Development Update #2
New wallets released, updated to 1.0.4, with links added to the main post. This includes a
mandatory update before block 2880. We have sent emails to relevant pools to make sure the correct fork is used beyond the Proof Of Work period.
We have anticipated a further issue with the proof of stake function from the previous codebase Vault is forked from. We'd like to summarize the complexity of the issue before going into detail about how we're going to handle it and maintain network integrity.
Since the original codebase is a modification of ppcoin, the value of COIN is only 6 decimal places. When used with the low supply of Vault, this raises an issue with stake rewards. In more detail, the transactions generated as rewards for low balances supporting the Vault network via staking will be below 0.000001, and therefore will effectively have no PoS reward for smaller balances (due to the internal integer representation).
As a quick fix to allow staking users to see reward, we could increase the stake reward by a multiplier, but we would prefer to instead stick to the original technical outline for Vault.
Further complexity is raised when attempting to alter the value of COIN, which is a very delicate variable, highly integrated into the core codebase. It is certainly not something we'd like to be pushing fixes for with limited time until the PoS switchover. A full fix to this issue will require a codebase cleanup, thorough checks and a little stress-testing, something we'd like to take a period of time to complete to a level we're confident with.
For these reasons, we have decided to implement a temporary repression of staking rewards until we are satisfied with a cleaner, bug-free codebase. What does this mean for you?
Well, not much, besides a short period of staking with zero reward. The core members of the development team have managed to mine around 22 Vault which we will commit to staking 24/7 during the zero reward period, allowing the network to continue it's mobility and allow transactions to confirm as normal. We are already working on the permanent solution, and integrating this solution with VaultNodes, which is the first novel unique innovation we're implementing into Vault.
Please remember, this update is mandatory. Any staking you perform with previous clients will exist on a fork that is not valid to the main network. We will provide another update when the permanent fix is prepared for public upgrade.
Thank you for your continued support, we hope that we have displayed a devotion to the continued development of Vault and the avoidence of problems before they occur.
Approaching the end of the Proof Of Work period, only 100 or so blocks remaining to mine.
We are preparing a documentation of future development plans, including an explanation of VaultNodes, and additional technical contributions, but would like to fix the ppcoin codebase's staking issues before we proceed with announcing the more complex developments.
Thanks for your patience and continued support!
1.0.4 Windows client: (download)1.0.4 Mac client: (download)See code changes: (github) 
