Bitcoin noob needs a hand.

[johnnydotexe]

Try the simple to use java interface of the bitminter pool. Its noob friendly, not so big that it can screw the network like deepbit, and its pretty steady payout.

www.bitminter.com to find out more

I'm set up with the Bitcoin Wallet and GUI Miner at the moment and mining for BTC Guild since it seems like a popular pool and isn't posing any sort of a "risk" to the network like slush's pool or deepbit.  The setup wasn't hard at all and at this point all I do is load up GUI Miner and click "start mining."

I need to figure out what other flags to use for my Sapphire 5830 because I'm only getting about 260MH/s @ 875MHz Core and 500MHz Memory.  In the last 9-10 hours I've earned about 0.085 BTC according to my earnings stats over at BTC Guild.

[muyuu]

With current parameters, your system will just about break even with electricity. That is, not factoring at all the amortisation of the system nor the wearing out from running it overclocked full-blast 24x7. Over time, difficulty is likely to go up again and unless the prices go up, it won't even pay the electricity it consumes. I'd venture this will happen as soon as two weeks from now.

To make money from mining you'd need a well tailored system at this particular moment in time. Most single miners are very likely running at a loss right now.

HOWEVER, it's still good to mine. It adds stability to the system and that contributes to the value of the coins you may already have. I will also heat up the room when it's cold. If you're going to run an electric radiator, it's always better to mine instead.

So yes, people are printing money but the printing is costing them more money than they print. Not everybody, of course. Some are making good money, and some get to run their computers for free (somebody else is paying in these cases).

Try this.

http://www.alloscomp.com/bitcoin/calculator.php

Your system wattage should be around 400-500W. Where I live that's about £20/month (~31 US$/month)

According to https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Mining_Hardware_Comparison
... your system will churn about 290 MH/s if you set it up properly. Your break even is somewhere among $4.5-$5 (bitcoin rate) depending on the price of electricity in your area.

Notice that:

- difficulty will most probably go up (try changing difficulty in the calculator and see what happens)
- you are not counting at all the cost / wear out of your hardware

See difficulty history here http://btcserv.net/bitcoin/history/

[MoonShadow]

btw they shouldn't advertise the 'fee less transaction' thing so much, because eventually mining will have to be paid for with transaction fees.

Why not?  transaction fees are never going to amount to much per transaction, due to it's automated functions.  Such functions, at some level, require human intervention in the case of credit cards and the like.  Bitcoin doesn't need human intervention.

[FreeMoney]

btw they shouldn't advertise the 'fee less transaction' thing so much, because eventually mining will have to be paid for with transaction fees.

Why not?  transaction fees are never going to amount to much per transaction, due to it's automated functions.  Such functions, at some level, require human intervention in the case of credit cards and the like.  Bitcoin doesn't need human intervention.

I don't think 'free' is a good way to advertise it. It isn't always true even now and people assume there is a catch anyway, which there really is. I don't know the best way to say it, but the reality is pretty good. Hyper-low? Usually free? Awesome deal?

[MoonShadow]

There are still free transaction, if you are patient.  There is no reason to assume that free transactions cannot continue to exist.  They most certainly will.