Bitcoin for a few...!

[Smartvirus]

Bitcoin has been around for a decade plus now. Research tells me it started in 2009 making it 11years old now and yet, it still feels like a thing for only a distinguished few.
Why is that?
Everyone seems to be familiar with the term Bitcoin but most more than majority gets the idea of what it is really about. I guess that's the clarity this forum offers.
Is Bitcoin really a thing for a few?
Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?
Do you think this has any effect on Bitcoins development?

[pooya87]

the problem is that bitcoin is new and very different from any form of money that people have experienced in their lives. being decentralized and user being in full control of their money is great but also it comes with requiring some effort on the user's part for security, storage,... and that has made things harder for adopters.

additionally there has been a lot of misinformation and FUD about bitcoin. it has been called all kinds of things from a Ponzi scheme to outright fraud! things like that turns a lot of people around who are too lazy to do  their own research and choose to trust the media.

in any case what some people choose to do doesn't mean bitcoin is exclusive to a few. it is a free world, anybody can choose to adopt bitcoin.

[mk4]

Money is sort of a 'taboo' topic. Everyone uses it, but the vast majority, especially people from countries where their local currency hasn't imploded yet(United States, etc), doesn't even know how money works. But yet they trust it as if the people in charge can't fuck it up. This is why most of the people refuse to delve deeper into Bitcoin and automatically think it's unnecessary(because the USD is currently fine).

Ignorance is a bliss.

[Upgrade00]

Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?

Because many do not seek knowledge about Bitcoin, nor do they want to be solely responsible for their funds and so they hold on to the faux security the modern banking sector offers.
When Bitcoin was launched only an exclusive few were really actually interested, and owing to the fact that it had no real value then, they were curious about the technology itself. With the rise in price many people got spoked and it became a popular term, but many of the newer members are only interested in the $ equivalent attached to it and have little interest in understanding the network behind it.

Do you think this has any effect on Bitcoins development?

Initially, maybe a little; if people understand so little about it, they would accept any malicious label attached to it, especially when it's coming from the government and banking sector which they trust. With time however, I think this would change when it becomes too big to be ignored.

[alani123]

Bitcoin is a nuance.

Having heard of it is one thing. But in order to acquire any amount of it, one has to be in a financially secure place, have the time and also knowledge to acquire any.
Nobody is going to grab anybody's hand and securely drive them towards buying bitcoin. It's much the same with stocks for example.
Although stocks are considered a foundational element of the economy. Stocks have a long history of developing as financial instruments and their through their exchanges there have been created indexes like the DOW and the S&P500 which are considered to reflect the market's best and always go up on average as the market grows.
With all these perks, still it's the 1% that own more than half of stocks in wealthy countries like the USA. Perhaps its even worse in other places.

Now also consider that BTC is much more risky if you take into account price fluctuations with FIAT pairs. Not everyone can afford the risk. And those that can, probably choose to put their money in more stable investments.

BTC ownership is also following similar standards to stocks in terms of distribution. 1% of addresses own around 95% of BTC in circulation.
This of course doesn't imply wealth distribution is as much skewed, because exchanges also act as custodians for many people. But it sure goes to show, that even among those that use bitcoin, many aren't doing it politically and aren't storing funds in their own means.

Bitcoin is making many improvements in its infrastructure. People are learning about it day by day. The best we can do hoping BTC ownership is going to grow, is to inform as many people as possible about how skewed the mainstream system of finance is against the people. It's hard to grasp and appreciate the virtues of bitcoin. But with the right efforts, when the next systemic crisis hits, people will know where to turn once the system around FIAT money fails them.

[Daniel91]

Bitcoin has been around for a decade plus now. Research tells me it started in 2009 making it 11years old now and yet, it still feels like a thing for only a distinguished few.
Why is that?
Everyone seems to be familiar with the term Bitcoin but most more than majority gets the idea of what it is really about. I guess that's the clarity this forum offers.
Is Bitcoin really a thing for a few?
Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?
Do you think this has any effect on Bitcoins development?

I suggest that you move this topic to bitcoin discussion 
Yes,  many people heard about btc and crypto but mainstream media usually report about btc in a very negative way.
Also,  as you know,  there is no state or bank behind btc.
There are many other reasons why btc didn't become mainstream yet but I think I mentioned 2 main reasons.
I personally think that in the future btc will be for everybody,  not just a few.

[pakhitheboss]

It is only been a decade.

Bitcoin is known by almost everyone in this world but most people still are not comfortable investing in it because of the negative publicity from the mainstream media and the scams associated with it. Governments have also created a panic regarding Bitcoin with its citizens.

It will change in another decade and you will see a lot of people investing in it.

[Maslate]

You seemed right as I have a lot of friends who heard the word bitcoin but does not really have an idea on WHAT really is bitcoin.
They think it's an investment, associated to the HYIP or Ponzi scheme, but of course I would not just let them believe on that because it's wrong, so as long as we help to educate people about what is bitcoin and its purpose, I think the adoption would really happen, also, it will not happen instantly, it will still take time so as an investor, we need to have that patience.

[Harlot]

You can compare Bitcoin to other companies who didn't started with a bang and began slowly before being popular. Companies like Amazon and Facebook didn't have a lot of customers/users during the first early years but when the digital age started to develop this is when we see how they start booming. You can say the same thing to Bitcoin where until now we can't see any kind of mass adoption happening. It is not because not a lot of people are open to using Bitcoin it is just because we don't see the government taking the first steps on being open with the crypto industry making it hard for people to adopt it faster.

[aioc]

Bitcoin has been around for a decade plus now. Research tells me it started in 2009 making it 11years old now and yet, it still feels like a thing for only a distinguished few.
Why is that?
Everyone seems to be familiar with the term Bitcoin but most more than majority gets the idea of what it is really about. I guess that's the clarity this forum offers.
Is Bitcoin really a thing for a few?
Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?
Do you think this has any effect on Bitcoins development?

Not really, these people who are not familiar with Bitcoin do not have motivation yet to study what Bitcoin is, eventually they will have a grasp of it in the future when they see that many people are using it, they see it everywhere they read a lot of articles about it, people embrace something that is popular and many people are using.

[DdmrDdmr]

I’ve hear of terms such as Higgs boson, quantum teleportation, and electrokinetics, as probably many people have, yet they are concepts that are not understood by the vast majority (me included). Coronavirus is another terms that I barely knew, but that now is a pivot topic in everyday life, and everyone knows some basic information about it, even though not to a technical degree.

Bitcoin is on the news every now and then, more often than not for the wrong reasons, and to the masses, it is still not a concept that is enticing enough to grasp. It will require some catalysers to place it on the (positive) top of mind of the masses. Now whether those catalysers are related to development (ease of use/security), regulation, price boost, spread in usage/service possibilities (i.e. big corporations), or a combination of them all, is yet to be seen. What seems clear is that is seen more as an investment than a day to day operational facilitator, and that delimits the number of players with interest in it.

[Rosilito]

Bitcoin has been around for a decade plus now. Research tells me it started in 2009 making it 11years old now and yet, it still feels like a thing for only a distinguished few.
Why is that?
Everyone seems to be familiar with the term Bitcoin but most more than majority gets the idea of what it is really about. I guess that's the clarity this forum offers.
Is Bitcoin really a thing for a few?

No, it is just that not everyone has the interest into this industry. I'd say technicalities isn't their thing neither doesn't pique their interest. 'Cause you know even creating your own wallet is a bit of a complex thing, that, one must understand necessary stuff that must be dealt with. On the other hand, commerce is not everybody's cup of tea. Maybe people were already satisfied livin' in a paycheck to paycheck or maybe others are that rich enough to bother themselves with risky things like this that requires utmost patience.

Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?
Do you think this has any effect on Bitcoins development?

I bet these people who knew the term had heard 'bout it in some scam, fraudulent activities going around the internet. And it made them be afraid about getting with it or perhaps practice avoiding being involve with any kind of ventures it has  .

[AakZaki]

It is only been a decade.

Bitcoin is known by almost everyone in this world but most people still are not comfortable investing in it because of the negative publicity from the mainstream media and the scams associated with it. Governments have also created a panic regarding Bitcoin with its citizens.

It will change in another decade and you will see a lot of people investing in it.

Most people also don't understand about Bitcoin and consider it only a digital currency that is not too important and worthless. Negative publications arise because there are certain interests to make a FUD about bitcoin. Investing in bitcoin also has a high risk because the price is volatile unlike the price of Gold and FIAT.
Media coverage of bitcoin includes a variety of positive and negative news. For the next decade maybe bitcoin will be more accepted and the technology will also be increasingly developed. Bitcoin adoption was slowly carried out by several companies.

[gentlemand]

Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?

To understand the main benefits of Bitcoin it certainly helps to understand how everyday money works. If you ask most of the people around you to define that I'll bet 95% won't have a clue and if they were told it's quite possible they would refuse to believe you.

Not many people have a great deal of curiosity about things like that. Bitcoin will be fed back to the majority eventually, they won't discover it for themselves.

[Darker45]

There are many possible reasons why people seem not to care about Bitcoin. Many have heard about it for sure but only a few have responded to it positively. And far fewer who really spent time and effort getting familiar with it and eventually buying.

So Bitcoin does not appeal to many probably because:

• People don't give a damn about how the monetary world is working. They've got money, the world gets going. They've got nothing, they find ways to make money. And it ends there. Only a few ventures into asking critical questions such as "how much money does the treasury allowed to make and on what basis?", "why is money losing its value quite fast?", "who decides how much new money is to be made?", and so on and so forth. If only these questions matter to them, they probably would have been one of us right now.
• People don't look for an alternative if they don't find it urgently necessary. If the fiat money they are using seems to work quite well from their end, why bother look for another?
• The labels on Bitcoin. Bitcoin is the currency of the criminals. Bitcoin is a way to launder money. Bitcoin is a way to buy illegal stuff and contraband. Bitcoin is for gamblers, geeks, pedophiles, and the crazy people whose only world is inside the internet.
• The "what's in it for me?" mentality of a lot of us. I bet many jumped into the bandwagon only when the price value of Bitcoin rose to a whole new level quite unimaginable earlier. And there's the influx of Bitcoin buyers whose only goal is to make fast and easy money.
• There are a few stores, shops, and other business and commercial establishments putting up we accept Bitcoin as payment. This is partially due to the fact that Bitcoin is growing exclusively organically. Bitcoin does not have a marketing department. Bitcoin does not approach businesses. Neither do they put up ads all around. It only spreads from the very people who are into it.
• Bitcoin is very complicated, too technical, that only a few could actually understand and make use of it.
• They've heard of it from scammers. Right there and then, they consider Bitcoin as scam. Bitcoin has been closely attached to investment scams.
• People are lazy. Others think they better spend their time on something else rather than waste it on understanding something alien.
• Bitcoin needs technologies. Others don't have them. 

And this list goes on. The good thing, however, is Bitcoin is what it is. It is here to stay because it is very relevant.

[ShowOff]

-snip-

You have already mentioned a number of thing that make people not care about bitcoin in the list and I confirm a number of things that I can now prove with the facts that I get in the environment around me. Many people in my environment know that I am a bitcoin or cryptocurrency user and they also know that in bitcoin I can make money even though in very minimal amount. Many of them assume that bitcoin is not something that is good and accepted in the community, this is inseparable from the use of bitcoin as a currency that is very volatile and widely used as a means of payment on various types of gambling sites (their understanding).

I will never want to argue with people who have such an understanding, because in the end I have to say that they will never understand because they are not in this circle. The point that I can conclude is that bitcoin is still seen negatively by some people and how we react to it depends on each of us.

[KrisAlex18]

Well, bitcoin is still now unknown for many people because their government prohibits this kind of currency in their country, bitcoin has not reached by many people, just like me, there is no school in our country that teaches about cryptocurrency, all are only caused by self study, exploring, reading and understanding about it. There are also many people who have not considered it as money, they think that there is no money online, they think that it can be scammed because they believe that there is no money that you can get in an easy way, you have to work for it through manual things.

in any case what some people choose to do doesn't mean bitcoin is exclusive to a few. it is a free world, anybody can choose to adopt bitcoin.

Indeed, bitcoin is open for adoption for every country, all are allowed to use it no matter who they are. It depends on them if they are going to trust the bitcoin or not.

[NavI_027]

in any case what some people choose to do doesn't mean bitcoin is exclusive to a few. it is a free world, anybody can choose to adopt bitcoin.

Indeed, bitcoin is open for adoption for every country, all are allowed to use it no matter who they are. It depends on them if they are going to trust the bitcoin or not.

Yeah! It's true that bitcoin or cryptocurrency in general is open for all countries worldwide. But most of them choose to not show their support: 1) They totally hate it thus of prohibiting the use of it, and 2) For more fortunate case, they're only not showing huge priority on it. Our own governments are too focused on remedying unending problems such as poverty, low employment, food shortage on man's necessities rather than pursuing small technological upgrades like this one. So as a result, the citizens tend to become clueless about it unless all of us are tech geeks lol. Less awareness means less adoption, and less adoption means slower crypto community growth . That's why not only us but also our government plays a votal role on putiing bitcoin intoainstream.

[UmerIdrees]

Bitcoin has been around for a decade plus now. Research tells me it started in 2009 making it 11years old now and yet, it still feels like a thing for only a distinguished few.
Why is that?
Everyone seems to be familiar with the term Bitcoin but most more than majority gets the idea of what it is really about. I guess that's the clarity this forum offers.
Is Bitcoin really a thing for a few?
Why is it that so many are just aware of the term and yet still know almost nothing about it?
Do you think this has any effect on Bitcoins development?

People do not accept the change or are fearful to accept the new currency which is bitcoin and do not want to replace the paper money, fiat, which they are using it for a long time.
I think bitcoin will only become popular when the government will announce them as legal payment method.

[gentlemand]

I think bitcoin will only become popular when the government will announce them as legal payment method.

It doesn't need that and in many places it already is a legal payment method. The places where it is explicitly illegal are much smaller in number.

Its moment will happen when using it is a no brainer. Right now it's still the throwing shit at the wall phase to see what sticks. No one knows what it's going to become yet. It might never be any type of currency and largely be a savings vehicle. We'll have to see.

Indeed, bitcoin is open for adoption for every country, all are allowed to use it no matter who they are. It depends on them if they are going to trust the bitcoin or not.

That's my take too. Too many people here REALLY want everyone to get excited just like they are. But they're not and won't be for quite some time. Let's make sure it's still here when they do.