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imperi (OP)
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July 05, 2011, 03:09:54 PM
Last edit: July 05, 2011, 03:21:03 PM by imperi |
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http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/368437/lawyer-no-hiding-place-from-us-for-web-piratesThe US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has been taking down sites with illegal content and targeted one UK student with extradition, despite the content not being hosted in the US.
Erick Barnett, assistant deputy director for (ICE), told The Guardian that any site that uses a .com or .net domain name is fair game, as those are registered through US company Verisign. There's so many stories like this coming out that are showing a growing demand for a system like Namecoin. I remember during the times when Wikileaks had their domain stolen, many people were calling for a distributed system to ensure security. People would love to be able to register domain names without them possibly being taken away, and without needing to associate their true identities with them (although they still can, of course). Namecoins have a bright and hopeful future ahead. They have all the strengths of Bitcoins, in addition to the value of a distributed domain name system. Either, or both, could take hold and lead to true Internet freedom. The usage of this distributed domain system would start with the Bitcoin community, and spread virally into widespread acceptance. More helpful pushes by Wikileaks would propel it forward even more. Although still new and obscure, the three-month old Namecoin has quite an active community. The IRC channel has 150 or so people in it, compared to Bitcoin's 550. These are the people who will advance it forward, just like Bitcoin in its beginnings except at a faster rate. There is a sub-reddit for it, a project-page wiki, forums, and an exchange that's been stable and trustworthy so far. The exchange has never "Goxed" anybody and has supported high volumes in the past without issues. A new exchange is expected to come online as well. However, Namecoin isn't without its flaws, although in my opinion fixable. The system is very unwieldy and even less user-friendly than Bitcoin. The Windows client does not yet have an official GUI. Most importantly, though, there is no easy way to set up the DNS system for your browser. Work is being done in these two areas. Furthermore, Namecoin could be perceived as a copy of Bitcoin, leading people to think there may be more to come and too many to handle. Does anyone else have crystal-ball opinions on this? I just thought I'd share what I was musing about. Maybe I should have put this in off-topic.
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According to NIST and ECRYPT II, the cryptographic algorithms used in
Bitcoin are expected to be strong until at least 2030. (After that, it
will not be too difficult to transition to different algorithms.)
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Advertised sites are not endorsed by the Bitcoin Forum. They may be unsafe, untrustworthy, or illegal in your jurisdiction.
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bitplane
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July 05, 2011, 03:31:06 PM |
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I'm not sure about namecoin and can't imagine how it works. How does it work? It's not like you can have a fraction of a domain name, are there a limited number of domains? What happens if someone loses their wallet? Do names expire?
Where can I read more about this?
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CydeWeys
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July 05, 2011, 03:43:17 PM |
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I'm not sure about namecoin and can't imagine how it works. How does it work? It's not like you can have a fraction of a domain name, are there a limited number of domains? What happens if someone loses their wallet? Do names expire?
Where can I read more about this?
More info here: http://tinyurl.com/3bnlzbq |
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BitcoinPorn
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July 05, 2011, 04:15:04 PM |
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It's more complicated than Bitcoin, it has to be good and easily safer.
I am joking, I have no clue.
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Anth0n
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July 05, 2011, 05:17:49 PM |
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Namecoin is exactly the same as Bitcoin, with the additional ability to register domain names.
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The_JMiner
Member
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Activity: 70
Merit: 10
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July 05, 2011, 05:28:52 PM |
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Bitcoin is already complicated for 90% of Americans
so if Namecoin is even more complicated! Ha good luck! Americans want simple, fast, and cheap
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Elokane
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July 05, 2011, 06:23:57 PM |
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Do people actually utilize Namecoins at the moment to register domains?
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Shinobi
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July 05, 2011, 06:25:55 PM |
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What would be the point? Unless the DNS is adopted by the masses, a namecoin domain is pointless. At least with Bitcoins, there is a sellable incentive to the masses. Namecoins lack even that. Do people actually utilize Namecoins at the moment to register domains?
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_______ Thinking of using a cheap, yet reliable VPN? Go with PrivateInternetAccess. Not a referral link. Just a satisfied customer! |
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JohnDoe
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July 05, 2011, 07:50:45 PM |
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Do people actually utilize Namecoins at the moment to register domains?
Over 2000 domains have been registered so far. What would be the point? Unless the DNS is adopted by the masses, a namecoin domain is pointless.
What would be the point of Bitcoin? Unless it is adopted by masses of merchants, Bitcoin is pointless. At least with Bitcoins, there is a sellable incentive to the masses. Namecoins lack even that.
Any incentive that Bitcoin has, Namecoin has it too. |
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bitplane
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July 05, 2011, 08:12:19 PM |
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Not sure if I understand or like the namecoin idea, it seems a bit half-baked IMO. The name "namecoin" and .coin tld doesn't sound right either.
The problem with a DNS system based around proof of work is that once you've started up and everyone has done some work, you can't change it without serious resistance. This is why you need to write the docs long before the client.
Oh well, nevermind.
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JohnDoe
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July 05, 2011, 09:17:32 PM |
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Not sure if I understand or like the namecoin idea, it seems a bit half-baked IMO.
In what way is it half-baked? The name "namecoin" and .coin tld doesn't sound right either.
The tld we are using is .bit The problem with a DNS system based around proof of work is that once you've started up and everyone has done some work, you can't change it without serious resistance. This is why you need to write the docs long before the client.
Oh well, nevermind.
Namecoin is a generic naming system, not a DNS system. You basically register a name and then attach a value to that name which can be anything up to 1 kB of data. The DNS system simply works by interpreting the values of names, so the spec is not at all hardcoded, it is just an agreed upon name/value syntax that can easily be interpreted by the nameservers. |
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bitplane
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July 05, 2011, 10:57:07 PM |
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In what way is it half-baked?
Well mostly because the design doc explains a few of the hows but not many of the whys, everything seems arbitrary rather than calculated. Maybe I'd change my mind if the devs showed their workings |
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JohnDoe
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July 05, 2011, 11:04:26 PM |
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Well mostly because the design doc explains a few of the hows but not many of the whys, everything seems arbitrary rather than calculated. Maybe I'd change my mind if the devs showed their workings
Which whys do you need explained? Maybe some of us know the answers. |
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Shinobi
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July 05, 2011, 11:40:26 PM |
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What would be the point? Unless the DNS is adopted by the masses, a namecoin domain is pointless.
What would be the point of Bitcoin? Unless it is adopted by masses of merchants, Bitcoin is pointless. Exactly. This is why Bitcoins will ultimately fail as well. See my posts littered around the forum on this. |
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ErgoOne
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July 06, 2011, 12:07:23 AM |
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It will fail if people do not buy and sell real things for bitcoins. It can succeed without masses of conventional merchants only if bitcoin users go into business and start producing goods and services for sale for bitcoins. Mining and running currency exchanges are not a sustainable business model alone. I'm not betting against the Bitcoin system, however. I started looking into it precisely because my husband and I are working on a business that we hope to open next year, and I need to learn about means of payment. Bitcoin is one means of payment that has some serious advantages for us. First, it isn't reversible -- the risks one takes when accepting credit cards or PayPal are not there. Second, it crosses national borders easily. Third, the cryptographic system that it is based on is sound theoretically; after the initial period of wild price spikes and dives, the value of bitcoins should settle down nicely. (My math skills aren't up to having designed Bitcoin, but they are up to understanding the theory behind it.) At present, I am tentatively planning to accept bitcoins in payment for our products and services, and am seriously considering setting base prices in BTC and attaching USD, EUR, and other currency prices to it. I've currently got my first bid to acquire some bitcoins up on Mt. Gox. We'll see when/if I get them for the rather low price I posted. I don't expect that I'll loose my money, although I'm not risking more than I can afford to loose either.  |
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TheBitMan
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July 06, 2011, 12:36:44 AM |
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The governments are being real internet nazis
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JohnDoe
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July 06, 2011, 01:05:23 AM |
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.bit/namecoin needs to be embedded into major dns servers by default, or at least one or two so others follow suit.
If the average user is unable to access these domain names namecoin will never truly take off, which is a shame.
The average user is already able to browse .bit domains without any prior configuration by using gateways like namecoin.us or bitname.org. |
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sunyag
Newbie
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Activity: 30
Merit: 0
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July 06, 2011, 02:16:25 AM
Last edit: July 06, 2011, 02:39:00 AM by sunyag |
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Namecoin is a vital aspect of Bitcoin. It provides an avenue of refuge if, when, gov't entities threaten Bitcoin.
And for those feeling that Namecoin may be a threat to Bitcoin, that's difficult. Spend a week on the namecoin IRC and you will see how much further behind that community is in terms of its development...quite crude. Sure, it's coming along quick, but the level of problem-complexity that Bitcoin is now tackling, Namecoin has not even begun. And when it does begin, it will have far less resources with which to emerge into its own.
IMO Bitcoin is a large undertaking and a head-on Blockchain rival would need significant funding. The first mover advantage for Bitcoin is big.
That said, it is almost inevitable that Namecoin will be 'discovered' by the media and then pick up some press as either a 'rival' or as an example of the multitudinous Xcoins to come.
Miners will (re)pile into Namecoin and drive difficulty levels higher, get some coins, then ask themselves "Why?" The miners will then see a large commerce potential deficit with Bitcoin and then head back over to Bitcoin (or drop out entirely).
Even so, Namecoin is doing some very admirable work and will provide a vital service to Bitcoin and potentially others.
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JohnDoe
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July 06, 2011, 03:36:08 PM |
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Sure, it's coming along quick, but the level of problem-complexity that Bitcoin is now tackling, Namecoin has not even begun. And when it does begin, it will have far less resources with which to emerge into its own.
A lot of the stuff that's being developed for Bitcoin is open source so it won't be nearly as hard for Namecoin to create infrastructure as it was for Bitcoin starting out of scratch. |
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bitplane
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July 06, 2011, 05:55:35 PM |
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Well mostly because the design doc explains a few of the hows but not many of the whys, everything seems arbitrary rather than calculated. Maybe I'd change my mind if the devs showed their workings
Which whys do you need explained? Maybe some of us know the answers. res = 500000000 >> floor(nBlock / 8192)
res = res - (res >> 14)*(nBlock % 8192) Why? What are the implications of this choice? |
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