Have you ever used bitcoin? What's the point?

[JoetheLion]

I've read this and I'm not convinced. So, have you traded or bought anything with bitcoin? Was the fuss worth it? Why should we care about it? Isn't it an utopian wishful thinking without any real grasp of reality?

 

[lxskllr]

It's pseudo-anonymous, and works like cash. It's cash for the digital world.

 

[Greenman]

It was yet another method of creating wealth without producing anything.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

You can convert bitcoins to cash to use on Amazon and stuff...

 

[KB]

Never used bitcoin but I sure am upset with myself for not getting in on it when Steve Gibson first mentioned it in his Security Now podcast (first time I had heard of it). At that time mining them was easier, so I could have gotten quite a few coins mined. Now the odds of mining are against you. When it spiked from a few cents to > $250 per coin I would have been rich had I been one of the first.

The good parts of it are that it unregulated and anonymous. It has become the desired currrency of online drug transactions and betting. It is also built with an algorithm to prevent massive inflation as there is a set amount of coins minted each year.

The bad parts are that it is unregulated and anonymous. There is no one setting monetary policy to push the bitcoin economy if it begins to fail. There is no government support of the currency trying to keep it alive and circulating. It originally acted like a pyramid scheme with the people getting in first making the most money.

 

[ultimatebob]

I mined a few of them with my video card back when they were easier to mine. I just wish that I would have waited for them to hit $200 each before I bought something with them!

Buy, hey... at least I got some amazon.com gift cards and a cool flashlight out of the deal.

 

[Murloc]

I never used them.
I think it's more like an experiment, but some people did make money out of it, or use it to buy drugs.

 

[MontyAC]

People who think they can't be tracked use it.

 

[Ken g6]

Never used bitcoin but I sure am upset with myself for not getting in on it when... mining them was easier

[thread=2089262]This[/thread].

 

[dawp]

It was yet another method of creating wealth without producing anything.

no true, you produce heat, lots and lots of heat.

 

[AstroManLuca]

Good for buying tinfoil hats.

 

[Peter Nixeus]

If you mined for them, good for you... if you paid for them... D:

 

[dighn]

it's gambling for geeks

 

[mmntech]

Bitcoin is all well and good, until the government starts regulating it. Which they will.

 

[Train]

Bitcoin is all well and good, until the government starts regulating it. Which they will.

It is regulated, and technically it was never unregulated.

Ars Technica has several articles about court cases that confirm this.

Using something other than a govt sanctioned currency is not some magic pass to be able to money launder or set up pyramid schemes.

 

[Pray To Jesus]

you can humble bundle with B

 

[Crono]

I'm mining Litecoin right now.

The whole point of Bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies is that they are decentralized currencies. Yes, they can be used for shady stuff, but that's no different from cash.

The big advantage of Bitcoin is that anyone with the equipment (be it low end video cards or massive ASIC farms) can generate coins and exchange them for other currencies, goods, or services. Which is why the "mining" metaphor works well, as it's really just a matter of turning physical capital into wealth, just with a virtual currency being the output instead of a tangible commodity.

Currency markets have arisen, as well, for those who like to play the purely investment/currency exchange side without actually mining.

For me, Litecoin mining is just a way to put my hardware to use when I'm not using it. Whenever the cost of electicity is higher than the equivalent amount of dollars I'm mining, I'll stop, but for now it's not a bad way to pay for computer upgrades and coffee. I'm not bothering with massive setups, not that I have the time or money.

 

[zokudu]

They're used primarily for drugs and hit men. I'm not even lying.

 

[poofyhairguy]

They're used primarily for drugs and hit men. I'm not even lying.

Don't forget piracy. That is why I have some.

 

[AMDZen]

Don't forget piracy. That is why I have some.

Piracy is free, not sure where you're pirating

 

[poofyhairguy]

Piracy is free, not sure where you're pirating

Sure if you are willing to just torrent stuff and risk getting your internet connection cut off with DMCA notices.

If you want it to be automated, SSL, and without having to upload ala P2P you got to pay to play.

 

[DaveSimmons]

I trade mine for tulips.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I'd like to eventually look at getting into it. I don't have the money now though, but if ever I have some money I'm worth risking I might build a rig for it.

 

[dighn]

I'd like to eventually look at getting into it. I don't have the money now though, but if ever I have some money I'm worth risking I might build a rig for it.

it's not longer economical to use a computer (even with GPU). you need to buy dedicated miner hardware; and even those are probably getting outdated rapidly.

 

[KlokWyze]

Hell yes. This shit is fun. Completely unregulated. Like the wild west days of the stock market. You must understand that BTC is the mack daddy, but there are few dozen viable alternate crypto currencies that are pumped and dumped on a daily basis.

The ASICs are all coming online so I only mine for LTC right now w/ my GPU miners. The difficulty has spiked so they can't compete.

I've got a small 4.5G/H ASIC coming within about a month probably (hopefully). BFL needs to hurry their asses up.