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[88GT]

I admit to knowing next to nothing about bitcoins, but this came through my inbox today.

Real estate brokerage Bond New York now accepts Bitcoin | Inman News

Thoughts? I'll admit that the idea of a fiat currency being the standard for another currency seems puzzling to me. It also seems that bitcoins have the makings of the next speculative ball game.

 

[Sainte]

One of my buddies at work has built 3 computers running multiple high end video cards to mine lite/bit coins. I just don't get it, the cost of the hardware and the cost of electricity alone make it a null gain IMO.

 

[Mad Macs]

It's not a null gain, if you can mine 2 litecoins a day, that's around $50/day (as of right now) you can get for them once you run them through an exchange. Even if electricity costs for up $100/month you still come out ahead.

Right now, you can't really get into mining easily, the hardware isn't available at reasonable prices. 4 months ago it was. If you want a wild ride, invest into crypto and hang on. There's a LOT of money to be made but you have to be tough.

Oh, and Bitcoins are way to hard to mine right now. Anybody who's making money at it is spending 6 figures on the hardware. There are other crypto-currencies out there that are MUCH easier to mine.

 

[Trigger Time]

I don't understand. Head getting tight ......

now ow I wish I would have changed my path in life and became a nerd. I could have been rich

 

[Mad Macs]

Trust me, it's a LOT to wrap your head around. I still don't get it much beyond "somebody thinks these are worth something, so let's go get some."

I don't understand. Head getting tight ......

now ow I wish I would have changed my path in life and became a nerd. I could have been rich

 

[x10]

how do you mine for litecoins?

 

[Mad Macs]

Here's a good place to start. This covers the basics, but be warned you are journeying down a rabbit hole of galactic proportions.

https://litecoin.info/Mining_tutorials

how do you mine for litecoins?

 

[Hawkeye]

Well, most currencies are based on some strange idea that the bits of paper and little chips of metal have some value over and above their intrinsic value. I guess these are sort of the same. .GOV won't like it because its too free market and .GOV hasn;t figured out how to control it yet.

I guess another way to look at it is why is gold, silver or emeralds and rubies worth anything either?.

 

[88GT]

Well, most currencies are based on some strange idea that the bits of paper and little chips of metal have some value over and above their intrinsic value. I guess these are sort of the same. .GOV won't like it because its too free market and .GOV hasn;t figured out how to control it yet.

I guess another way to look at it is why is gold, silver or emeralds and rubies worth anything either?.

Except that bitcoins don't have intrinsic value on their own from what I can tell. At least precious metals and gems have tangible and scarce going for them.

 

[Mad Macs]

The value comes from the decentralization of the transactions and the lack of ANYBODY controlling the currency for the most part. Any time you transfer altcoins from one wallet to another, it takes at least 6 verifications by the collective in order for the transactions to take place. I keep all of my coins in wallets on a computer, backed up to several locations so they are safe from being hacked.

 

[Kutnupe14]

Bitcoins will fail because govts don't like competition.

 

[Mad Macs]

Governments fail too you know.

Bitcoins will fail because govts don't like competition.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Bitcoins will fail because govts don't like competition.

It will probably fail because the Constitution establishes the Congress shall have the authority to coin Money and regulate the value thereof...

I need to do some more reading on this, myself, but the trading one form of fiat money for another, especially one that appears to be the product of software, hardly seems like a trade I'd want to make.

 

[Mad Macs]

Well, you currently use paper money, no? Same sort of trust there.

It will probably fail because the Constitution establishes the Congress shall have the authority to coin Money and regulate the value thereof...

I need to do some more reading on this, myself, but the trading one form of fiat money for another, especially one that appears to be the product of software, hardly seems like a trade I'd want to make.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Well, you currently use paper money, no? Same sort of trust there.

No doubt. The money I have tied up in my 401K and employer's retirement account are probably little different than wallets of bitcoins spinning around on some server(s), somewhere. They can all disappear with a few keystrokes.

 

[BogWalker]

They only have value because people give them that. I'd almost consider bitcoins more of an investment. If people stop paying attention to them the value plummets, if they get more popular they become more valuable.

I personally don't like the idea of them, but I can't deny there are plenty of folks making money on them. I wouldn't care for anything that a power outage could take from me. At least cash is tangible even if it is fiat.

 

[PistolBob]

The value comes from the decentralization of the transactions and the lack of ANYBODY controlling the currency for the most part. Any time you transfer altcoins from one wallet to another, it takes at least 6 verifications by the collective in order for the transactions to take place. I keep all of my coins in wallets on a computer, backed up to several locations so they are safe from being hacked.

EMP...that's all I'm saying. HAHAHAA

 

[Cameramonkey]

One of my buddies at work has built 3 computers running multiple high end video cards to mine lite/bit coins. I just don't get it, the cost of the hardware and the cost of electricity alone make it a null gain IMO.

I tried it myself. Using some beefy hardware, I was actually moving BACKWARD. I was spending more on electricity than I was making in coin. Luckilly for my 60 day test It was done at the office.

As said above, I'd have to spend about $4k for the RIGHT hardware to do it efficiently. But at today's energy rates It would be a 2 year ROI. And thats assuming its not getting harder to mine them (it always does, you just dont know how steep the hill is going to get) .

In my estimation, unless you are stealing somebody's resources or electricity like sneaking the mining program onto every workstation in your company and doing the mining at night when nobody is around, there is no good way to make money doing it. You will literally be like the government minting pennies... 6 cents to make a 1 cent piece.

If you were an early adopter several years ago you could have mined alot. But now not so much.

 

[88GT]

Bitcoins will fail because govts don't like competition.

In the long run, this is probably the closest thing to reality. But it may never come to that if bitcoins don't garner more of a following than they currently do. I have no interest in using them and they have less value than their street value to me because the inherent variability of that street value. I also am not comfortable with the cyber aspect of them. If I can't hoard them in a mattress....

 

[Hawkeye]

They only have value because people give them that. I'd almost consider bitcoins more of an investment. If people stop paying attention to them the value plummets, if they get more popular they become more valuable.

I personally don't like the idea of them, but I can't deny there are plenty of folks making money on them. I wouldn't care for anything that a power outage could take from me. At least cash is tangible even if it is fiat.

I know of people who thought of "beany babies" as an investment.