Armory Crowdfunding Finished! [UPDATE - *BETA*]

[Bitbird]

Congratulations to etotheipi!  Too shame for missing the donation period...

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[etotheipi]

Congratulations to etotheipi!  Too shame for missing the donation period...

For now, if folks still want to donate to my 1ArmoryXcf address, I will offer the same rewards.  I have extras of each reward, so it's not a problem to continue providing them.  I can even continue updating this thread, but I already did all the part-time stuff at work, so it won't change that.  Many here donate just because they know it will help me continue to do this work, so don't let me stop you from that

I guess the big difference is that I can no longer take credit-card donations... but this is the Bitcoin forums, after all!

Feel free to donate:  1ArmoryXcfq7TnCSuZa9fQjRYwJ4bkRKfv, then email me and I will send the appropriate rewards when I get them in.

On the topic of rewards: I am still waiting for shirts... it might be another week (hopefully not two).  Sorry!  I'll get them out ASAP!

[cypherdoc]

I think that I will take a leap and drop to 32 anyway, despite being the condition I laid out for raising $8k.  Screw it, I want to do it.  I live below my means for a reason, and this seems like a rare (and justifiable) opportunity.  It's something I really want to do, and happens to be something lots of other people want me to do  

Even though I didn't raise the full amount, I'm still committed to keeping the core, Armory desktop application free.  It will be my primary focus for the rest of year, or until it's "done."  The word, "done", is a way of saying: "everyone can use it, with all the security features, offline wallets, multi-sig interfaces, translations, web-server accessibilities, and can be considered a direct replacement for the Satoshi client".  It's not until that time that I will look for other ways to make money:  perhaps through licensing to other developers,  creating add-ons to integrate services directly into the client, or just renting myself out as a consultant.

Until that time, I'm sure the Satoshi client and other clients will work to integrate many of the same features as Armory.  This is fine with me:  if Armory had any part in spurring competition in the client marketplace and bringing good ideas to the other clients, then I'll consider it another metric of success.  After all, part of my goal is seeing Bitcoin succeed, not just Armory.

-Alan

this is the kinda attitude that we all appreciate and what is so great about open source and Bitcoin.  i'm sure i speak for the community when i say thank you for all the great features and quick fixes you're applying to Armory.

with people like you how can Bitcoin fail?

[Red Emerald]

I sent some more coins to my offline wallet, and at the same time sent you a small donation

[Bitbird]

@etotheipi Great to heard about this! How much BTC should I donated for an Encryption Seminar?

[etotheipi]

@etotheipi Great to heard about this! How much BTC should I donated for an Encryption Seminar?

The original price list was $10 for the seminar.  $25 for a USB key, $50 for Tshirt, $100 for all of the above + Casascius coin, $300 for used laptop, and $500 for all the above.  I will still honor those, at least until I run out of stuff...

Glad to see people still interested!

Btw, I'm getting close to a preliminary RAM-reduction release for Linux (and Windows will get implemented as people help test Linux).  I'll post on the main thread when I'm ready for people to help me test -- hopefully Friday!  And it will need quite a bit of testing!

[malevolent]

4000 dollars in one month? wow, didn't know anyone could get so much money from donations in so little time in such a niche field as a bitcoin wallet application.
Congrats!

[etotheipi]

4000 dollars in one month? wow, didn't know anyone could get so much money from donations in so little time in such a niche field as a bitcoin wallet application.
Congrats!

And people continue to donate!  With RAM-reduction on the way, I'm hoping that I will get another surge!  I love working on the project, but it would be nice to recover a little bit more of the salary I'm not collecting...

So, I have re-opened the reward/gift system on the BitcoinArmory website!   (I also updated the top post with this information).

[etotheipi]

Sorry Donors!

I've been waiting to send out rewards until I got the Tshirts made.  After a mess of getting the Tshirts negotiated with ooShirts.com, they delivered the lowest-quality shirts imaginable!  The logo is awkwardly placed, and the printing is so terrible it looks like they washed the shirts 30 times before sending them.  I have no choice but to return them and start over.  Ugh! 

If you are waiting on just a USB key, I can send those out.  If you are waiting on both, please email me if you'd like your USB key separately instead of waiting for the shirts.  I have no reservations about sending out the keys separately.

Thanks for being patient!
-Eto

[etotheipi]

Nine months later, Armory is now Beta!  Check the top post for details!

[WikileaksDude]

Nine months later, Armory is now Beta!  Check the top post for details!

been checking the client for the last 2h.

what a lovely client... your work is inspirational.

keep it up dude.

[securo]

Armory is an excellent idea. Can't wait to check it out for real.

[etotheipi]

Armory is an excellent idea. Can't wait to check it out for real.

Well, what are you waiting for?  It is real, right now!  "Beta" in this case, actually means functional, stable, and with a complete set of features (not all the features I ultimately want, but enough to use as your primary app).  There's a few lingering bugs, but most are aesthetic, and as long as you create a paper backup you can't lose your coins -- but the wallet code has been in use for 10 months now, and no one has had a problem.

Getting past beta means Armory will have multi-signature tx support, a sister Android app, reasonable system requirements, and full support on OSX.  But, for a majority of users right now, none of these are a problem (most users have sufficient system specs, and OSX users have generally succeeded with RedEmerald's install instructions).

[Raoul Duke]

I pledge $49.99+ in btc when it hits beta. I have been on the losing side of up front costs too many times - while this seems like a slam dunk, it is a personal issue for me. I check the armory thread all the time.

Time to pay up, dude

[AfricanHunter]

Nice, just downloaded and am playing with it. Some questions.

1. If I did not print a paper backup when it first launched, can I do so later and if so how?
2. Assume that the file armory_blahblah_backup.wallet is my digital wallet backup correct? If I store this somewhere secure and my computer gets destroyed/stolen/etc, that is all I need to get my coins back would be to install a new version of Armory, point it to this file and enter the same passphrase I entered originally? This file is encrypted correct? So if I sent it through email it should be safe unless someone knows my passphrase?
3. How is the armory_blahblah_wallet file different from armory_blahblah_backup.wallet?
4. Is there any sort of user manual that explains how to use all the features?

Looks great so far. Thanks for the effort. Will send some btc your way

[etotheipi]

Nice, just downloaded and am playing with it. Some questions.

1. If I did not print a paper backup when it first launched, can I do so later and if so how?
2. Assume that the file armory_blahblah_backup.wallet is my digital wallet backup correct? If I store this somewhere secure and my computer gets destroyed/stolen/etc, that is all I need to get my coins back would be to install a new version of Armory, point it to this file and enter the same passphrase I entered originally? This file is encrypted correct? So if I sent it through email it should be safe unless someone knows my passphrase?
3. How is the armory_blahblah_wallet file different from armory_blahblah_backup.wallet?
4. Is there any sort of user manual that explains how to use all the features?

Looks great so far. Thanks for the effort. Will send some btc your way

• (1) Yes, you can print a paper backup at any time.  It always prints the root key and chaincode, which is always capable of reproducing every non-imported key in your wallet, ever.   Just double click on the wallet (or select it and click "Wallet Properties"), and there is a button on the right that says "Make Paper Backup."
• (2) The *_backup.wallet file should be an exact copy of your main wallet file, used for consistency checking.  Let's say you modify your wallet in some way, such as importing an address to it.  Here's exactly what Armory does:  (a) import address into .wallet file, (b) import address into _backup.wallet file, (c) report success to user.  The user is not notified until the update is written to both files, and no matter which nanosecond the power goes out, one of the two files will be uncorrupt and automatically restored.  Along with single-bit error correction in every wallet field, this is why I claim "corruption-resistant" wallets.  I have even have unit-tests that involve interrupting the write process and verified they work as intended.
• (3) See above
• (4) There is no manual.  The best I've got is a tutorial on using the offline wallets feature.  I've been meaning to come up with more how-tos and tutorials, but I'm a one-man show, and I've been more focused on development.  However, I am very good at baking descriptions and warnings into the app, so I hope a lot of it is self explanatory (Armory yells at you when you're about to dangerous things).

Glad you like the app!  Thanks!

[MPOE-PR]

Here's exactly how it works:  Let's say you modify your wallet in some way, such as importing an address to it.  Here's exactly what Armory does:  (a) import address into .wallet file, (b) import address into _backup.wallet file, (c) report success to user.  The user is not notified until the update is written to both files, and no matter which nanosecond the power goes out, one of the two files will be uncorrupt and automatically restored.  Along with single-bit error correction in every wallet field, this is why I claim "corruption-resistant" wallets

There may be some interference depending on how exactly OS/Bios handles writing of files (as in, file #1 write is being cached, reported completed, file #2 is being written upon, reported completed, power goes down, nothing was committed). Even so, this is a nice feature.

[etotheipi]

Here's exactly how it works:  Let's say you modify your wallet in some way, such as importing an address to it.  Here's exactly what Armory does:  (a) import address into .wallet file, (b) import address into _backup.wallet file, (c) report success to user.  The user is not notified until the update is written to both files, and no matter which nanosecond the power goes out, one of the two files will be uncorrupt and automatically restored.  Along with single-bit error correction in every wallet field, this is why I claim "corruption-resistant" wallets

There may be some interference depending on how exactly OS/Bios handles writing of files (as in, file #1 write is being cached, reported completed, file #2 is being written upon, reported completed, power goes down, nothing was committed). Even so, this is a nice feature.

Even so,  if Armory encounters errors reading one file,  it will restore from the other one.   If,  somehow, both are corrupt... That's why you have a paper backup :-)  (and for reference, I'm not aware of anyone suffering wallet corruption, yet).

I do recognize that the disk writes are not guaranteed, but at least there is an fsync called after each write,  so there's a good chance it will.

[MPOE-PR]

there is an fsync called after each write,  so there's a good chance it will.

Yeah, that's probably the most you can/should do at this point.

[SouthernComfort]

I totally agree most of my hatred for it is out of lack of understanding. I see the good that comes from it, but I count the good as "dumb luck". Business is about making money regardless of what happens. I don't rely on donations to publish the magazine for example, I do so based on a very calculated effort of costs, fees, public interest, and I constantly move for more adoption and interest wherever possible. This might not apply to a software application like Armory, but it actually might too. I won't pretend to know, but I will ask the question-- anything other than crowdfunding on the menu?

EDIT: It's not going to happen, but what if MtGox paid him $100 a day to have MtGox trading options embedded (optional of course) into the client. For people who don't use MtGox, it would help them to learn about MtGox (good for MtGox), for those who do use MtGox it would simplify their process of buying bitcoins etc, and for those who are not too fond of MtGox *cough*me*cough* it would be easily ignored as it's just a feature. This is a highly exaggerated example for so early in the game, but it's not an impossible one.