Reminder: Be Open and Helpful To New People To Bitcoin

[fintekneeks]

I still meet quite a few people who don't have any bitcoins and think they can only buy one.  It's a great reminder that there are still misconceptions that we can correct.  In his case, he and his family are from India so they have concerns about gold, but he's uneasy about buying a full bitcoin at $1200ish.  I pointed out, "You could buy $10 or $20 worth of a bitcoin just to test it out" and he was stunned that this was an option.  For those of us who've been around a while, it's easy to forget that some don't know this.  Be friendly and helpful, as people want to be a part of an open community.

[RodeoX]

Thank you for the reminder. It is easy to become frustrated teaching something you already know. But there was a time, not long ago, when no one understood bitcoin and we all figured it out together by sharing what we know.

You don't want to be this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfKL6RM8hsY

 

[eternalgloom]

It's really easy to take all that 'simple' information for granted if you've been around for a while, but I can certainly imagine that it must be pretty confusing for new people.

I just did a little test to see what kind of information you'd be getting if you just look for 'Bitcoin' on Google and it's really not newbie-friendly to say the least.
A lot of technical information with rather difficult terminology especially for non tech-savvy people.

Just an example from my first result (bitcoin.org):

Bitcoin uses peer-to-peer technology to operate with no central authority or banks; managing transactions and the issuing of bitcoins is carried out collectively by the network. Bitcoin is open-source; its design is public, nobody owns or controls Bitcoin and everyone can take part. Through many of its unique properties, Bitcoin allows exciting uses that could not be covered by any previous payment system.

[franky1]

i myself love to learn everything i can and have found that its easier to tone it down to laymans speech as best as possible.

yes i get backlash by some who think i do not know what i am talking about because i am not using the latest techno jargon buzzword of the week, but thats their issue, concerning trying to help their own ego's by preferring the jargon rather than actually explain the end-user experience in a way anyone can understand.

EG its like if you become a doctor, try to avoid saying things like, im sorry you have suffered an acute myocardial infarction. and just say im sorry your heart stopped for 10 seconds.

it may seem more abrupt and frank, but atleast the context gets across better

this:

Bitcoin uses peer-to-peer technology to operate with no central authority or banks; managing transactions and the issuing of bitcoins is carried out collectively by the network. Bitcoin is open-source; its design is public, nobody owns or controls Bitcoin and everyone can take part. Through many of its unique properties, Bitcoin allows exciting uses that could not be covered by any previous payment system.

becomes:

Bitcoin uses a method of managing transactions between people without a central manager. issuing out new funds as a reward to certain parties who follow the rules of this diverse network. Bitcoin is designed to be public, no single body owns or controls the network and everyone can take part. Through many of its unique properties, Bitcoin allows exciting uses that could not be covered by any previous payment system.

[Nagadota]

It's really easy to take all that 'simple' information for granted if you've been around for a while, but I can certainly imagine that it must be pretty confusing for new people.

I just did a little test to see what kind of information you'd be getting if you just look for 'Bitcoin' on Google and it's really not newbie-friendly to say the least.
A lot of technical information with rather difficult terminology especially for non tech-savvy people.

Just an example from my first result (bitcoin.org):

Bitcoin uses peer-to-peer technology to operate with no central authority or banks; managing transactions and the issuing of bitcoins is carried out collectively by the network. Bitcoin is open-source; its design is public, nobody owns or controls Bitcoin and everyone can take part. Through many of its unique properties, Bitcoin allows exciting uses that could not be covered by any previous payment system.

Actually while I can't really get into the mindset of a newbie, that looks fairly simple and doesn't go into the technical details of how Bitcoin works (which I don't even understand well enough myself).  It's just an explanation of why Bitcoin has to exist, which is reasonable enough.

It's nice to talk about the key properties, and this is just one of them.  The problem is that the explanation of Bitcoin can't be in a soundbite while still being reasonable.  Bitcoin is actually quite complicated as a concept because it differs from fiat money in so many different ways, like how it's infinitely divisible while a dollar is not.

While some explanations might be too complicated, that one is fine for anyone with an ounce of intelligence.  As Einstein said, "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler".

[eternalgloom]

It's really easy to take all that 'simple' information for granted if you've been around for a while, but I can certainly imagine that it must be pretty confusing for new people.

I just did a little test to see what kind of information you'd be getting if you just look for 'Bitcoin' on Google and it's really not newbie-friendly to say the least.
A lot of technical information with rather difficult terminology especially for non tech-savvy people.

Just an example from my first result (bitcoin.org):

Bitcoin uses peer-to-peer technology to operate with no central authority or banks; managing transactions and the issuing of bitcoins is carried out collectively by the network. Bitcoin is open-source; its design is public, nobody owns or controls Bitcoin and everyone can take part. Through many of its unique properties, Bitcoin allows exciting uses that could not be covered by any previous payment system.

Actually while I can't really get into the mindset of a newbie, that looks fairly simple and doesn't go into the technical details of how Bitcoin works (which I don't even understand well enough myself).  It's just an explanation of why Bitcoin has to exist, which is reasonable enough.

It's nice to talk about the key properties, and this is just one of them.  The problem is that the explanation of Bitcoin can't be in a soundbite while still being reasonable.  Bitcoin is actually quite complicated as a concept because it differs from fiat money in so many different ways, like how it's infinitely divisible while a dollar is not.

While some explanations might be too complicated, that one is fine for anyone with an ounce of intelligence.  As Einstein said, "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler".

I'm sure most of the people on this forum can understand it, but the average person probably doesn't even know what 'peer-to-peer' or open source means.
Plus, keep in mind that most of the people wanting to know more about bitcoin want to learn the practical stuff first.

They want to know how they can buy it, how they can use it andhow to sell it.

[Juggy777]

I still meet quite a few people who don't have any bitcoins and think they can only buy one.  It's a great reminder that there are still misconceptions that we can correct.  In his case, he and his family are from India so they have concerns about gold, but he's uneasy about buying a full bitcoin at $1200ish.  I pointed out, "You could buy $10 or $20 worth of a bitcoin just to test it out" and he was stunned that this was an option.  For those of us who've been around a while, it's easy to forget that some don't know this.  Be friendly and helpful, as people want to be a part of an open community.

Yes I can understand what the Op and his friends going through. The problem is people often spread nonsense about Bitcoins. And there are people who do not even bother to see basics and then just assume that it's scam or not useful. I have taken pain taking skills to explain people and clear their misconceptions. Honestly I don't get tired now, I treat it as a challenge and have decided to be do whatever I can do to help Bitcoin name prosper, and make sure people are clear about Bitcoins.

[romero121]

You have got a guy who has the eager to invest into bitcoin. But everyone are not the same. To some extent we can teach them, though they are not interested into such stuff. But at some point we ourselves will get frustrated, so its good to explain to the one who believes in such a innovation.

[Kprawn]

OP, you are 100% correct.... I have found many people that decided against buying bitcoins, because they did not know that you

can buy smaller amounts than a full bitcoin. Once they understood this, they bought a bunch.   .... I always use this example :

With Bitcoin you can buy a cart full of bitcoins { full bitcoin } or a barrel { a bunch of Satoshis } or a single apple {a satoshi}  

[ethereumhunter]

OP, you are 100% correct.... I have found many people that decided against buying bitcoins, because they did not know that you

can buy smaller amounts than a full bitcoin. Once they understood this, they bought a bunch.   .... I always use this example :

With Bitcoin you can buy a cart full of bitcoins { full bitcoin } or a barrel { a bunch of Satoshis } or a single apple {a satoshi}  

exactly, i meet some people like you and even if i explain that to buy bitcoin, we don't have to buy full of bitcoin but we can do with separately. some of them can accept this and trying to buy with small amount of their money but some of them still can not understand and they only rejected. for me, i am no problem with this, i am sure that there are many people that will accepting bitcoin and for them which don't buy, they only can saw what will happen later.

[ekoice]

I still meet quite a few people who don't have any bitcoins and think they can only buy one.  It's a great reminder that there are still misconceptions that we can correct.  In his case, he and his family are from India so they have concerns about gold, but he's uneasy about buying a full bitcoin at $1200ish.  I pointed out, "You could buy $10 or $20 worth of a bitcoin just to test it out" and he was stunned that this was an option.  For those of us who've been around a while, it's easy to forget that some don't know this.  Be friendly and helpful, as people want to be a part of an open community.

Yes,when i say that bitcoin's price is $1250 today,for one second,they get stunned.They start thinking that how thbey could buy such a costly asset and instead they could buy gold.But,then i explain them that bitcoin could be divided into 8 units and they could even buy 0.01 btc.Most of people who are new to bitcoins have this doubt and they should be properly explained for bitcoin progress.

[Nagadota]

It's really easy to take all that 'simple' information for granted if you've been around for a while, but I can certainly imagine that it must be pretty confusing for new people.

I just did a little test to see what kind of information you'd be getting if you just look for 'Bitcoin' on Google and it's really not newbie-friendly to say the least.
A lot of technical information with rather difficult terminology especially for non tech-savvy people.

Just an example from my first result (bitcoin.org):

Bitcoin uses peer-to-peer technology to operate with no central authority or banks; managing transactions and the issuing of bitcoins is carried out collectively by the network. Bitcoin is open-source; its design is public, nobody owns or controls Bitcoin and everyone can take part. Through many of its unique properties, Bitcoin allows exciting uses that could not be covered by any previous payment system.

Actually while I can't really get into the mindset of a newbie, that looks fairly simple and doesn't go into the technical details of how Bitcoin works (which I don't even understand well enough myself).  It's just an explanation of why Bitcoin has to exist, which is reasonable enough.

It's nice to talk about the key properties, and this is just one of them.  The problem is that the explanation of Bitcoin can't be in a soundbite while still being reasonable.  Bitcoin is actually quite complicated as a concept because it differs from fiat money in so many different ways, like how it's infinitely divisible while a dollar is not.

While some explanations might be too complicated, that one is fine for anyone with an ounce of intelligence.  As Einstein said, "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler".

I'm sure most of the people on this forum can understand it, but the average person probably doesn't even know what 'peer-to-peer' or open source means.
Plus, keep in mind that most of the people wanting to know more about bitcoin want to learn the practical stuff first.

They want to know how they can buy it, how they can use it andhow to sell it.

I'll have to disagree with you on that.  The average person might not know some of these things, but it's hard to explain them otherwise.  The closest you can get to a simple and accurate explanation (complicated doesn't just mean using big words) would be something like:

Bitcoin is a decentralised online currency.  It allows you to send to others anywhere in the world without third parties having to personally verify your transactions.  Instead, your transactions are verified from a collection of "miners" who verify them in exchange for new Bitcoins, which is how new Bitcoin is introduced into the network.  Your Bitcoin is held on a computer and it only exists there instead of in a bank's database.

Bitcoin is also infinitely divisible and you can buy as little or as much as you want.

Really, it doesn't change how complicated the explanation is.  It's just that people have to go and look up a couple of key words to make it a hundred times easier for themselves.

[Amph]

this apply to new miners too not only traders, they don't know what a rig is, which is a normal computer after all with 6 gpu instead of one

teaching them these easy things will make bitcoin more exposed to possible greatest adoption, and make also possible to have better decentralization

because more buyers more bitcoin in the hand of more people instead of few etilist

[Betwrong]

I still meet quite a few people who don't have any bitcoins and think they can only buy one.  It's a great reminder that there are still misconceptions that we can correct.  In his case, he and his family are from India so they have concerns about gold, but he's uneasy about buying a full bitcoin at $1200ish.  I pointed out, "You could buy $10 or $20 worth of a bitcoin just to test it out" and he was stunned that this was an option.  For those of us who've been around a while, it's easy to forget that some don't know this.  Be friendly and helpful, as people want to be a part of an open community.

I think if someone is interested in buying Bitcoin it is already a good thing. The next step is to make the purchase for that person as easy as possible. I remember when I wanted to buy $20 worth of BTC and even though I tried I couldn't do that because on my localbictoins the minimum you can buy was $50 in BTC. Fortunately it is not the case now. You can easily buy $10 worth of BTC where I live, but most people don't know this and because of that they don't buy.

[talkbitcoin]

it is always hard to find the balance between introducing bitcoin to someone new and misinforming them about bitcoin. for example the worst thing i have seen is usually about mining. i have hear it being described in the weirdest ways.
for me, i will always stick to simplicity, bitcoin is money and you don't need to create an account with a centralized authority like a bank or paypal website for example and you are in full control of your money and how you spend it.
if they ask me about technical stuff, even if know it and i could explain, i try not to. instead i asked them whether they know how an ATM machine works, if you don't know it down to all the details you don't need to do the same with bitcoin either.

[audaciousbeing]

I still meet quite a few people who don't have any bitcoins and think they can only buy one.  It's a great reminder that there are still misconceptions that we can correct.  In his case, he and his family are from India so they have concerns about gold, but he's uneasy about buying a full bitcoin at $1200ish.  I pointed out, "You could buy $10 or $20 worth of a bitcoin just to test it out" and he was stunned that this was an option.  For those of us who've been around a while, it's easy to forget that some don't know this.  Be friendly and helpful, as people want to be a part of an open community.

This is really something I have put actually on myself to do even before reading this but the issue about people who are coming in new into bitcoin is about impatience to learn through the ranks. They are mostly about what they can earn immediately and how they can immediately turn the little they have to 2 btc even though they cannot afford 1btc at the moment. But either way, we will a I'll keep trying to make the penetration continues.

[btc_angela]

I still meet quite a few people who don't have any bitcoins and think they can only buy one.  It's a great reminder that there are still misconceptions that we can correct.  In his case, he and his family are from India so they have concerns about gold, but he's uneasy about buying a full bitcoin at $1200ish.  I pointed out, "You could buy $10 or $20 worth of a bitcoin just to test it out" and he was stunned that this was an option.  For those of us who've been around a while, it's easy to forget that some don't know this.  Be friendly and helpful, as people want to be a part of an open community.

Yes I can understand what the Op and his friends going through. The problem is people often spread nonsense about Bitcoins. And there are people who do not even bother to see basics and then just assume that it's scam or not useful. I have taken pain taking skills to explain people and clear their misconceptions. Honestly I don't get tired now, I treat it as a challenge and have decided to be do whatever I can do to help Bitcoin name prosper, and make sure people are clear about Bitcoins.

This really a issue about "bitcoin" attaching its name to Ponzi/HYIP. We have to explained to them that this is not true and bitcoin is really has a lot of advantage of having bitcoin or earning bitcoin as store value. So we really need to tell what bitcoin really is not just in this forum but specially in the outside world as well. Just make it is simple, as others have said.

[Catmony]

Sharing is caring and bitcoin is meant to bring community together and have secure decentralize payment system which we have today. Without support and help from experts newbies will always struggle to get into bitcoin, the more people we have in bitcoin community the more support we will develop for healthy bitcoin economy.

[Capradina]

Hmm, this is a new problem in the growth of the bitcoin. Most of the problems I encountered came from someone to use bitcoin doubts, because they think that bitcoin is a digital currency that supports the activities of the bad in the world. So, maybe they get information that is not valid or it could just be they are lazy to find as much information as possible in the bitcoin. Indeed one's task when it introduces the need to provide information appropriately and correctly
 

[xuan87]

I think we should help the newbie as much as we can, by bringing more user we will have a better price and who knows this thing could lead to more shop adapting bitcoin, as the one that joined early in bitcoin world we need to give the new comer information as much as possible and also we remind them what thing should be avoided, small teaching from us can be big thing for them

[fintekneeks]

Really great thoughts from everyone and I fully agree about mining too - a person who's more experienced in mining may run into some basic questions.  These discussions provide great reminders that information isn't always equally dispersed and even some long-term bitcoinaires admit to not really understanding it at first glance, so it can often involve multiple discussions.

[buwaytress]

This is a great reminder from a newbie... I know I also found this forum to be quite intimidating at first. The most frequent response ran along the lines of "do your own research" but as I quickly found out, a lot of the easily available information was outdated at best, misleading at worst. That said, I've seen that a lot of the staff on this forum are very helpful. I learn a lot simply by reading their posts.

Language is also an issue so using simple language is best. I would remind also that we shouldn't judge from a person's ability to speak English. I think a lot of people are unfairly shot down because of below-average English.

Yes, it is annoying for complete newbies to just pop in and ask poorly-worded questions but we can use a little patience and some restraint and gently guide them to being "proper" users.

[sikke]

I have found out, that most of the people on this forum are very helpful to particular kind of newbies, even when they are asking a questions that have been answered thousand times before.
It is a very good occurrence, that even in such a case, more experienced bitcointalk.org users are just giving URL's to the threads which might be helpful.

I cannot even imagine what most of newbies would do without this website, this bitcoin forum contains such a precious informations about different aspects of cryptocurrency markets (and also other things) that it is just priceless for all those new people coming into our community.

It is very important to be helpful to new people in crypto world, because more people means bigger demand, while the supply stays the same. Result? Increase of the BTC price!

[LFC_Bitcoin]

I think this forum is great for people new to bitcoin. I'm far from a tech expert but most of what I've learnt re: bitcoin has been picked up here.

There are a number of very helpful users who go out of their way to help others.

[Gens09]

This is a really cool thing helping new bitcoiner how to farm or earn bitcoin in there own ways but for myself i dont really know many thing that i can earn bitcoin as a legit ways i only here it from others to try this and this etc. but i already try the others and it work so just continue earning and do what the professionals tell you to do.

[bitbunnny]

This is something that doesn't have to be the subject of discussion. If we want as much people as possible to adopt the Bitcoin we have to help the newcomers and give them the best guidelines, that is natural. Although there are some experienced Bitcoin users who treat newbies arogant and not very welcomed.

[Kray]

3 days ago, my friend ask me about bitcoin and blockchain technology. I give him explanation from simple case until complicated case about bitcoin, and now he understood 70% about bitcoin. The funniest thing from his statement is, it's really weird number for 50 USD = 0.03936

[Chikito]

Making good writing in blog or social media, that explain about bitcoin can help new bitcoiner will appear , not only that, giving information and guide for beginer in sub forum Bitcointalk can help newbie who want to learn. A full understanding of bitcoin includes resolving existing problems ,
Many people are leaving cryptocurrency because it considers it as HYIP .

[The Sceptical Chymist]

Thank you for the reminder. It is easy to become frustrated teaching something you already know. But there was a time, not long ago, when no one understood bitcoin and we all figured it out together by sharing what we know.

You don't want to be this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfKL6RM8hsY

 

I'm not frustrated with the ignorance so much as the scammy and shitposty behavior on this forum--by noobs or liars who claim to have new accounts.   I'm not the best person to give technical advice,  either, but I try to be nice to noobs who seem genuinely lost.  I've gotten so cynical that it's hard these days, and my outlook on humanity hasn't brightened since I started coming around here.  OP, you're totally right.

[omonuyak]

Op this treat is an eye opener for me as this remind  me of office college I have been try to introduce to bitcoin, he has tried all he could to generate bitcoin but only make few satoshi and current he has abandoned the bitcoin and tems it too hard to make bitcoin. Those new to crytocurrency really need our help and by so doing we encourage others to join.

[EcoNorm]

i feel like you are absolutly right, people often just misbhave and take bitcoin knowlage for granted when talking to newbies in the field

[Lorilikes]

I totally agree with the original poster.  Crypto-snobs are the worst.  I have been biting my tongue for a couple years, but hey, enough with the cranky pants ya grumpy butts!  LOL I love the idea of optimism in crypto-communities.

[Vaskiy]

Agreed, it's a innovation that's gonna make a big change in the living ecosystem. So it's our responsibility to be helpful to the one who wish to be a part of the growing technology. There are people who do it as a unpaid service and few use it for making money. Such things need to change that we need to explain what we know without getting paid

[jexphe2k]

Yeah! Old timer should always be open and helpful to newbie like Me. BITCOIN hasn't reach mainstream yet to ignore us newcomer. As a newbie to BITCOIN I'm still worried where to store up my BITCOIN. Currently my wallet address stored onto my mobile phone via Coins.ph(third party) apps, so what will happen to my bitcoins if Coins.ph shutdown? Will my wallet address still be accessible even if Coin.ph seized to exist? Is there an easy way to create a cold wallet? Will a cold wallet always be supported regardless of many upgrades that are happening in NODES? 

[xhienigat]

There a lot of people who helps out newbies and probably explain to them how and what bitcoin is if the person asking is eager to really learn about bitcoin. You can't just randomly ask them to invest on bitcoin without educating them first. And this is also the reason why this forum is created for newbies to search and discover themselves what it's all about.

[DoublerHunter]

I agree with this topic, we should help the old people who want to get into bitcoin because most of them are now attracted of the price of bitcoin because it is too high as of now and there is a lot of good news so that is one of the reason why they are trying to get into bitcoin and we should help them step by step because if we don't forget, we also came from being a newbie and having a lot of questions and begging for help.

[fintekneeks]

i feel like you are absolutly right, people often just misbhave and take bitcoin knowlage for granted when talking to newbies in the field

I'm imperfect and make this mistake too.  It's too easy to think "they should just get it."  I've had to learn to rehearse an explanation, even if I get tired of hearing it from myself because it's important that people relate to it.

[CryptoBry]

Well, this is a basic information that we should share with those who are still starting in Bitcoin that they don't have to be afraid that the value of one Bitcoin is now approaching the $2,000 level because they can buy small amount of BTC according to what they can afford. Though for now I may not be promoting Bitcoin because of the transfer charges but once this scaling problem can be gone then we can encourage others to also join us in the Bitcoin bandwagon.

[perla]

I never mind if there is someone who wants to know about bitcoin and its technology. if I can answer, for sure I will help. But most people nowadays just ask how to get bitcoin fast and easy, even a professional must work to earn money

[roadbits]

I never mind if there is someone who wants to know about bitcoin and its technology. if I can answer, for sure I will help. But most people nowadays just ask how to get bitcoin fast and easy, even a professional must work to earn money

Yes everyone needs fast money, first of all, they don't have time to learn new technologies if they are not interested in this topic they will ask this type of questions. If anyone really wants to learn about bitcoin, they will spend some time, and they will slowly learn about this bitcoin. I explained many of my friends in that some of them took it seriously and learned and some of them are just doing time pass with me. So I will not force anyone, and if anyone asks me help, i will help how much I can.

[RajaJudi]

i agree with you. Ignore people who do not like bitcoin and support people who want to learn more about bitcoin, about the future of the world