My comment above was limited to relative Bitcoin anonymity.  Car thieves will typically go after cars that are not locked (well, yes, Ferraris too).

Different kinds of threats and threat levels require different responses.  We all know what happened to Anne Frank.

GUNS and such have their role too.

Thank you, GenTarkin, for your review, you have clearly tested both Ledger Nano and Trezor more than I have, and have a better understanding than I do.

But, I have not had any problems with the Ledger.  Yes, owners do have to be careful to not enter a wrong password.

Trezor does have one issue I do not like however.  Should someone STEAL it, they can see your transactions and balances, Trezor asks for a password when you send BTC.  Ledger makes you enter the password before peeking to see what's inside...



EDIT: Yes, I like Trezor's 2FA better than Ledger's.

...

For me, all I care about is anonymity at the level of casual hackers (etc.), those who would try to steal "EASY BTC", unprotected.  Like burglars who choose easy targets...

I have no evidence, but my *guess* is that TPTB (IRS, perhaps other .govs) could crack mixers.  But, one would have to be a target.  Don't want to be a target?  Don't do illegal things.  Smaller, but more, transactions might help too.

The countermeasures we have right now are enough to get "Pretty Good Privacy" in that sense, anonymity vs. casual thieves.  Mixing BTC seems to be "good enough".  bitmixer.io and blockchain.info's SharedCoin service are enough for me.

*   *   *

justusranvier's link above is excellent for those ready for this level of technical understanding, as is iCEBREAKER's, thank you both for the links.

https://github.com/justusranvier/wallet-ratings/blob/2015-2/2015-2/threat%20model.wiki

http://crypsys.mmci.uni-saarland.de/projects/CoinShuffle/coinshuffle.pdf

...

letyouearn

I would be interested in learning more about the database system you choose, especially should you have LOTS of records (say, over 500, or even over 100,000).

I analyze sales data from our Peruvian bearing import company (for 16 years now).

...

Philosophy of morality (and just morality alone, or philosophy alone) are huge topics.  

Re downloading music illegally, well, when I want to listen to music, I either turn the radio on, put on a CD or go to Youtube.  I don't download music, but that's just me.

Would be listening to music on Youtube count as immoral?  Not going there.  Example: does illegal downloading "fight the man"?  

Arguing philosophy is above my paygrade.  A deep, deep set of rabbit holes.  I have bigger fish I am trying to fry: protecting my worthwhile assets in the perilous times to come.

...

LiteCoinGuy's thread on hardware is excellent re keeping up with hardware wallets.

I only have used Ledger Nano and Trezor.  Both have worked just fine.  The Ledger "seems" more physically sturdy. 

The Ledger is also fairly cheap.  If price matters, Ledger Nano. 

Ledger Nano (once you have set it up on a clean -- no malware -- computer) allows you to then use it on any connected computer (even if laden with viruses, etc.).

*   *   *

I am looking forward to a new product apparently coming soon from Switzerland: https://digitalbitbox.com/

...

crazy-pilot

There is no doubt that you are right, at least in part.  Greece has a very irresponsible borrower in recent years, defaulting a number of times.

Yes, there is other blame to go around (Germany, the Troika, Goldman-Sachs, etc.), but Greece itself bears a lot of the blame for their situation.

...

Except for people who want micropayments (and, um, that's what these appear to be, LOTS of them), I still have not seen ANY convincing arguments against the idea of raising minimums:

1) minimum BTC sent to, say, BTC0.001

and/or

2) minimum transaction fee to, say, BTC0.0002

I would rather have a robust BTC Ecosystem that gets my payments through in good time than worry about sending amounts of less than US$0.20.............

Well, I dunno.  I may be more ready to crawl under my desk, or even the bed...

It WILL be interesting to see if Armstrong wins this prediction.

Y2K and 2012 were both duds, neither came true...  I was completely unprepared re both of them (whew), a bit better so for 2015.75.  Armstrong and TPTB have both made a number of good calls that DID come true.  Armstrong has a strong grasp of history and cycles.  So, we'll see.

...

iCEBREAKER

I must be an Asshole Libertarian (because that's just kinda the way I am), but even lil ol moi thinks that security and health of the Bitcoin Ecosystem might require the occasional *tweak* now and then.  As in my idea posted a couple of weeks or so ago re minimum BTC amounts (sayBTC0.001) and/or minimum fees (say, BTC0.0003) to fight off the spammers...

I don't mind paying a bit more for my BTC payment to go through.  And, really, who needs micropayments?  (Oh...., was that an ominous silence I just heard in here?)

*   *   *

(Hear you re getting rich programming if I could do really advanced calculations)

Well, we'll have to see.  Actually, Greece NOT defaulting might be an interesting test of "The Bankster Theory" (where TF is my lawyer, I want to copyright that, stat).

Where does Armstrong stand on banksters (EDIT: "and their power over .gov")?  I'm curious, perhaps by chance I have not seen him address the Bankster/.GOV/Military/Industrial Complex.

Amigo TPTB!

You might be right, but I see a Greek Default along one or more of the lines as in my original post.  Yes, Europe could come to their "rescue" (LOL?), but that would indeed lead to a European outcome probably along the lines of what you propose.  Which is probably close to the end-game anyway.

My hunch is that Greece screws (or tries to screw) Europe/Germany first.  The big question would be: WWFD? *



* What would FRANCE do?

...

Truth, TPTB.  I don't have your prediction post number at hand either, but I well remember it.  Yes, you & Armstrong are one of the few non-trolly guys who predicted this.

Those of us, even saying we are stalwart HODLERS of Au, feel like we are taking a beating.  Still, it is diversification I am happy with (thank goodness I started buying decades ago).

What is even more of a pity is that my wife has prohibited me from buying more.  So, I will not.  I am OK with what I have, and it ain't goin' anywhere (except eventually to our kid).

...

Past few days I've seen a lot of gold collapsing and Bitcoin going nowhere (which in one sense is good, more Au for the BTC when the time comes).

Only problem for me is that my wife just forbade me to buy any more gold.  Bummer!  But a promise is a promise.

...

I have both a Trezor and a Ledger Nano (bought both some 8 months ago).  I am happy with both.  I have used both of them over 15 times each, and I cannot detect any problems with either.

The Ledger costs less.

I have not upgraded the firmware with either device.  Also, there may be new versions of the Trezor as well as Ledger Nano, I may buy another Nano to see (as well as have some BTC in yet another device hidden elsewhere).

...

Hats off to you, trollercoaster, two scary (totalitarian) articles.  Bravo.

I yesterday read the NY Post one about the various databases that O's team is preparing.  Forced desegregation, coercion on towns to ruin themselves.  Preparation to go after whomever they choose.  What kind of liberty is that?

And I smiled when I saw the crooksandliars.com name of their site.  Then I read the piece on Wesley Clark's proposal.  Scary!  Gen. Clark has proposed some weird shit since he retired, may we now see "The Real Wesley Clark" now that he no longer is in the military.

Well, I haven't tried barbecued rats either...    Cui (guinea pigs in Peru), yes

Ah, the Old South, I remember her well.  When I was a very young kid (+/- 4), we moved to rural SC.  My father's family in Chicago must have wondered just WHAT my father was thinking...

Railroad facilities, old buildings, slow & simple life.  Yep.

I do NOT miss the Black Widow spiders though, one of them ruined a couple of days for me.

/OT


EDIT: Back on topic, I will have to think about TPTB's ideas on a new currency, one that depreciates if you hold it.  That just goes so against my natural instincts.  If a currency depreciates so, then that implies you have to BUY some, then spend it quickly.  You would lose if you just hang on to it.  The US$ at least can be held for a week or a month, and you still get (approximately, and at least for now) the same amount of goods.

Looking forward to that movie, I hope to be attending the premiere...  

...

My last purchase w/ BTC was gold.

Buying gold with Bitcoin is like spending money and saving at the same time.

Buying Bitcoin with CA$H is like spending money and saving at the same time.

Buying gold with CA$H is like spending money and saving at the same time.

Circular logic?

*   *   *

I tell you all what I would REALLY LIKE to be able to do with BTC.  And that is to grow it!  

I have read on other threads that most people are having bad luck investing BTC.  Whether loaning it, trading it (some claim to do fine trading BTC with alts), gambling, etc.

...

There it is, thanks TheRealSteve!  BitFury, ahh...

OK, well let me not be guilty (not guilty at least once), and brings us back on topic:

Gold, bitchez!  (BTC too, I would be happy to see BTC rise even faster)

...

GHash.IO was indeed scary looking at that time (briefly over 50% of the hashing power).  But, I was not well hooked into BTC mining talk.  What happened?  Did a bunch of hardware owners switch to other miners?

Thanks, and sorry for the O/T.