

@creighto   Your posts are very entertaining.  I laughed out loud a couple of times.  Thanks. 

I know, personally, two people who grew up in two different countries... but both had this in common:  They worked in sweatshops most of their life.  And they would be the first to tell you...  They thank GOD for those sweatshops.   If it hadn't been for those sweatshops, they and their families would have likely starved to death.   

One of these families was in Taipei, Taiwan about 40 years ago.   The other one was in Miami, Florida about 45 years ago.

Sweatshops are just like any other productive capitalist business.  If the workers are working there out of their own free will, they are almost always EXTREMELY grateful for their job there.

The irony is:  Those who would call sweatshops immoral are fat, rich, and happy... living in rich Western countries... and have probably never even SEEN true hunger before in their lives.   Yet, they want to judge the sweatshops as evil....  while the workers are thanking God for them, and calling them a blessing from God.

Speculation is not immoral.  Gambling is not immoral.   The only time it's bad is if you are doing it too much... to the point that it is harming YOU.   Then it's a problem.

Oh, come on.  That's like saying, "If gamblers lost money, they wouldn't gamble."    If that were true, Las Vegas would not exist.   Even you know that gamblers don't always win.  In fact, they lose much more often than they win.

Anyway, I think some of your sentiments are close....  But you keep missing the target.

You seem to have been brainwashed a little bit by the media and other "powers that be"...

The cause of our current Wall St economic woes is NOT due to speculators.   There's nothing wrong with speculation.   Speculation is as old as money itself.

The cause of much of our current economic woes is simple FRAUD.   It's from creating paper that's worthless, then having the most reputable rating firms declare it GOOD and SAFE.

That is just plain FRAUD --- nothing more, nothing less.

FRAUD is not capitalism.   Fraud is fraud.   It's just criminal activity plain and simple.   But don't buy into this "blame the speculators" BS.   That's just an excuse to let the guilty off the hook.

Meanwhile, I view corporations as simply "machines to make money".  They have no conscious whatsoever.  To expect them to have a conscious is as ridiculous as expecting your refrigerator to have a conscious.   Rampant corporatology, and government collusion with global corporations leads to more corruption.... usually with very bad results for the masses.  That's why it's up to governments to regulate and control corporations...  keeping them in line.   For example, Walmart has basically BECOME a China company.... representing China's interests far more than American interests.   That's what happens with a "machine to make money"...  It just gets more and more efficient at making money... until it eventually crosses the line... and goes too far.

Anyway, capitalism is not to blame.  And speculation is not to blame.   The people need to educate themselves more about how things work.   Perpetrators of fraud must be punished.  And corporations need to be reigned in and controlled by the government.

This is just plain false.   As long as those workers are voluntarily working there, they are BETTER OFF.   Would you rather have them work hard for 20 cents an hour, or have their family starve to death.   Those are your two choices.   Which do you choose?

I can tell you for sure:  If you ask them...   They will tell you that the day they got that job.... in the "sweatshop"...  on the cruise line... whatever... for 20 cents an hour...  THAT day felt like they had won the lottery.

So, that IS helping the masses.    Directly.

And, as I said, those workers will eventually either become prosperous and live a better life.... or they WILL rise up and overthrow their dictator...   Either way, it does benefit those masses.

Sorry.  But this logic is so.... shall we say....   "flawed".  ( To say the least.  ...and to be kind. )

Let me ask you this:  When the speculators LOSE money, who is stealing from whom?   Huh?    Who is the thief then?

Remember, speculators LOSE money just about as often as the MAKE money.   That's why it's called speculation.   So...  When they LOSE money....  Who is the thief?  

By your logic.....    YOU are.

Speculators are to a currency.... like the thermostat is to your furnace.   When it's too hot, they automatically decrease the temperature.   When it's too cold, they automatically increase the temperature.   Speculators may make for more volatile swings in the value.   However, when the value is higher than it should be, they sell... bringing the value down.   When the value is lower than it should be, they buy... bringing the value up.   Speculation is a necessary, beneficial, essential component of a free market.

I think that, often, "what makes economic sense"... is also what helps the masses most.  Money, like water, usually flows downward... toward where it is needed most.  For example, labor is cheapest in countries where money is needed most.  Labor is most expensive in countries where people are too rich, fat, and happy to want to perform labor.
Of course, tyrant dictators often control the money and the power in their respective countries... But not forever.  As that nation prospers more and more, one of two things tends to happen: (1)  They share the wealth with the laborers who are creating it. Result: They end up fat and happy and no longer the cheapest labor in the world. Or, (2) They greedily keep it all for themselves and let the laborers work more like a slave class. Result: Eventually the divide between the have's and have-not's grows wider and wider, until there is a revolution, and the dictator(s) are toppled.
In the end, this seems to be good for everyone.  Of course, these things don't happen overnight.  Maybe not even in one generation.  But they do happen over time.
Taiwan used to be impoverished.  They were known for making the cheapest plastic crap toys, and later Christmas tree lights.  Because they are capitalist and free, over time, the country prospered greatly... eventually holding the largest foreign cash reserves of any nation.   Now, they make computers, laptops, and other very sophisticated tech products.  The cheap plastic toy manufacturing moved to Malaysia and China.   The tide rolls on.   Now, China is advancing.   More and more sophisticated electronics are being manufactured there.   As the search for ever-cheaper labor continues....  the money flows to where it's needed most....  over time.

Hi!

I'm new here.   Just wanted to say HI to everyone and introduce myself.

Just learned about bitcoin and am fascinated...

Anxious to learn about it.

What's the best RSS feed I should subscribe to... to read all the best news about bitcoin?

( As a sidebar:  To the moderators of this forum: How do you keep spambots out of your SMF forum!? I ran one once and disbanded it because of the constant fighting the spambots. )

Anyway, Cheers from New York City!

Bruce & Ed