Get Bitcoin Software Distribution right

[Joise]

There seem to be so many people there who are burned by using
Bitcoin on Windows...

Here is my idea what could be better:

An image which can be downloaded and installed on an USB memory
stick, just like the Ubuntu installer. But with almost no software except the
Bitcoin client. Everything hardened with SELinux and the like. No use of
swap which could leak keys. Maybe a safe browser if such a thing exists.

One copies the image to an USB stick and boots the computer with
that.  The Bitcoin client is preinstalled and looks automatically for
updates. Before first use, one is asked for another USB stick to which
everything is cloned for a backup.

It could even be sold as a ready-made stick with some amount
pre-loaded, like a pre-paid phone card, administering a
mass market. The receiving address printed on the package, of
course. Perhaps with a pay code for charging with money by a
simple bank transfer. Think in a country with a failing
currency - how would it be most accessible?

It's, of course, overkill for only buying a few post cards in a
web shop. But to store a few hundred bucks safely, this
could be just the right thing to do, and might be a commercial
success.

Any flaws in this ?

[bitcon]

i also had the same idea.    another idea would be to use an implanted RFID chip.  then when you go buy something you could upload your wallet.dat to it,  then just swipe your arm / hand like you do a speedpass card.

[saqwe]

nice idea,

but you have to  make sure the distro supports wifi/3g

but selling those pre-paid sticks... i see potential in this

[GeniuSxBoY]

I have a question that's easily answerable if I googled but live humans are a faster server/client model for I am short on time:

What do ALL bitcoins have in common that if you did a full search on the harddrive, you could find a bitcoin?

With this knowledge, you can detach the common info from the rest of the bitcoin and reinsert it when you need it. Without the common info, it would be impossible to perform a search for where your bitcoins are stored.

[Synaesthesia]

It's a good option but not for most people - force someone to boot into another OS, what if you still want to use all your regular apps on your hard drive etc?

[Synaesthesia]

What do ALL bitcoins have in common that if you did a full search on the harddrive, you could find a bitcoin?

[/quote]Um, they're stored in a file called bitcoin.dat?  Which is usually in a predictable place?

[bitcon]

yea pre-paid sticks that come pre-loaded with 1 BTC credit on them.   tell ppl they could be worth $100 - $1000 someday and sell them for $40 - $50 a pop.  bitsticks.  great marketing idea.

[Joise]

It's a good option but not for most people - force someone to boot into another OS, what if you still want to use all your regular apps on your hard drive etc?

People will consider this when enough others which they know have lost some money because of malware.

Getting windows really secure is far harder and more work than to boot a dedicated USB stick with a couple of nice menus.