The mysterious bitcoin flower opens once a day and reveals a free bitcoin

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Totally off-topic: What show is this?

Not a show. It's a movie: Grindouse: Planet Terror.  The other subflick is Death Proof.  Dual feature, if you will.

How do you people know this stuff (in reference to knowing the movie title, of which I was unaware)?

Captcha issue solved? (feedback welcome)

If it was my site, I wouldn't use a Captcha. Here's how:

To view the flower, you must first be logged in, therefore a member (so to speak). If you are the first to click the flower when the Bitcoin appears, a message pops up stating such, then directs you to check you email for instructions on how to claim your free Bitcoin.

[maxmint]

No, that is not accurate, and a critical mind would be totally right considering this dubious.

If you introduce a random time T between two openings, where T is on average 24 hours, you will have ON AVERAGE 1 opening per day, and ON AVERAGE 365 openings per year etc. BUT: You can (and will!) very well have time periods of more than 24 hours, too, i.e. you will have calendar days (and sometimes even two or more successive calendar days) with no opening at all.

So it is simply not correct to claim "that the flower opens "at least" once a day".

Wow, you even included a fancy graph, very cool!

Right now the system creates a random open time (between 0 86400 seconds) for every calendar day. So the interval between 2 openings is anywhere between 0 and 48 hours.
But the flowers still opens every calendar day, so I think it's safe to say that it opens up at least once a day. If the interval between 2 openings happens to be only 3 hours (one just before midnight, the other right after) it looks like as if the flower openend 2 times a day, at least for someone sitting in the right timezone.

Sure, to have it semantical correct you would have to define the exact meaning of the word day – is it 24 hours? a calendar day? in which timezone? etc.

But hey, I created this for the fun of it and I wanna keep it real simple without any lengthy explanations.
Thanks for your scientific thoughts though!

[aq]

No, that is not accurate, and a critical mind would be totally right considering this dubious.

If you introduce a random time T between two openings, where T is on average 24 hours, you will have ON AVERAGE 1 opening per day, and ON AVERAGE 365 openings per year etc. BUT: You can (and will!) very well have time periods of more than 24 hours, too, i.e. you will have calendar days (and sometimes even two or more successive calendar days) with no opening at all.

So it is simply not correct to claim "that the flower opens "at least" once a day".

Wow, you even included a fancy graph, very cool!

Right now the system creates a random open time (between 0 86400 seconds) for every calendar day. So the interval between 2 openings is anywhere between 0 and 48 hours.
But the flowers still opens every calendar day, so I think it's safe to say that it opens up at least once a day. If the interval between 2 openings happens to be only 3 hours (one just before midnight, the other right after) it looks like as if the flower openend 2 times a day, at least for someone sitting in the right timezone.

Sure, to have it semantical correct you would have to define the exact meaning of the word day – is it 24 hours? a calendar day? in which timezone? etc.

But hey, I created this for the fun of it and I wanna keep it real simple without any lengthy explanations.
Thanks for your scientific thoughts though!

Just make that ever 86399 (86400-1) seconds, so that it on average opens more than once per day, as 1.00001 is more than 1.0. And the best part is you can do that without additional costs - well not really, but 1.00001 isn't that much more than 1.0 in the end

Actually if you also count leap seconds (happens every few years) and you have the service running a few years, every 86400 second (unix time) would still be more than once per day, because UTC time (calendar time) has on average longer days than unix time "days" (no leap seconds).

[NickW]

It's a nice concept, but the way it works now with a random number being generated for each day between 1 and 86400 is not the way to do it.

The way it should be done is to give every second a 1 in 86400 chance of causing the event. The way it works now is that every second on the same day has a 0 chance of opening the flower again once it's already happened.

For instance you'd just have a script that runs once per second and that script has a 0.0000115741 (to make it just slightly more probable than once every 24 hours) probability of opening the flower.

You could even pre-calculate each day if you like to save the script being run constantly and could do an interval smaller than one second.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Although I'm intrigued by the direction that this thread has progressed so far, I wish to get back on track with what the OP has introduced, before it forks to a discussion on the how and why the African swallows are non-migratory. Granted, all the posts are enlightening and on-topic, but I like to see how this idea can be taken to the nth degree in regards to strengthening Bitcoin's position.

With that said, I offer up the following:

Let's put bots and any security concerns to the side for the moment, because if, at the onset of Bitcoin, the founders spent all their time discussing nefarious schemes upon brainstorming the next-great-idea, Bitcoin wouldn't be where it is today--they'll still be hashing out the what ifs. I offered up a way to not use captcha in post #21 which is, BTW, a good way to increase your mailing list. The money is in the list!

Every now and then, a Remarkable idea blossoms from the Bitcoin community. I feel that this is one such Remarkable idea. See: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/01/how_to_be_remar.html

Imagine, if you will companies, of any size (not 1 or 2 or 9.5, but 100's/1,000's), incorporating this Mysterious Bitcoin innovation in their websites. These companies don't even need to embrace, nor believe in, Bitcoin to gain value by incorporating this gimmick, for lack of a better word. As an example, Moen.com could have a page showing an image of a facet (which reminds me of another idea) in the off position (not flowing). But randomly, once a day (or whatever the time frame), it start flowing--bitcoin(s). As another example, a seller of upper-end toasters has a dedicated page showing an image of a toaster with one of its levers in the down position (visualize toast being made). Again, randomly once a day that side pops up, revealing a Bitcoin. Afterwards, the lever on the other side goes down once the Bitcoin is claimed.

Every single product and service can incorporate this idea. If you doubt that statement, name an example--any example--and I'll tell you how it could be achieved provided, of course, the website owner wants it.

Another quick example: dictionary.com could have a special search box so one could type in a word (the use of cookies allows you to do this only once a day) and if it matches the magic word-of-the-day, voilà--Bitcoin(s)!

Now, further imagine a site dedicated to listing every site that has incorporated this gimmick (sorry for incorporating the word incorporated numerous times in this post, as well as the several uses of parentheses I incorporated to explain myself, but I can't help it because Bitcoin excites me--excites me so much that you may have noticed I incorporated the use of this parenthesized statement after the wrong word--but I digress). This possible site would not only list the above mentioned sites in categories, but also list the exact times (clock, as well as maybe the number of) the Bitcoin was last revealed at each site. Furthermore, it would show a "hot list" of sites fast approaching the deadline of when the Bitcoin is suppose to be revealed--colored coded red/orange/yellow. It could even list who the winners are.

As you can clearly see, more traffic is generated to each website that employs the use of the Mysterious Bitcoin (name change may be in order here--ideas?). More traffic=more sales (unless the product or service completely sucks--but Bitcoin doesn't hurt their endeavor). It'll be up to each site owner on how to implement this program to get maximum return on their $0 investment.

Although the OP has set the proverbial bar high with his Bitcoin producing flower, I'm sure other artists will soon be champing at the bit to showcase their talents, as well, to better the latest new graphic.

Remember, this is the time of year shop owners are jockeying for position to get their sites ready for the Christmas season. Here's one idea on the table they'll be hard-pressed to pass up.

Speaking of Christmas, pictured three socks hanging on the fireplace mantel...

[giantdragon]

I don't see any ads on your site. How do you monetize this service?

[Fiyasko]

I don't see any ads on your site. How do you monetize this service?

no kidding!

[Tx2000]

How do you people know this stuff (in reference to knowing the movie title, of which I was unaware)?

I watched it before... I guess?

Something as unique as that sticks in my head.  Guess it does help that I am a fan of rodriguez/tarantino films also.

[evolve]

How do you people know this stuff (in reference to knowing the movie title, of which I was unaware)?

I watched it before... I guess?

Something as unique as that sticks in my head.  Guess it does help that I am a fan of rodriguez/tarantino films also.

i gotta say, i think the grindhouse double feature was some of tarantinos and rodriguezs worst work...i wasnt a fan of either movie.

 i thought death proof was the marginally better of the two....but definiately not on par with pulp fiction or reservoir dogs...

[Phinnaeus Gage]

How do you people know this stuff (in reference to knowing the movie title, of which I was unaware)?

I watched it before... I guess?

Something as unique as that sticks in my head.  Guess it does help that I am a fan of rodriguez/tarantino films also.

i gotta say, i think the grindhouse double feature was some of tarantinos and rodriguezs worst work...i wasnt a fan of either movie.

 i thought death proof was the marginally better of the two....but definiately not on par with pulp fiction or reservoir dogs...

You two Inglourious Basterds (Tx2000 & evolve)! You both forgot to mention Quentin Tarantino's cameo appearance in Little Nicky.

[Steve]

I just gotta say this thread is awesome.  Where else can you get a discussion of a cool new and artistic bitcoin site, website monetization, bot arms races, and Tarantino films all in one shot (and for the record, I really liked Death Proof...the other one not so much).  

[Phinnaeus Gage]

I don't see any ads on your site. How do you monetize this service?

I was so excited upon reading the original post and webpage for the first, I skimmed right over the part that doesn't mention it's animated. It was the animation aspect that inspired me to write post #25, which is entirely based on that falsehood. I guess I could now stop refreshing the page waiting to watch the Bitcoin materialize in real time. This is worst than last week when I kept refreshing the page waiting for little Jimmy to untie his left sneaker--Oops! Wrong board.

Seriously, post #25 outlines how this can be monetized (but not with a static flower or other--though possible) if this was an animated flower, toaster, wallet, purse, facet, traffic light, or politician telling the truth (of course there'll only be one a fraction of a Bitcoin produced from theirs ass lips once a month, on average), to name a few--the list is truly endless.

This idea has great potential but, once again, only if it is animated. You could even have an embedded video to get around the bots.


Discuss?

[Phinnaeus Gage]

I just gotta say this thread is awesome.  Where else can you get a discussion of a cool new and artistic bitcoin site, website monetization, bot arms races, and Tarantino films all in one shot (and for the record, I really liked Death Proof...the other one not so much).  

...and now add magic to the mashup, Steve:

[maxmint]

This idea has great potential but, once again, only if it is animated. You could even have an embedded video to get around the bots.
Discuss?

Actually I wanted to make the whole thing animated (using jquery, leaves flying around etc). But in order to keep it simple I decided not do go this way in the beginning. I might add this late on. And your idead of using a video could really be a big step in preventing bots from scraping the site.

Post #25 really started a lot of things in my head rolling, some great ideas there! Have to go back to my thinking box and …

[evolve]

Inglourious Basterds

another great movie!!! tarantino was on top of his game on that one....amazing dialogue broken up with scenes of brutal violence.... gotta love it! 

"gots a german here 'at wants to die for country....oblige him"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIja0yValiE&feature=related


really cool interview with eli roth about inglorious basterds (he played donnie aka "the bear jew"  ...for those that dont know, he also directed hostel, cabin fever, and few other movies)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwMoq9ZHxpw&feature=relmfu

[Xephan]

Inglourious Basterds

another great movie!!! tarantino was on top of his game on that one....amazing dialogue broken up with scenes of brutal violence.... gotta love it! 

This reminds of this picture that had me laughing my drink out of my nose when I first saw it.
http://www.twilightseries.ca/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/inglourious-basterds-twilight.jpg

[evolve]

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!

[fcmatt]

about the bot thing.. cannot the OP simply move the closed.jpg to closed.jpg.bak when he is ready to release the coin...

and then move open.jpg.bak to closed.jpg for 15 minutes...

make sure the file sizes are the same and any other relevant info inside the jpg description (whatever that is called).

and thus the bot really cannot screen scrape the html/jpg for anything interesting...

but then one has to be careful they do not learn the link url for claiming the coin.. but there is a catchpa.. which is nice..
but a quick text message to the bot runner would alert then in about 15-20 seconds to hop on the PC and finish the task...
not totally reliable but i am sure they could claim the coin a few times a week...

in summary.. the real solution in my view to defeat the bot is to not allow them to scrape anything useful and randomize
the winning link name so it cannot be used twice.

[BitVapes]

and thus the bot really cannot screen scrape the html/jpg for anything interesting...

sure it can, a quick md5 hash check will reveal that the jpg has changed, regardless of the filename

even if you did it all in flash or java or something invisible to a script fetching the page, I can load it in the background with a bot and take a screenshot of the rendered flower and take a checksum of this screenshot and wait for it to change.

some kind of randomized animated thing with changing colors and patterns and such would make it more difficult, but as long as the "open" flower looks significantly different than the "closed" flower to a human, it might be possible for a bot's algorithms to determine the same thing

I've written many casino bots, and have defeated all the anti-bot tech put out by all the casino software I've encountered and needed to write a bot for.  The hardest was a video poker game which each time a card was shown in a particular spot, it was slightly (randomly) different in card location (by a few pixels) and in the font edge details like angle and anti-aliasing.  I had to resort to custom training OCR software instead of my tried and true screenshot checksum hash lookup method

[fcmatt]

and thus the bot really cannot screen scrape the html/jpg for anything interesting...

sure it can, a quick md5 hash check will reveal that the jpg has changed, regardless of the filename

even if you did it all in flash or java or something invisible to a bot, I can load it in the background with a bot and take a screenshot of the rendered flower and take a checksum of this screenshot and wait for it to change.

some kind of randomized animated thing with changing colors and patterns and such would make it more difficult, but as long as the "open" flower looks significantly different than the "closed" flower to a human, it might be possible for a bot's algorithms to determine the same thing

crap. good point.

i like the idea of randomizing the picture in some way also each time you need to change it.. use ?imagemagick? or whatever
to change it ever so slightly to screw the checksum up each time.

but lets be honest.. if you can code up a bot quickly to analyze pictures that well.. maybe that person should be submitting a resume to
several companies to make a bit more then 1 btc a day ;-)

to the OP.. i like your webpage. very cool. you should put up a banner though to offset costs. no one would care i think.