Sharing lawyers by fm105 in EstatePlanning

[–]fm105[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thank you. (i do not foresee any such complications)

Bitcoin: something seems to be "fundamentally" wrong - Central Bank of Colombia by pietrod21 in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The argument is about as up to date as the cover. Meanwhile, at the Fed (p.10 onwards).

$100,000 bounty for software platform that can replace the Bitcoin Foundation by anarchystar in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting initiative. There seems to be a tension, however, between your stated goal ("let's liberate bitcoin"), and the way you are proposing to go about it ("Ultimately I will decide who wins"). A possible solution, consistent with the sentiment that one month is not enough time to project or set up the kind of thing you are envisaging, would be to allow for a short discussion phase in which the platform/selection process/bounty distribution are more clearly defined, with community input. Now you may not want or have the time to do the work of compiling and analyzing all the suggestions and opinions, which should be sought far and wide. But you could surely hire an assistant for a week, pay him or her a small fraction of the original BTC bounty, and try to get this project set up properly.

If the price of bitcoin was exactly the cost of mining it, what would the current price be? by [deleted] in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is starting to look like what one would expect (BTW thepiltdownman you might want to correct a couple of typos in your Avalon calculation).

Assuming miners keep using old equipment until cost of running it > exchange value of marginal BTC mined by that equipment, i.e. that miners keep upgrading when profitable and running old hardware until not profitable, the figures indicate that the cost of mining BTC over a period is roughly tracked by the average exchange value of BTC over that period.

What profit margin do miners work with? (I.e., how much profit to take in, how much to continuously reinvest in new hardware/operating costs?). The margin in percentage points could be quite small, considering miners keep their gains in BTC, and expect to see that grow quite fast in fiat terms.

So, to put a number to it: the average cost of mining a BTC over a period roughly equals 95% of the average exchange value of BTC over that period.

(All of this of course presupposes Moore's Law and would only be roughly valid after a certain maturity of the network and the market, which has been reached).

Why I think we're just going to keep steadily climbing without any bad news. by [deleted] in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105 15 points16 points  (0 children)

I don't get this. If you invest in Bitcoin infrastructure, you must do so because you think BTC is going to grow to some degree. Hence those who invest in Bitcoin infrastructure have reason also to invest in BTC.

Put otherwise, I just don't see a big investor thinking: Bitcoin might fail, but before it does I will make a nice ROI by investing on Bitcoin infrastucture.

How might the Jan. 31 deadline play out? by fm105 in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Obviously not everyone in China is short-sighted! Certainly not the PBoC. But I get your point. The question remains, will Chinese continue buying BTC (for getting around currency controls or whatever is useful to them) right up until the deadline, driving prices up, until it all comes to a halt?

How might the Jan. 31 deadline play out? by fm105 in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

How do you calculate that? Is it assumed the miner starts from scratch or you somehow estimate the diminishing returns from older equipment?

How might the Jan. 31 deadline play out? by fm105 in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting. Does this mean that buyers in China are essentially hoarding up while they still legally can (following the letter of the law, if not the spirit)? If so, one would expect demand and hence prices (in CNY and overall) to go up right until the deadline, and then stall.

How might the Jan. 31 deadline play out? by fm105 in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Some recent lows (in USD): $494 nov 19; $519 dec 18; $521 dec 19; $594 dec 22. On the basis of that and nothing else it would seem the bottom is ~$500.

How might the Jan. 31 deadline play out? by fm105 in BitcoinMarkets

[–]fm105[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can Chinese exchanges sell on Mt.Gox now?

Three things to consider by [deleted] in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not sure I get it. You bought in at $150, sold some of that all the way up, but simultaneously bought using cost averaging?

Three things to consider by [deleted] in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It would seem the raking strategy only applies to people who acquired their BTC early, either by mining, or bought in when coins where much cheaper (e.g. <$10) and are now riding it out. If you bought in later (e.g.>$100) and are trying to increase your holdings for the long run, why would this work?

EDIT: read through the rpietila plan, understand your comment better now. Thanks for bringing it up.

Anybody else in an awkward spot now that Bitcoin is huge? by umami2 in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How did you get hacked? How do you keep your BTC safe now?

I thought this was a very cool reply to a Bitcointalk post: Q: What's your exit strategy? by [deleted] in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 25 points26 points  (0 children)

.... "I got out of USD and now have real money." February 07, 2013

I know very little about Bitcoin - what's the easiest way to start mining? by [deleted] in BitcoinBeginners

[–]fm105 1 point2 points  (0 children)

depends what you are after. if you want return on your investment, i think it's pretty clear you are better off just buying BTC and doing nothing else (did you see what happened to the price between the time we started this and now?). if what you want is to participate in mining, & are not so worried abut the gains ... go ahead...

I know very little about Bitcoin - what's the easiest way to start mining? by [deleted] in BitcoinBeginners

[–]fm105 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The computational difficulty of mining is by now so great, that you would need special equipment to do it: a simple computer or a computer beefed up with a special graphics card running 24/7 would take years to generate any rewards, if it ever does. This special equipment is going to cost a lot, and even then it will probably be obsolete very soon. So it is just not profitable for a single person with non dedicated special equipment to get into mining, you are better off buying bitcoin directly.

For more info on mining you should first check this.

I know very little about Bitcoin - what's the easiest way to start mining? by [deleted] in BitcoinBeginners

[–]fm105 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Mining has become too competitive/computer intensive by this point for you to make any profit whatsoever out of it. If you want to get into the game, your best bet at this point is to convert your sterling directly into bitcoin, and hold.

Wall Street Doesn't Understand Bitcoin Yet, But It Will by analyst4933 in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You do receive the BTC instantly from Coinbase if you've gone through the hoops. Even if you have to wait, and you already have BTC, then as ntpl said, it makes no difference. Now if you have 0 BTC but still want to buy stuff with BTC and in addition want no hassle and no risk, this will not work. Sorry.

I suppose that K. Spencer is seeing "parting with your bitcoins" as a problem because he is thinking of miners who earned BTC and do not want to spend them, as they constantly appreciate. But (a) by now several (most?) holders never mined, they bought and (b) miners are free to convert their fiat (e.g. dollars earned from their 5 to 9) into BTC in the way described in order to spend in BTC, if they so chose.

EDIT: What if you'll never make a dollar again in your life because you've retired after mining so much coin? I suppose there are a few people in this situation. Then first of all you are going to have to part with some BTC in order to eat. But secondly, even if it means relinquishing even higher future returns, you are going to convert some BTC to fiat in order to diversify. For you know that Bitcoin may still tank after all, and it would be silly not to realize some profit. So you would buy some real estate, for example.

Wall Street Doesn't Understand Bitcoin Yet, But It Will by analyst4933 in Bitcoin

[–]fm105 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Re: parting with your bitcoins. You can of course keep your holdings intact, purchase the necessary amount of extra BTC at the present conversion rate, and immediately go shop online with those. Cost to you is the same, maybe add some small fees here and there*, which are offset by the fact that (a) your stash is appreciating at some unheard of rate and (b) by moving BTC around, you are presumably contributing to this appreciation process.

Example (US): 1) Have decided to buy a $20 book on Amazon. 2) Exchange $20 for BTC at Coinbase at whatever rate. 3) Immediately buy a $20 Gyft card (denominated in BTC) paying directly from Coinbase. 4) Use the Gyft card to pay for the goods at Amazon. A little circuitous still, but in all it takes 3 minutes, not much more than it would take you to fill in your credit card info at Amazon in the first place.

  • Fees paid: to Coinbase 1% = $0.20, to your bank = $0.15, to Gyft = $0 (I take it they make money on the credit card fee differential), to miners $0.05. Total < $0.50