Idea for Newbie Product

[the joint]

Was wondering if there's any need for a product/service like this.  I'm especially looking for feedback from newbies, but all feedback is welcome.

Product idea: 

USB stick pre-equipped with a moderate range of Bitcoin software and necessary files to get started using bitcoins immediately

-  Includes standard Bitcoin client software with wallet.dat pre-loaded with BTC
-  Includes up-to-date blkindex.dat
-  Includes two mining programs (GUIminer and CGminer)
-  Includes custom, written step-by-step instructions for setup and use of each program
-  Includes custom, written step-by-step instructions for encryption and keeping bitcoins safe and secure
-  Includes custom list of trusted merchant websites for users to visit

Service idea:

-  Addresses for each wallet would be saved by the service operator.  Users can 'reload' their wallet.dat by purchasing BTC from the service operator whereupon the service operator sends BTC to the user's address.


Advantages:
- Users avoid time and hassle of program downloads (from a trusted source, no less) and of acquiring bitcoins through an exchange, thereby minimizing newbie risk of error.
- Users have immediate access to all they need to begin exchanging Bitcoins immediately
- Simplistic, customized instructions retain only the information that's essential for the safe, secure, and immediate use of bitcoins by beginners.  Everything non-essential is tossed out.


Disadvantages:
- Necessary trust in the service operator
- Standard Bitcoin client software is not the easiest to use
- Instructions may become outdated
- Grandma still can't use it

Comments?

[helloworld]

I thought about doing this too:

Gathering all the necessary software together: easy
Selling a USB and shipping it out: easy
Writing the newbie friendly documentation to go with each program: Difficult and very time-consuming.

Don't pre-load the wallet.dat with more than 1 BTC, and be prepared for some chargebacks after the wallet has been emptied.

[SuperP]

I'd be really interested in something like a Live USB of Ubuntu or something user friendly geared toward bitcoin with all of the software and documentation that you mentioned on it.  Newbies should be forced to deal with bitcoin in a secure environment at first (especially if there are already bitcoins on the system) and I think an easy to start, secure, live OS isolated from their newbie OS would be ideal.  This project is using Puppy Linux to provide a bare bones brain wallet Live CD for savings accounts: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=108990.0

I'd like to see a Live USB that has persistence on it so I can plug it into my laptop, load up my bitcoin wallets, do some bitcoin stuff, save, then take the USB to my desktop and then be able to plug it in there and resume my bitcoin stuff.  The USB could also have a folder on it to act like what you are talking about with the installation files for Windows, Mac, and Linux bitcoin software.

Edit: Should have done some more searching, I missed this this Live PrivCoin OS: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=109439.0

[Badonkadonk]

why not set up a pre configured OS like bamt or ubuntu or whatev, that once u start it. u enter the mining pool u want etc.
then get redirected to dl a bitcoin wallet and prompt for running cgminer.

then just charge a nominal fee downloading the iso, or sell it on a usb stick etcetc.. sounds ez enough

[mybitcoincharts]

Nice idea, I would probably leave out the mining software, though. It adds unnecessary complexity (am thinking of grandma here) and im most regions even GPU mining is not profitable anymore if you factor in the cost of the GPU. Perhaps make the mining part optional for advanced users.

Somewhere I've seen a pc-on-a-stick which would be awesome to boot a linux os from for your idea, but I couldn't find it just now.

[Badonkadonk]

Nice idea, I would probably leave out the mining software, though. It adds unnecessary complexity (am thinking of grandma here) and im most regions even GPU mining is not profitable anymore if you factor in the cost of the GPU. Perhaps make the mining part optional for advanced users.

Somewhere I've seen a pc-on-a-stick which would be awesome to boot a linux os from for your idea, but I couldn't find it just now.

yeah ive seen some of those a while ago, "best" one i found could run unreal and doom 3, just a usb that u plugged in to the tv
if i had the skills to configure a linux distro to auto promt for wallet download / cgminer setup i would.

[the joint]

why not set up a pre configured OS like bamt or ubuntu or whatev, that once u start it. u enter the mining pool u want etc.
then get redirected to dl a bitcoin wallet and prompt for running cgminer.

then just charge a nominal fee downloading the iso, or sell it on a usb stick etcetc.. sounds ez enough

I do like the pre-configured OS option.  I have no experience with BAMT or ubuntu, so I'm not really sure what to make of them (though I hear they are superior for using Bitcoin once you know the ins and outs of the OS). 

If you have used all of these in addition to Windows, do you think that the majority of users would have an easier time learning and running Bitcoin from a different OS?  Or do you think it would be easier for most people to just extract/copy/run from a USB in Windows? 

Without having run BAMT or ubuntu myself, I'm leaning towards the latter.  I know a lot of people that really don't know shit about computers, but they know enough to the point that they can extract a zip if necessary and can run and copy files from a USB.  I also wonder about the possible level of user error when using a different OS, e.g. making sure you don't accidentally send your Bitcoins to oblivion or something.

[the joint]

Nice idea, I would probably leave out the mining software, though. It adds unnecessary complexity (am thinking of grandma here) and im most regions even GPU mining is not profitable anymore if you factor in the cost of the GPU. Perhaps make the mining part optional for advanced users.

Somewhere I've seen a pc-on-a-stick which would be awesome to boot a linux os from for your idea, but I couldn't find it just now.

I actually thought about the idea of excluding mining software and decided against it.  This Bitcoin 'starter-kit' wouldn't work for grandma anyway.  Grandma has bad eyesight and can't adequately check to make sure that she is sending/receiving bitcoins to and from the correct addresses.  Grandma might, if she's lucky, understand 'right-click + copy,' and that's about it.

This starter-kit would be for the 'average' computer user.  Think of it like this...this product would target people within 1 standard deviation of the mean in terms of computer knowledge, like the 'bell' of a bell-curve.  When I started bitcoin, I considered myself slightly above the mean in terms of computer knowledge.  I had never built one nor written any complex programs, but I had spent some months in my younger days working with qbasic (yes, qbasic) and html.  I know some basic commands in cmd, etc. etc. etc.  Through Bitcoin, I found out it was downright easy to assemble a computer, and aside from the time it took to learn what I needed to build, tune, and optimize a functional mining rig, that part was easy too.

All the hackers and computer experts in the world know what Bitcoin is and can understand it and use it without any issue.  Those like myself who have a semi-rich background in computer knowledge can understand and use it with a bit of time.  Still, there are others who have basic computer knowledge but use computers on a regular basis and can understand and use Bitcoin with some real effort.  These last two categories are the one's I'm targeting as I feel they will be the most likely to take the plunge.

However, I like what you said about "making mining optional for advanced users."  I could make different packages for users with different levels of experience.

[Badonkadonk]

However, I like what you said about "making mining optional for advanced users."  I could make different packages for users with different levels of experience.

that was kinda what i was thinking, if you want to start thinking "grandma needs to learn to use btc" then btc sure needs more integration in to society
theres allready wallets for your phone, and "pay by phone" apps wich cover the ez to learn part.

havent used bamt myself, i know its only for mining tho and nothing else. ubuntu is pretty easy, i just started using it myself on my miners,
and having something that ez to configure would perhaps get more ppl to start mining aswell.

wich again would mean faster integration of btc

[420]

I like. I assume you'd preload a generic wallet password maybe hand that to them seperately from the usb stick? sell with 5btc or something for $75

[Badonkadonk]

hehe, not a bad idea man