Murraycoin 0.9.2 has been officially released for all major platforms and the source has been updated on GitHub. To upgrade, please visit
https://www.murraycoin.org or use the updated download links on the first post in the thread.
Currently, we are less than 4000 blocks away from the fork at block 130,000. While many of you have already updated... I know there are many who have not - please help get the word out. We will contact Cryptsy, Xnigma, and the handful of other services that are currently using Murraycoin to ensure they are updated to the latest release before the fork hits. Obviously, we would have preferred more notice. However, we wanted to fast-track the fork to help smooth out the Murraycoin network. Also, we stripped out many pieces of in-development code and non-critical code from the public source on GitHub - this "tearing down" process took longer than we had hoped but we wanted to protect some of the upcoming innovation to ensure it remains Murraycoin-exclusive (at least for a few days!) once we release it.
We have already had an individual contact us inquiring about the icons in the GitHub source not being the same as the icons in the compiled clients - this is the explanation: We pulled the Murraycoin icons out of the GitHub source as we developed them in-house and did not want to include them under the open license. Over 15 coins (that we're aware of) have used the original Murraycoin icons since release (for example, DigiByte) and despite none of them figuring out how to display them properly... we have received a number of accusations for stealing icons that we created ourselves! While this sounds superficial, we have contributed a great deal to Bitcoin Core development over the past 12 months and have certainly done our part in contributing to cryptocurrency innovation. The Qt client can still be compiled from source as all icons were replaced with the original Bitcoin Core equivalents.
So, without further ado, the details of the new client and the fork:
Murraycoin 0.9.2 is built on Bitcoin Core 0.9.2. That means all of the latest features that have gone into Bitcoin Core 0.9+ in addition to all of the enhancements in 0.9.1 and the upcoming 0.9.2 client have been polished and combined with some Murraycoin-exclusive code. We have tweaks several areas as well including an increase to the available block sizes/etc and everything else outlined below. To our knowledge, no other Scrypt-N coin is using the the Bitcoin Core 0.9+ source so that is another plus. Although we are not Scrypt-N, per se, please read on for the details.
At block 130k, the new difficulty adjustment method kicks in. Difficulty will begin adjusting after every block using a weighted algorithm (not unlike KGW - just slightly different). This will ease the impact multipools are having on both extreme difficulty fluctuation and the subsequent auto-dumps on the exchanges. This is a positive for value, a positive for network consistency, and a negative for multipools (which, in turn, is positive for crypto, in my opinion).
On July 4th, 2014 the PoW algorithm will switch from standard Scrypt to Scrypt-2048. We will release MurrayMiner before that point but Vertminer will also work for the time being (until VTC switches to Scrypt-4096). The reasons we opted switch the algorithm and, beyond that, to go with Scrypt-2048 instead of the (now-popular) Scrypt-N are numerous:
There are so many scrypt coins out there and so many multipools that we felt it didn't make sense to stick with scrypt. With scrypt, people are investing more and more money into ASIC miners and they are more focused than ever on simply mining the most profitable coins of the second with no regard as to what they are or what they stand for. This does not fit the Murraycoin image nor our long-term goals. We aren't as concerned about the centralization effect ASIC miners can have on crypto as we are with so many great, innovative coins being nothing more than a means to an end. Murraycoin has always been about community and real people getting involved in something fun and cool - raping the network with countless ASIC-produced gigahashes and auto-dumping on an exchange isn't either of those things. Remaining scrypt would solidify us as just another stepping stone in the crowded world of crypto.
Now, why didn't we choose to go with Scrypt-N? Won't Scrypt-2048 ASICs start rolling out soon creating the same problems as outlined above? Well, we made a calculated decision here. First of all, as far as I can see, Murraycoin will be the only Scrypt-2048 coin. In 2015, when the Scrypt-N coins switch to Scrypt-4096 automatically, Scrypt-2048 ASIC miners would no longer have a purpose. Even if companies do decide to produce Scrypt-2048 miners (doubtful) that's still not a bad thing for Murraycoin - it just means everybody that has a Scrypt-2048 ASIC will have to mine Murraycoin! Also, we are aware of at least one manufacturer already working on Scrypt-4096 ASIC chips - what this means is that Scrypt-N could actually be a major target for ASIC miners once the algorithm adjusts next year. Finally, the high memory requirements of Scrypt-4096 make it extremely inefficient for previous generation GPUs to mine (and even current generation GPUs, really). This means, at least at first, Scrypt-4096 will actually be a target for CPU miners; this means botnets/etc could begin entering the picture early into the Scrypt-N switch. There will also be a number of miners who suddenly have worthless GPU mining rigs - they can't mine scrypt coins due to all of the ASICs and they can't mine Scrypt-N due to the high memory requirements of Scrypt-4096. GPU values will plummet and people will be holding obsolete mining hardware. We wanted something stable with no surprises - we know Scrypt-2048 can be efficiently mined on GPUs as most Scrypt-N coins are being mined with them right now. We don't want people holding a bunch of useless hardware - we want to build the strength and stability of the network.
As Murraycoin grows, it's my opinion that (nearly) everybody will be on the same page. We know there is a lot of work to be done to get us there but Murraycoin will rise - I personally guarantee it. We have a lot going for us and we are truly just getting started. 5 months seems like an eternity in the altcoin universe because most coins are pumped, dumped, and the dev disappears within a couple of months - we're a bright light in an increasingly seedy world and I'm confident that will be an asset when it's time to start moving all of the pieces into place.
Murraycoin paper wallet generator should be up tonight. It's possible we will be making some tweaks to various things/etc but please update to the latest version right away - we need everybody on the correct fork! Both of the seeds have been updated, FusionHash has updated, and we will add additional dedicated seeds as well over the next couple days. If you guys have any questions/comments/concerns please let me know.
It's time to rise up. Onward and upward!
