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The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

bitcoinowl.com

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Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#31

Post by stinkytaco »

tobykier wrote: post #10
betterunix wrote: post #8

The article asserts this: "All technologies eventually become outdated" There are easy counterexamples: * Wheels * Fire * Knives These are technologies that predate written records (did I mention writing as another example?) yet they all remain use and are actually fundamental in our daily lives. I am not going to claim that fiat currency will be so enduring, but I see no reason to assume that it will be replaced by…

fire superseded by central heating and electric fires knives superseded by guns (weapons) and fork (cutlery). I'll give you the wheel only because I'm still waiting for my hovercar

>fire superseded by central heating and electric fires

Last I checked, my gas furnace was basically a controlled fire.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#32

Post by awt »

stinkytaco wrote: post #27
zanny wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> what they are exchanging it for. I went to a Subway in Allentown and bought subs with bitcoin last week. Scan QR code, send amount with a (in fiat) .5 cents confirmation fee to get it accepted quickly, done. No signing paper, no pinning codes, no 5% vendor transaction fees for using a piece of plastic. I've bought humble bundies, reddit gold, wordpress themes, and an sd card from a bitcoin auction site with bitcoin…

This isn't an attack on your response, because yours is a realistic answer to the question. However, I find it difficult to believe these things warrant the massive increase that bitcoin has seen the past few weeks. Open source projects, indie games and one sub shop do not a currency make. That said, I am a believer in bitcoin and hold a few myself. I also exchange it for the things you speak of. But I desperately wa…

You can buy plane tickets for btc now at cheapair.com

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#33

Post by to3m »

dlsx wrote: post #17

I don't understand bitcoin. In the sense, for a normal person to use it. I don't understand a normal consumer using bit coin. I can't even figure out how to setup this stupid wallet. It has been downloading a block file for over 5 days. How the fuck is this the future? The future is retarded.

PS3 and Xbox1 were released in the last month. Both download all their software and updates and over the internet! The future is fine, you just happened to pick the one month where there's been too much of it at once for the internet to cope.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#34

Post by stinkytaco »

shawnz wrote: post #22
dlsx wrote: post #17

I don't understand bitcoin. In the sense, for a normal person to use it. I don't understand a normal consumer using bit coin. I can't even figure out how to setup this stupid wallet. It has been downloading a block file for over 5 days. How the fuck is this the future? The future is retarded.

Since you are apparently very used to people doing things for you, you might want to look at online wallet services[1] that hold your money. You might think that it is less safe to do things that way, and you are right, but it is no less safe than giving your cash to the bank. EDIT: Sorry for being rude; last night was a long night. What I'm really trying to say is that, by running wallet software locally, you are op…

People are critical of these services, but the poster you're replying to is correct: bitcoin is not ready for prime time. As much as the bitcoin faithful would like to deny it, bitcoin will not be widely adopted until there is a financial services industry around it. The necessity of credit, the convenience of easy payment, the security of your money in a bank, it's just too tempting for people to walk away from. Nevermind that there is still a massive part of the first world population that can't program their clock, much less download a bitcoin wallet. And the fact that Internet infrastructure is still limited worldwide. Try paying with bitcoin on your phone in some more remote parts of Montana.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#35

Post by Datsundere »

aw3c2 wrote: post #14
Datsundere wrote: post #3

how legit is this? because I'd love to buy me some bitcoins right now

Please tell me you are being sarcastic. You are asking how legit a speculation about the astronomical rising price of bitcoin on a bitcoin .com website, with a graph that accurately pinpoints our location in time at the foot of a giant mountain of $$$$$, predicts the downfall of normal money, has no scientific sources. Consider all "you should buy bitcoin now" to be bait from gamblers who want to maximize their specu…

I don't expect real currencies to plummet but if bitcoins go above $1000 mark, that's pretty amazing.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#36

Post by joezydeco »

judk wrote: post #23
joezydeco wrote: post #12

I'm holding some bitcoin, but I'm still not sure whether I'm speculating or if I'm in for the long run. Sure, the Chinese are plowing huge sums of surplus cash into BTC, but where can it go? If the US, EU, and China decide tomorrow to freeze out bitcoin exchanges (like the US has already pretty much done), then where does that value go? Does it sit in BTC until adoption hits critical mass? How do you reach critical m…

If you aren't spending, you are speculating. A unit BTC is currency, not a producer of value.

Why would I spend at this point? The deflationary aspect is just too hard to work with.

I have a $8,000 iPod Touch in my pocket that I bought in 2011 when I cashed in 10BTC @ $30.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#37

Post by betterunix »

tobykier wrote: post #10
betterunix wrote: post #8

The article asserts this: "All technologies eventually become outdated" There are easy counterexamples: * Wheels * Fire * Knives These are technologies that predate written records (did I mention writing as another example?) yet they all remain use and are actually fundamental in our daily lives. I am not going to claim that fiat currency will be so enduring, but I see no reason to assume that it will be replaced by…

fire superseded by central heating and electric fires knives superseded by guns (weapons) and fork (cutlery). I'll give you the wheel only because I'm still waiting for my hovercar

Fire is not just about heating your home. Fire is used for cooking, it is used to generate electrical power, it is used in vehicles of various kinds (cars, airplanes, ships, rockets, etc.), it is used in various chemical and industrial processes, and there are hundreds of other uses.

Knives are not just weapons, and if you think forks can replace knives then you have never actually cooked anything more complicated than instant ramen. Go to your favorite restaurant's kitchen, and you will see lots of knives, specialized for various purposes. Knives are among the most useful tools ever invented. Quite a few people (myself included) carry a pocket knife or multitool (which almost always includes a knife) everywhere. There are a lot of situations in life that call for cutting things.

"I'll give you the wheel only because I'm still waiting for my hovercar"

Your hovercar will probably have wheels, unless you think there will be no need to cool any of those high-tech components (or that the cooling will be accomplished without any fans -- I doubt it). Even if we had a world of hovercars, there would be wheels all over the place, in various machines both in our homes and in factories and other industrial settings.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#38

Post by betterunix »

thaumasiotes wrote: post #26
betterunix wrote: post #8

The article asserts this: "All technologies eventually become outdated" There are easy counterexamples: * Wheels * Fire * Knives These are technologies that predate written records (did I mention writing as another example?) yet they all remain use and are actually fundamental in our daily lives. I am not going to claim that fiat currency will be so enduring, but I see no reason to assume that it will be replaced by…

> I am not going to claim that fiat currency will be so enduring I don't get what you're trying to say. Bitcoin is a fiat currency.

Fiat currencies have value because of laws.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#39

Post by stinkytaco »

awt wrote: post #32
stinkytaco wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This isn't an attack on your response, because yours is a realistic answer to the question. However, I find it difficult to believe these things warrant the massive increase that bitcoin has seen the past few weeks. Open source projects, indie games and one sub shop do not a currency make. That said, I am a believer in bitcoin and hold a few myself. I also exchange it for the things you speak of. But I desperately wa…

You can buy plane tickets for btc now at cheapair.com

Interesting. Is this site legit? Considering the ridiculous and opaque pricing scheme of airline tickets, I've always looked at sites like Kayak and now cheapair with some skepticism (preferring the old standards of expedia and orbitz). However, there's really no reason to believe that expedia has some magic that cheapair and kayak couldn't also harness.

Re: The exponential growth of Bitcoin value explained

#40

Post by VMG »

stinkytaco wrote: post #34
shawnz wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since you are apparently very used to people doing things for you, you might want to look at online wallet services[1] that hold your money. You might think that it is less safe to do things that way, and you are right, but it is no less safe than giving your cash to the bank. EDIT: Sorry for being rude; last night was a long night. What I'm really trying to say is that, by running wallet software locally, you are op…

People are critical of these services, but the poster you're replying to is correct: bitcoin is not ready for prime time. As much as the bitcoin faithful would like to deny it, bitcoin will not be widely adopted until there is a financial services industry around it. The necessity of credit, the convenience of easy payment, the security of your money in a bank, it's just too tempting for people to walk away from. Nev…

That's the most exciting thing about Bitcoin. The protocol and the technology is sound, just imagine how it will explode once the UX is polished.

You're looking at the internet in the BBS stage right now.

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