Anyone know what happened to knightmb and his 371,000 BTC?

[repentance]

Liar, liar, pants on fire, nose as long...: http://mbdonationfund.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52&Itemid=59

Q: Are you still involved in BitCoin?

A: Years ago I was, but not today. I am actually involved in a completely different project over at timekoin.org and have been for years.

Dude could easily get hired on over at Bitcoin Magazine or BFL.  

Name:   knightmb
Posts:   458
Position:   Sr. Member
Date Registered:   July 12, 2010, 10:54:43 AM
Last Active:   October 03, 2012, 07:26:20 AM

For years at Timekoin, ey?

I hate to sound like I'm defending him, but it's possible that he was developing the TimeKoin concept for a long time prior to launching it.  I read a lot of his early posts yesterday and it's pretty clear that he's always been looking for something which would give him some kind of "edge" over others. 

While he's lying when he describes TimeKoin as "long tested", the idea of developing a digital currency which doesn't require high end computers isn't unique.  From what I can see, he had a fair bit of interaction with the devs - including Satoshi - back in the day so he was exposed to the process of developing and refining a client.  This guy seems to be an opportunist so I'm not surprised that he's looking to create a niche alt currency.  I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him, but there's no doubt that people who now feel locked out of BTC mining are looking for something similar they can do with their existing hardware.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Liar, liar, pants on fire, nose as long...: http://mbdonationfund.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52&Itemid=59

Q: Are you still involved in BitCoin?

A: Years ago I was, but not today. I am actually involved in a completely different project over at timekoin.org and have been for years.

Dude could easily get hired on over at Bitcoin Magazine or BFL.  

Name:   knightmb
Posts:   458
Position:   Sr. Member
Date Registered:   July 12, 2010, 10:54:43 AM
Last Active:   October 03, 2012, 07:26:20 AM

For years at Timekoin, ey?

I hate to sound like I'm defending him, but it's possible that he was developing the TimeKoin concept for a long time prior to launching it.  I read a lot of his early posts yesterday and it's pretty clear that he's always been looking for something which would give him some kind of "edge" over others.  

While he's lying when he describes TimeKoin as "long tested", the idea of developing a digital currency which doesn't require high end computers isn't unique.  From what I can see, he had a fair bit of interaction with the devs - including Satoshi - back in the day so he was exposed to the process of developing and refining a client.  This guy seems to be an opportunist so I'm not surprised that he's looking to create a niche alt currency.  I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him, but there's no doubt that people who now feel locked out of BTC mining are looking for something similar they can do with their existing hardware.

MB's Timekoin goes back to CPUs were all the rage: http://www.docstoc.com/docs/123704108/About-Timekoin (to read the entire abstract)

While I admire the system's genius, I do see some flaws from a resource standpoint. The process

and math for Bitcoin is sound, but the means by which it functions is a wasteful process.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Oh, I'm still alive and kicking.  

Yeah, still have them, though like was said, it would not be possible to sell them all at once and become an instant millionaire.  No one is going to buy that many at once. I have kept my client running 24/7 since then though, managed to generate a bit more before the collective mining groups took over  

Without the massive server farm I had going before, I'm just down to my personal desktop, so it's never gotten over the 371k since.

I do keep many, many backups though just in case  

Good news! MB has many backups hidden so there's no way the Secret Service can find them. It's also a good thing that the SS don't read this forum so there's no way for them to know that they even exist.


Orion (MIB)

[repentance]

Oh, I'm still alive and kicking.  

Yeah, still have them, though like was said, it would not be possible to sell them all at once and become an instant millionaire.  No one is going to buy that many at once. I have kept my client running 24/7 since then though, managed to generate a bit more before the collective mining groups took over  

Without the massive server farm I had going before, I'm just down to my personal desktop, so it's never gotten over the 371k since.

I do keep many, many backups though just in case  

Good news! MB has many backups hidden so there's no way the Secret Service can find them. It's also a good thing that the SS don't read this forum so there's no way for them to know that they even exist.


Orion (MIB)

It's also a good thing that he didn't post about some of his back ups being in a safe deposit box because otherwise the Endless-sphere posters who were reading about how he acquired his 371,000 BTC might have passed that information on to the government as well.

[Shotgun_WooWoo]

We should all just leave this behind.  It's obviously not going to do any good for BTC or anything for that matter.  I support this guy and his hundreds of thousands of BTC, but seeing as how hard it is for a new miner to just get even on BTC, more energy should be focused on making this a better project all around. 

It isn't good that he did 'what' he did, but it's done and over with.  Hopefully it won't escalate.

[Transisto]

We should all just leave this behind.  It's obviously not going to do any good for BTC or anything for that matter.  I support this guy and his hundreds of thousands of BTC, but seeing as how hard it is for a new miner to just get even on BTC, more energy should be focused on making this a better project all around.  

It isn't good that he did 'what' he did, but it's done and over with.  Hopefully it won't escalate.

Leaving this behind ? Nobody here care about what damage this could have done to Romney. Do you think anyone here will help the US gov prosecute him ? We've more than enough people to prosecute as it is.

 It might have been a low and stupid move, bringing attention to Bitcoin's potential for blackmailing...  but what I care about is the future of Timekoin and wondering what happened to his 370k BTC and I'll continue to do so.

[repentance]

We should all just leave this behind.  It's obviously not going to do any good for BTC or anything for that matter.  I support this guy and his hundreds of thousands of BTC, but seeing as how hard it is for a new miner to just get even on BTC, more energy should be focused on making this a better project all around.  

It isn't good that he did 'what' he did, but it's done and over with.  Hopefully it won't escalate.

Jesus wept.  People say exactly the same thing about anything negative which happens in the Bitcoin world.  "It's not good for Bitcoin", "let's put it behind us and move forward".  It's one of the reasons why there are no meaningful consequences for scammers.

Like it or not, Bitcoin is going to be used for things which attract the attention of the authorities, whether it's Silk Road, extortion attempts or trading child porn.  "lalalala I can't hear you" is not the best way to respond to things which bring negative attention to Bitcoin.

You're also forgetting that many people in the community thought that the ransom attempt was a good thing in that it got Bitcoin mentioned in the mainstream media in a big way.  For once, it wasn't only those who read the technology pages who were reading about Bitcoin - anyone following the US election campaign could have learned about Bitcoin for the first time because of the coverage the extortion attempt received.

[Shotgun_WooWoo]

Negativity only perpetuates negativity...

[repentance]

Negativity only perpetuates negativity...

 

[Shotgun_WooWoo]

It's true, this guy had to chance to be one of BTC's biggest contributors...but instead, he's in a whole world of trouble.

[repentance]

It's true, this guy had to chance to be one of BTC's biggest contributors...but instead, he's in a whole world of trouble.

The two aren't mutually exclusive.  His early posts show that he thought a great deal about the development of Bitcoin and actively made suggestions to the devs and Satoshi.  He also recognised early on that an "arms race" may eventuate and perceived that as a "flaw", which is what led to him trying to develop a decentralised digital currency which wouldn't rely on high end processors.  To that extent, he's made a contribution to both Bitcoin and to peer to peer digital currencies in general whether or not TimeKoin succeeds.

While there are certainly Bitcoin fan-boys who regard Satoshi as some kind of messiah, Satoshi himself recognised the potential for the emergence of an alt currency which would be more successful than Bitcoin.  I think that a lot of people are committed to a decentralised, peer to peer currency rather than to Bitcoin per se and putting their time, energy and resources into the development is an alt currency is just as valid as devoting their energy to Bitcoin.  The idea that there should be one, true decentralised currency and that everyone should worship at its altar is ridiculous.

That KnightMb has an ego is readily apparent and his inability to keep that ego in check has certainly invited trouble, but it's unrealistic to expect that everyone who acquires wealth or influence through their involvement with Bitcoin is or should be a nice person or an altruist.  Some people involved with Bitcoin are going to be shitty human beings.  Some of them will make meaningful contributions to Bitcoin and/or make money out of it despite being shitty human beings. 

[marcus_of_augustus]

We should all just leave this behind.  It's obviously not going to do any good for BTC or anything for that matter.  I support this guy and his hundreds of thousands of BTC, but seeing as how hard it is for a new miner to just get even on BTC, more energy should be focused on making this a better project all around.  

It isn't good that he did 'what' he did, but it's done and over with.  Hopefully it won't escalate.

Jesus wept.  People say exactly the same thing about anything negative which happens in the Bitcoin world.  "It's not good for Bitcoin", "let's put it behind us and move forward".  It's one of the reasons why there are no meaningful consequences for scammers.

Like it or not, Bitcoin is going to be used for things which attract the attention of the authorities, whether it's Silk Road, extortion attempts or trading child porn.  "lalalala I can't hear you" is not the best way to respond to things which bring negative attention to Bitcoin.

You're also forgetting that many people in the community thought that the ransom attempt was a good thing in that it got Bitcoin mentioned in the mainstream media in a big way.  For once, it wasn't only those who read the technology pages who were reading about Bitcoin - anyone following the US election campaign could have learned about Bitcoin for the first time because of the coverage the extortion attempt received.

Your implicit assumption here is "the bitcoin made people do bad things" ...

... people do bad bad things, not computers, nor software nor crypto .... blaming bitcoin for the bad things people do is infantile, bordering on insane.

[repentance]

Your implicit assumption here is "the bitcoin made people do bad things" ...

... people do bad bad things, not computers, nor software nor crypto .... blaming bitcoin for the bad things people do is infantile, bordering on insane.

Nope.  KnightMB did questionable things that didn't involve Bitcoin at all.  Anything which offers an opportunity to part fools and their money is going to attract its fair share of opportunists.  Anything which is perceived as offering anonymity is also going to attract its fair share of opportunists.  Bitcoin is just another tool they're going to use.

What I was addressing was the assumption that because people are in a position where they could do something to benefit Bitcoin as a whole or "make a contribution" to Bitcoin they have some obligation to do so.  I think any such assumption greatly over-estimates the number of people who have some kind of ideological loyalty to Bitcoin.  People aren't spending tens of thousands of dollars on mining rigs "to maintain the blockchain".  The didn't invest with pirate because it was "good for Bitcoin".  They don't speculate on Bitcoin prices for ideological reasons.  A lot of people don't give a shit about Bitcoin per se - it's purely a means to an end for them.

Bitcoin doesn't make people do bad things but in the short-term it has some characteristics which are appealing to those who want to do certain types of shitty things.  There's certainly no deterrent to using this community to perpetrate scams when the community response is pretty much always "let's stop talking about it, put it behind us and move forward".  Any community - Bitcoin related or not - where there's a critical mass of people looking to get rich quick who also have a distaste for regulation and other government intervention is a scammer haven and this community is no exception.

If Bitcoin isn't robust enough to withstand negative publicity and negative events then it is ultimately doomed to remain a niche technology used only by Satoshi fanboys.

[cunicula]

He also recognised early on that an "arms race" may eventuate and perceived that as a "flaw",

It obviously is a flaw. And he deserves credit for pointing that out. Timekoin seems ill-conceived though.

[Phinnaeus Gage]

He's either lurking or the Secret Service now have his password.

Name:   knightmb
Posts:   458
Position:   Sr. Member
Date Registered:   July 12, 2010, 10:54:43 AM
Last Active:   Today at 09:21:15 PM

[marcus_of_augustus]

Your implicit assumption here is "the bitcoin made people do bad things" ...

... people do bad bad things, not computers, nor software nor crypto .... blaming bitcoin for the bad things people do is infantile, bordering on insane.

Nope.  KnightMB did questionable things that didn't involve Bitcoin at all.  Anything which offers an opportunity to part fools and their money is going to attract its fair share of opportunists.  Anything which is perceived as offering anonymity is also going to attract its fair share of opportunists.  Bitcoin is just another tool they're going to use.

What I was addressing was the assumption that because people are in a position where they could do something to benefit Bitcoin as a whole or "make a contribution" to Bitcoin they have some obligation to do so.  I think any such assumption greatly over-estimates the number of people who have some kind of ideological loyalty to Bitcoin.  People aren't spending tens of thousands of dollars on mining rigs "to maintain the blockchain".  The didn't invest with pirate because it was "good for Bitcoin".  They don't speculate on Bitcoin prices for ideological reasons.  A lot of people don't give a shit about Bitcoin per se - it's purely a means to an end for them.

Bitcoin doesn't make people do bad things but in the short-term it has some characteristics which are appealing to those who want to do certain types of shitty things.  There's certainly no deterrent to using this community to perpetrate scams when the community response is pretty much always "let's stop talking about it, put it behind us and move forward".  Any community - Bitcoin related or not - where there's a critical mass of people looking to get rich quick who also have a distaste for regulation and other government intervention is a scammer haven and this community is no exception.

If Bitcoin isn't robust enough to withstand negative publicity and negative events then it is ultimately doomed to remain a niche technology used only by Satoshi fanboys.

The "bitcoin community" term is making me more than a little sick ... it is meaningless ... I don't think there is any such "community". Are you saying because I have an interest in bitcoin I am somewhat responsible for what some low-lifes get up to?

Is there such a "Euro community"? A "Fed Res. dollar community"? It's utter collectivist BS to ascribe a 'community' to a group of users who choose to use a type of payment system... wtf? "Visa community", "mastercard community", "PayPal community" ... obviously, there is no bitcoin 'community', it's a made up meaningless term allowing people to assign collective responsibility/attributes to an otherwise disparate group. It also dumbs down a much richer and complicated situation so people don't have to think about it too much, and makes the propaganda that much more effective.

[thoughtfan]

The "bitcoin community" term is making me more than a little sick ... it is meaningless ... I don't think there is any such "community". Are you saying because I have an interest in bitcoin I am somewhat responsible for what some low-lifes get up to?

Is there such a "Euro community"? A "Fed Res. dollar community"? It's utter collectivist BS to ascribe a 'community' to a group of users who choose to use a type of payment system... wtf? "Visa community", "mastercard community", "PayPal community" ... obviously, there is no bitcoin 'community', it's a made up meaningless term allowing people to assign collective responsibility/attributes to an otherwise disparate group. It also dumbs down a much richer and complicated situation so people don't have to think about it too much, and makes the propaganda that much more effective.

May I suggest your distaste for the concept of 'community' might be colouring your impression of what was being said here?  From what I can see repentance is saying that we should not assume people-who-use-Bitcoin-and-hang-out-here act primarily in the best interests of the project.  As far as I can see there is no suggestion in repentence's post that people-who-use-Bitcoin-and-hang-out-here should form some sort of collective responsibility for one another.  I'm not saying there aren't people-who-use-Bitcoin-and-hang-out-here who believe in the wider implications of the word 'community' - those nuances that are more noble in some eyes whilst more abhorrent in others' (notice I'm not nailing my own colours to the mast here).

I would tend to agree with your assertion that the term 'Bitcoin community' is meaningless if the vast majority of Bitcoin users had very little of interest in common (including Bitcoin), did not regularly participate in a forum (in the wider sense) of people discussing it and related issues and instead simply used it on a day-to-day basis for their own gain (again I'm not intending to imply a value judgement here) as is the case with the examples you gave.  But what makes me smile a little at your rant (if I may call it that) is the reason you have an audience at all is that there are people-who-use-Bitcoin-and-hang-out-here.

What I'm saying is that sometimes people-who-use-Bitcoin-and-hang-out-here might want to refer to people-who-use-Bitcoin-and-hang-out-here without using so many letters and hyphens - and 'community' seems to be a word that fits the bill.

[MPOE-PR]

Nope.  KnightMB did questionable things that didn't involve Bitcoin at all.  Anything which offers an opportunity to part fools and their money is going to attract its fair share of opportunists.  Anything which is perceived as offering anonymity is also going to attract its fair share of opportunists.  Bitcoin is just another tool they're going to use.

What I was addressing was the assumption that because people are in a position where they could do something to benefit Bitcoin as a whole or "make a contribution" to Bitcoin they have some obligation to do so.  I think any such assumption greatly over-estimates the number of people who have some kind of ideological loyalty to Bitcoin.  People aren't spending tens of thousands of dollars on mining rigs "to maintain the blockchain".  The didn't invest with pirate because it was "good for Bitcoin".  They don't speculate on Bitcoin prices for ideological reasons.  A lot of people don't give a shit about Bitcoin per se - it's purely a means to an end for them.

Bitcoin doesn't make people do bad things but in the short-term it has some characteristics which are appealing to those who want to do certain types of shitty things.  There's certainly no deterrent to using this community to perpetrate scams when the community response is pretty much always "let's stop talking about it, put it behind us and move forward".  Any community - Bitcoin related or not - where there's a critical mass of people looking to get rich quick who also have a distaste for regulation and other government intervention is a scammer haven and this community is no exception.

If Bitcoin isn't robust enough to withstand negative publicity and negative events then it is ultimately doomed to remain a niche technology used only by Satoshi fanboys.

You forgot the flowers.

[repentance]

You forgot the flowers.

A new flash drive might be more appropriate given that KnightMB "lost" one.

[2112]

Bitcoin doesn't make people do bad things

You wrote a very nice argument, with which I mostly agree. It is just your use of the word "make". If you meant "make = force", then I'm fully with you.

But if you meant "make = induce" or "make = enable", then in my opinion you are wrong. Especially on the purely software technical side this project became a great enabler and inducer for incompetent programmers.

Looking purely at the effects it is hard to distinguish incompetence from the opportunistic treachery, cf. bitfloor fiasco. But the end result can be widely observed: Bitcoin started as a rather low-quality proof-of-concept code. It had no (or very few) remote exploit-style faults and this somehow became equivalent to the claim that Bitcoin is almost perfect "Mona Lisa"-quality financial code, cf. Dan Kaminsky presentation.

Well, the reality is that Bitcoin is far from perfect (in the financial software engineering realm) and has an unfortunate property of attracting some of the worst programming anti-talent. The profession of software engineering is completely unregulated, neither legaly nor morally. This is unlike eg. construction engineering, where enough people died in collapsed structures or simply lost the roof over their head to understand the value of the "building code". Similarly, one doesn't have to be electrical engineer to understand the value of "electrical code" or a firefighter to understand the value of "fire safety code".

There's still not enough people who lost their savings or operating funds to make the broad Bitcoin users community understand the value of high-quality software.

At least the bitomat.pl operator did his share and is now a perfect example of what will happen if you disregard the word "ephemeral" in the documentation of Amazon Web Services.

Edit: This post unfortunately lacks propert contextual qualification. I'm posting an apology below.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=6825.msg1337000#msg1337000