BITCOIN IS TOO SLOW TO EVER SUCCEED AS ONLINE CURRENCY

[bitcoinologist]

Hi,

Well for all the plusses, all the hype, all the talk of global change. There is ONE SMALL chink in the bitcoin Armour. For all the zero transactions, anonymity, security etc etc

IT IS TOO DAMN SLOW  !!

Unless bitcoin can match paypal/credit card for speed of use, all the pluses will be forgotten as joe public is left waiting for 10 mins, 2 hours or even the next day wondering if his/her bitcoin transaction  has confirmed.

Seriously, in light of the massive surge in bitcoin, currently driven by hype and stock broker mentality buying and speculating. IF bitcoin is ever to take over paypal and its other cronies, we need to be as quick.

Or, it will forever flounder as an experiment, great for blackmarket, some merchants will offer it but...that will be its zenith reached.

The whole concept of online transactions is INSTANT. SPEED, ONE CLICK...JOB DONE.

Bitcoin cannot offer this as the current rate of how the block chain works.

Thank you for you purchase, you might have the auction you wanted, you may have got the domain you wanted but give us a few hours or well, could be 10 mins, could be tomorrow and we will let you know if your transaction completed in time to get the purchase you wanted.

Ya righty !!....Ill use paypal or credit card.

[whitetoo]

I'm only a small user thus far for BTC transfers but after 15+ transactions I cannot say I've had to wait longer than 5 mins for a confirmation.
Even using the Bitcoin-qt software which is supposedly "slow" coins arrive instantly and then make some coffee and they're confirmed.
I am a patient person however.

The only annoyance I find is the wallet sync with the blocks, I don't like to leave it running constantly but I'm sure improvements will be made.

[MysteryMiner]

I will tell You this: I'm waiting 6 days and counting for PayPal withdrawal to Visa card.

There is absolutely no need to wait for even a single confirmation if the sending party are unlikely to double-spend. If transactions shows up in client it already are valid transaction. The sender controls the private keys of inputs.

OP is either fool or spreading FUD.

[bitcoinologist]

Agreed, I've had longer for sure.

However, my point is: 5 minutes is too long.

This is the internet, and if bitcoin wants to challenge paypal, and the credit card companies, it needs to be as fast.

Customers are by nature, impatient, and they want the one click, Job done nature. And unless bitcoin can offer that, the masses will not adapt.

I think the MAX time is 30 seconds and the network needs to consider how they can make this happen.

[whitetoo]

Paypal fees vs Bitcoin fees + a few minutes wait time.... there's no contest for me.

[chmod755]

if bitcoin wants to challenge

Bitcoin is not a company, but a currency and some companies using Bitcoin are allowing you to do transactions instantly.

[MysteryMiner]

Bitcoin are easier to set up and use than PayPal.
Bitcoin are much safer against chargebacks than PayPal or Credit Card. With PayPal You must wait at least 6 months before chargebacks become unlikely.
What prevents service for accepting zero confirmation transactions? Nothing. Even if it is for shipping goods, the goods must be packaged before being sent. It takes at least some time to package items so double-spend alert system and aborting system will be excellent solution to take care of confirmation risks and delays.

You are wrong and do this for purpose.

[bitcoinologist]

Don't get me wrong, I love bitcoin and I want it to take over.

I am simply saying, from 20 years in online business, that Joe Public, customers, the people we need to accept this will want instant.

I appreciate technically it is instant, suppose a lot hangs on merchants not to delay until confirmed and process orders immediately.

Eitherway, we need to find ways to make that transaction, instant.

[Amitabh S]

Well if you skip fees, it may take hours or even days. So always give a fee. Otherwise, don't worry. From your side, its still click and forget, and let the network take care of it.

[MysteryMiner]

You are gynecologist not bitcoinologist. Stop pretending You know something about Bitcoin. There is no need for instant confirmations and it is not possible to reasonably do so technically. It is possible to do by using MyBitcoin type payment service if people will trust them not to double spend or run away with coins. But then it will be the same as VISA.

[bitcoinologist]

lol whats your problem hero ?

My points are entirely valid, and just because I have not been on this forum for the past years, I have been building businesses online since 95 and you are not teaching me anything about fiat currency online, how paypal works, or how merchant facilities work. I turnover 50k a month online and have learned quite a lot in those years.

And whether you like it or not, there is much to do to improve ease of use and speed of transaction for bitcoin to take the likes of paypal down.

It's a shame someone cannot start a discussion, raise valid points regardless of "newbie" status before someone has to resort to snide attempts at put downs because perhaps they do not know enough about online commerce to see the points raised.

Whether it be, changes of behavior of merchants, new services or ways of doing things, bitcoin will "need" to compete on speed.

[Arcavum]

Have you ever tried mailing a dollar to Antarctica. *By snail mail*?

What would be faster? A dollar shipped physically to Antarctica or a Bitcoin transaction?

Your comparing a currency to services that use currency.

Paypal isn't a currency, it's a service.

Similarly to how something like Western Union isn't a currency either. 

Bitcoin is just a currency, it's only as fast as the service that delivers it.

The bitcoin network itself has been really fast for me.  Higher transaction fees equal faster delivery time.  *It's not fair* but it's not so big, a problem that it's worth caring about on my end.

[MysticalCockFungus]

Agreee 100%, all coins at the moment are just BETA's for something better which will come along soon. Either way doesnt mean you cants still make some quick cash with BTC and other alts.

[odolvlobo]

Hi,

Well for all the plusses, all the hype, all the talk of global change. There is ONE SMALL chink in the bitcoin Armour. For all the zero transactions, anonymity, security etc etc

IT IS TOO DAMN SLOW  !!

Instead of complaining, why don't you do something about it? Set up a company that guarantees 0-confirmation transactions. If it is really as necessary as you say, merchants and consumers will flock to your service and your company will make a killing.

[dancupid]

Paypal takes 90 days to confirm a transaction - they can reverse it anytime in the interim.
Bitcoin takes 1 hour.

[jabetizo]

actually, bitcoin transactions are faster than paypal/credit card transacrions.

you can count a CC/PayPal transaction roughly as final as a bitcoin 0-confirmation, the speed here is the same (instant). however, PP/CC can be reversed for months after the transaction, bitcon transactions cannot be reversed after a few confirmations.

[Severian]

Unless bitcoin can match paypal/credit card for speed of use....

The choice as I see it:

1. Use a depreciating currency on a system that tracks and monitors your every move and might even report a transaction to the government. For everyone's safety, of course.

2. Use a system that has instant transactions and variable confirmation times but allows for far greater flexibility in storage, sending and identity protection. It's also gaining in value.

Which one would a rational person use?

Ill use paypal or credit card.

[chmod755]

actually, bitcoin transactions are faster than paypal/credit card transacrions.

you can count a CC/PayPal transaction roughly as final as a bitcoin 0-confirmation, the speed here is the same (instant). however, PP/CC can be reversed for months after the transaction, bitcon transactions cannot be reversed after a few confirmations.

Yep, just require customer data (email, name, address, etc.) and blacklist the customer / don't ship / stop service if it doesn't confirm later.

[Luckybit]

Hi,

Well for all the plusses, all the hype, all the talk of global change. There is ONE SMALL chink in the bitcoin Armour. For all the zero transactions, anonymity, security etc etc

IT IS TOO DAMN SLOW  !!

Unless bitcoin can match paypal/credit card for speed of use, all the pluses will be forgotten as joe public is left waiting for 10 mins, 2 hours or even the next day wondering if his/her bitcoin transaction  has confirmed.

Seriously, in light of the massive surge in bitcoin, currently driven by hype and stock broker mentality buying and speculating. IF bitcoin is ever to take over paypal and its other cronies, we need to be as quick.

Or, it will forever flounder as an experiment, great for blackmarket, some merchants will offer it but...that will be its zenith reached.

The whole concept of online transactions is INSTANT. SPEED, ONE CLICK...JOB DONE.

Bitcoin cannot offer this as the current rate of how the block chain works.

Thank you for you purchase, you might have the auction you wanted, you may have got the domain you wanted but give us a few hours or well, could be 10 mins, could be tomorrow and we will let you know if your transaction completed in time to get the purchase you wanted.

Ya righty !!....Ill use paypal or credit card.

Try using Paypal to make micropayments. Try paying websites cents on the dollar to access them or fractions of a cent and see how those websites feel about their long term profits from that.

Bitcoin is a different story. You pay a site fractions of a cent in Bitcoin and at the end of the year it's dollars.

[Come-from-Beyond]

Agreee 100%, all coins at the moment are just BETA's for something better which will come along soon. Either way doesnt mean you cants still make some quick cash with BTC and other alts.

Take a look at http://qubic.boards.net/index.cgi?board=theconcept&action=display&thread=1. Estimated transaction confirmation is less than 1 minute.