Author Topic: Does anyone here use Bitcoins? (Read 598137 times)

40hz · « **Reply #375 on:** November 06, 2013, 02:32 PM »

Well...I've pretty much said all I have to say about Bitcoin, it's underlying philosophy (such as it is), and what I think it's legal and social prospects are. So I'm gonna wrap it up for myself and leave it to others who may feel the urge to continue.

Bitcoin will either fly or it won't. We'll just have to wait and see.

Later!

Arizona Hot · « **Reply #376 on:** November 08, 2013, 04:11 PM »

$1.2M Hack Shows Why You Should Never Store Bitcoins on the Internet

barney · « **Reply #377 on:** November 08, 2013, 08:24 PM »

$1.2M Hack Shows Why You Should Never Store Bitcoins on the Internet
-Arizona Hot (November 08, 2013, 04:11 PM)

A somewhat eye-opening, albeit not unexpected, treatise. So, the question becomes, "How do I store/protect my bitcoins?" While I have non-Internet-connected boxes, that's not true of most folk. So do I store my coins on a USB key or memory card (both of which [are|can be] easily misplaced)? Do I trust to some form of Internet bank? Just how do I protect my investment, should I make it?

Renegade · « **Reply #378 on:** November 08, 2013, 08:41 PM »

$1.2M Hack Shows Why You Should Never Store Bitcoins on the Internet
-Arizona Hot (November 08, 2013, 04:11 PM)

A somewhat eye-opening, albeit not unexpected, treatise. So, the question becomes, "How do I store/protect my bitcoins?" While I have non-Internet-connected boxes, that's not true of most folk. So do I store my coins on a USB key or memory card (both of which [are|can be] easily misplaced)? Do I trust to some form of Internet bank? Just how do I protect my investment, should I make it?
-barney (November 08, 2013, 08:24 PM)

The site was a bank - not a wallet. Securing your bitcoins is simple. If you want to know more, post over at http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/ or http://bitcointalk.org/ and someone can explain why.

barney · « **Reply #379 on:** November 08, 2013, 11:09 PM »

The site was a bank - not a wallet. Securing your bitcoins is simple. If you want to know more, post over at http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/ or http://bitcointalk.org/ and someone can explain why.
-Renegade (November 08, 2013, 08:41 PM)

Been there, done that. Security is still an issue, always will be for anything online. There's an old saying to the effect that what Man can devise, Man can destroy. Anything online is vulnerable to a sufficiently skilled person. Denial of that does not make it untrue. I can lose my wallet by any number of physical means, but that is, in most cases, carelessness on my part, a lack of physical security - basically my fault, I failed to secure it properly in a physical manner. I do not have that security option online. Others might, but I ain't that bright.

Renegade · « **Reply #380 on:** November 09, 2013, 10:15 AM »

The site was a bank - not a wallet. Securing your bitcoins is simple. If you want to know more, post over at http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/ or http://bitcointalk.org/ and someone can explain why.
-Renegade (November 08, 2013, 08:41 PM)

Been there, done that. Security is still an issue, always will be for anything online. There's an old saying to the effect that what Man can devise, Man can destroy. Anything online is vulnerable to a sufficiently skilled person. Denial of that does not make it untrue. I can lose my wallet by any number of physical means, but that is, in most cases, carelessness on my part, a lack of physical security - basically my fault, I failed to secure it properly in a physical manner. I do not have that security option online. Others might, but I ain't that bright.
-barney (November 08, 2013, 11:09 PM)

You can have bitcoins offline. It's called "cold storage". However, that presupposes the concept of private property and that something can belong to you instead of belonging to the collective, which is inherently violent and the root of all evil. I've seen the light about how bitcoins are evil and how trying to make a living on your own as opposed to relying on the state is a sin. So I can't tell you anymore about it, otherwise I'd be undermining the communist revolution and would have to die. You'll need to ask elsewhere about "cold storage", but you'll be committing a sin.

tomos · « **Reply #381 on:** November 09, 2013, 10:59 AM »

^

maybe barney knows what you're on about there Ren, but I sure dont

No worries...

@barney, nothing wrong with looking for loopholes, but I get the impression you're looking for loopholes *because* you are against bitcoin (or the concept) for some reason? It is true what you say "Anything online is vulnerable to a sufficiently skilled person".
I only recently started using online banking, and I'm not particularly impressed with the bank's online security. It's up to me now, whether I continue with it. I'll probably let it drift, but if I ever got caught out (there is a Visa debit card associated with the account) I could really be kicking myself. I've heard that if a debit card get's ripped off, you have to pay it yourself, but I dont know -again, it's up to me to research that - but you know the way: it's on my list... This is making me rethink the whole thing lol.

So yeah, if you want to buy Bitcoin, you'd surely want to research first. And make an informed decision. And as you say, if you think it's not safe, dont buy in. I guess due to Bitcoins nature - if they can steal it, IIUC, it's gone - due to that, one would like to be extra sure about it. Online banking might not be quite so unsafe (?), but FWIW, mine aint inspiring me ;-)

barney · « **Reply #382 on:** November 09, 2013, 03:30 PM »

@barney, nothing wrong with looking for loopholes, but I get the impression you're looking for loopholes *because* you are against bitcoin (or the concept) for some reason?
-tomos (November 09, 2013, 10:59 AM)

Neither for nor against. But what I've read to date does not encourage me to participate. In fact, much of what I've read seems very E-Trade-ish. My primary concern is the security aspect, but I'm also a bit dubious about the constant growth in value: at some point that will have to diminish or cease. Of course, my knowledge of economics may be faulty in this arena $:-\$ , but I have to work with what [I think] I know

.

Arizona Hot · « **Reply #383 on:** November 21, 2013, 03:08 PM »

Today marks another notch in the belt for Bitcoin believers.

The University of Nicosia in Cyprus has become the first accredited university to accept Bitcoin for payment of tuition and associated fees, it announced in a statement today.

It’s been a good week for Bitcoin. Earlier this week, a Subway franchisee started accepting Bitcoin as payment for sandwiches. And last week, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and investors launched an accelerator focusing specifically on the digital currency.

Another Score for Bitcoin You Can Now Use It to Pay for College

Arizona Hot · « **Reply #384 on:** December 01, 2013, 03:44 AM »

LONDON -- An IT worker threw out a computer hard drive without realizing it contained $7.5 million worth of the digital currency Bitcoin.

The device is now buried somewhere in a vast landfill site near the home of owner James Howells -- who only realized his mistake when it was too late.

Can you feel his pain?

Arizona Hot · « **Reply #385 on:** December 01, 2013, 03:57 AM »

In Bitcoin's Orbit Rival Virtual Currencies Vie for Acceptance

tomos · « **Reply #386 on:** December 01, 2013, 06:43 AM »

In Bitcoin's Orbit Rival Virtual Currencies Vie for Acceptance
-Arizona Hot (December 01, 2013, 03:57 AM)

an informative but weird article.
The author keeps referring to a "Lawrence Blankenship ... a software engineer from Springfield, Mo.", and his buddies, who are all fans of a particular currency. Almost seems like the author had no clue (a good starting point actually), but instead of researching in depth, decided to just mine "Mr. Blankenship" for info. Not saying the article is misleading. But wouldnt trust it much either. Really poor journalism...

40hz · « **Reply #387 on:** December 01, 2013, 06:58 AM »

Wonder how much longer until...

Hopefully it won't burst before Renegade cashes out and retires as a millionaire!

wraith808 · « **Reply #388 on:** December 02, 2013, 10:24 AM »

Bitcoin mining malware could be hidden in app, security researchers warn

Computer users are being warned about "scam" apps which stealthily use their PC's resources to "mine" Bitcoins - by getting permission in a lengthy user agreement.

The security company Malwarebytes says that it has come across a program which silently used more than half of a user's computer power to perform the complex calculations required to generate the virtual currency, whose value has skyrocketed this year to around $1,000.

Adam Kujawa at Malwarebytes says that the move is one step on from the typical "Potentially Unwanted Programs" which offer browser toolbars and search agents that capture user data and pass it back to the companies, which then use that to serve adverts.

More at link.

Renegade · « **Reply #389 on:** December 02, 2013, 01:50 PM »

(see attachment in previous post)
In Bitcoin's Orbit Rival Virtual Currencies Vie for Acceptance
-Arizona Hot (December 01, 2013, 03:57 AM)

For the skeptical out there, keep your eye on the alt coins. If you have spare CPU or much better GPU power to spare, you can mine alt coins yourself. This is the big alt coin market:

https://www.cryptsy.com

Some others have much more limited offerings. BTC-e is the big Litecoin market. OKcoin.com is influential in the LTC market as well though.

Wonder how much longer until...
(see attachment in previous post)
-40hz (December 01, 2013, 06:58 AM)

That ain't gonna happen.

What everyone is missing is that Bitcoin is a PROTOCOL. Very much like HTTP. You can build entirely new services and ecosystems on top of it.

http://www.coindesk....-future-for-bitcoin/

Bitcoin is a useful way to exchange money, but what if you could do other things with it? If bitcoiners could use it to issue shares, bonds and IOUs, or even to create alternative currencies atop bitcoins, they could add even more value to this innovative cryptocurrency. Bitcoinx, a community wanting to “democratize finance,” is hoping to facilitate just that, with a concept called “colored coins”.

Colored coins is a concept designed to be layered on top of Bitcoin, creating a new set of information about coins being exchanged. Using colored coins, bitcoins could be “colored” with specific attributes. This effectively turns them into tokens, which can be used to represent anything.

More at the link.

What is important to understand is that Bitcoin, and crypto currencies in general, offer a frictionless transaction where you can transfer $150,000,000 (as was done a week or so ago) for about $0.06 where it would cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars to transfer that through a traditional, antiquated system like Western Union or PayPal, etc.

But not only are these systems frictionless, they are faster and far more secure. You do not run the risk of your bank freezing your accounts or stealing your money because of some idiotic regulations or whatever.

And on top of that, you can have distributed stock exchanges and the like.

This is the democratisation of the value of currency. It flips the entire fiat paradigm on its head.

Technologically, this is a revolution in human history that can only be compared to Gutenberg's printing press and the advent of the Internet. And it dwarfs both of those. This revolutionizes commerce and finance. Fiat is dead. It's just a walking zombie now, waiting for someone to shoot it in the head.

If anyone has been paying attention, we are in the midst of a full-on currency war. China has lobbed another salvo against the USD announcing that it will no longer be buying USD or US bonds. That little story, oddly enough, didn't really make much of a wave in the MSM, despite it being some of the biggest and most important news I've heard all year. There are many other stories in the currency war that the MSM is conveniently ignoring. Even the alternative media hasn't really picked up on it yet.

So when the currency battlefield is soaked in the blood of fiat, what will be left standing?

Centralized currency?
Decentralized currency?

Napster died because it was centralized.
Bittorrent is impossible to kill because it is decentralized.

Crypto currency is here to stay. It's just going to take a bit longer for some people to realise that.

Hopefully it won't burst before Renegade cashes out and retires as a millionaire!
-40hz (December 01, 2013, 06:58 AM)

The retirement part *IS* gonna happen~!

Bitcoin mining malware could be hidden in app, security researchers warn
-wraith808 (December 02, 2013, 10:24 AM)

This stuff is really annoying as the AV companies label minerd.exe as malware, which it isn't. So, I have to whitelist it and turn off my AV when I download cpuminer. It is NOT malware.

But this is no different than other programs that people run the exact same way. Some programs out there do distributed computing and companies sell that power to different customers. The SETI stuff is one example. A lot of it is done under the banner of "for charity" or "for science". Thankfully I've not seen them try to sell that "for the children", though I'm sure that's coming.

The EXACT same type of software has been around for years and years and not labeled malware. The consistency is, well... whatever. Pfft.

wraith808 · « **Reply #390 on:** December 02, 2013, 03:46 PM »

^ Oh, I wasn't implying that it *was* malware in and of itself; just like a lot of other programs that get labeled as such, it's in the use. And on that point, when someone does install a miner on your machine using your CPU to make money, that use of it becomes malware. And it's interesting in this fact. Just like the other forms of malware which are ways to get money (by taking your credit card and bank numbers, or encrypting your files so you can be held for ransom), this is worthy of reporting/being informed of for that very reason. It's just we're keeping bitcoin confined to one thread, so I did that with this. Perhaps I shouldn't have so it will get a wider audience, but ...

Renegade · « **Reply #391 on:** December 02, 2013, 03:56 PM »

^ Oh, I wasn't implying that it *was* malware in and of itself; just like a lot of other programs that get labeled as such, it's in the use. And on that point, when someone does install a miner on your machine using your CPU to make money, that use of it becomes malware. And it's interesting in this fact. Just like the other forms of malware which are ways to get money (by taking your credit card and bank numbers, or encrypting your files so you can be held for ransom), this is worthy of reporting/being informed of for that very reason. It's just we're keeping bitcoin confined to one thread, so I did that with this. Perhaps I shouldn't have so it will get a wider audience, but ...
-wraith808 (December 02, 2013, 03:46 PM)

I didn't think that you were implying that. The article was.

But even then, when you download free software from somewhere, especially if it's not been broadly vetted, you do need to read the license. Now, the wording in some is rather terse or obtuse, but it's still "fair warning". If you're not paying for the product... you are the product. Or your CPU/GPU... It's not malware - it's just pretty stupid to install software that's going to max out your machine, especially when you've been warned. Sure it's a crappy deal for the person installing it, but that doesn't make it malware. These terms get thrown around too easily sometimes.

I just have little sympathy for people that install everything and anything then whine about it.

Stoic Joker · « **Reply #392 on:** December 02, 2013, 05:38 PM »

But even then, when you download free software from somewhere, especially if it's not been broadly vetted, you do need to read the license. Now, the wording in some is rather terse or obtuse, but it's still "fair warning".
-Renegade (December 02, 2013, 03:56 PM)

Legalese is never to be construed as fair anything, and I'll be damned if I'll ever waste an entire second of my life reading that level of convoluted bullshit. I simply don't care what someone's vampiric lawyers thinks is a clever way of phrasing their excuses for trying to rape me. I shred any piece of software I use to be sure it actually does do precisely what I feel it is to be doing.

I just have little sympathy for people that install everything and anything then whine about it.
-Renegade (December 02, 2013, 03:56 PM)

Me either ... I just have a unique way of enforcing what's allowed on my computer.

Renegade · « **Reply #393 on:** December 03, 2013, 01:47 AM »

But even then, when you download free software from somewhere, especially if it's not been broadly vetted, you do need to read the license. Now, the wording in some is rather terse or obtuse, but it's still "fair warning".
-Renegade (December 02, 2013, 03:56 PM)

Legalese is never to be construed as fair anything, and I'll be damned if I'll ever waste an entire second of my life reading that level of convoluted bullshit. I simply don't care what someone's vampiric lawyers thinks is a clever way of phrasing their excuses for trying to rape me. I shred any piece of software I use to be sure it actually does do precisely what I feel it is to be doing.
-Stoic Joker (December 02, 2013, 05:38 PM)

Legalese is total douchebaggery. No argument there.

I just have little sympathy for people that install everything and anything then whine about it.
-Renegade (December 02, 2013, 03:56 PM)

Me either ... I just have a unique way of enforcing what's allowed on my computer.
-Stoic Joker (December 02, 2013, 05:38 PM)

My solution is to just not install anything unless I'm pretty damn sure about it.

I don't see this as much different than the whole toolbar thing. It comes with extra crap. I suppose that's one of the reasons that I like OpenCandy - they're very open and up front about what they do. It's hard to be more open than they are.

Arizona Hot · « **Reply #394 on:** December 03, 2013, 08:29 PM »

Kid holding Send Bitcoin sign on ESPN GameDay gets $24K in donations

Attronarch · « **Reply #395 on:** December 04, 2013, 09:57 AM »

Looks interesting. I've read some articles on mining bitcoins, but I'll need to dig deeper into it. Any recommendations?

Stoic Joker · « **Reply #396 on:** December 04, 2013, 11:18 AM »

Kid holding Send Bitcoin sign on ESPN GameDay gets $24K in donations
-Arizona Hot (December 03, 2013, 08:29 PM)

a. Well... tangential as it is, it's still a definite win for Renegade's "One should tryout Bitcoins" side of the fence.

b. F**K! WHY Didn't I Think of That!!!

40hz · « **Reply #397 on:** December 04, 2013, 12:44 PM »

it's still a definite win for Renegade's "One should tryout Bitcoins" side of the fence.
-Stoic Joker (December 04, 2013, 11:18 AM)

Yup. And I sincerely hope he'll get the chance to say "Told ya so 40hz!"

tomos · « **Reply #398 on:** December 04, 2013, 02:49 PM »

Looks interesting. I've read some articles on mining bitcoins, but I'll need to dig deeper into it. Any recommendations?
-Attronarch (December 04, 2013, 09:57 AM)

there was a post lately in the basement that might give you a few pointers (NOTE: you're heading into a friendly, but not so family friendly zone there).

Renegade · « **Reply #399 on:** December 09, 2013, 06:30 AM »

it's still a definite win for Renegade's "One should tryout Bitcoins" side of the fence.
-Stoic Joker (December 04, 2013, 11:18 AM)

Yup. And I sincerely hope he'll get the chance to say "Told ya so 40hz!"
-40hz (December 04, 2013, 12:44 PM)

If you saw my finances, you'd know that I'm already thinking that.

In other news...

A song for bitcoin: