So this 'ere bitcoin malarkey....does anybody understand how it works?

[1949threepence]

Talking to a colleague today about the raising of the contactless card limit to £100 next month. We then got onto the subject of a potential cashless society going forward, which seems to be what government, HMRC (which is obviously a part of government) and major financial institutions want, as they seek to possibly negate the anonymisation of exchange as afforded by the use of notes and coins, thus giving them control in the form of overseeing what we all do, and where we get our money from. 

He then mentioned bitcoin as the digital equivalent of actual hard cash and rambled on a bit as though I had the remotest clue what he was on about. I didn't, and essentially still don't even after looking it up. I didn't really want to appear thick/uninformed as this guy is a superior, condescending git.   

Websites on the issue are very technical and don't really explain the mechanics of the process as they would apply to an ordinary bod like me. How do I buy it, sell it, spend it, and what the hell is "bitcoin mining"?

I mean, I genuinely hope we don't go cashless, but would still like to know how bitcoin works for dummies like me. Anybody understand it?  

I think paypal are already accepting it.   

[Peckris 2]

Contactless is a private transaction between you and your bank (and the retailer, but their receipt and the record of purchase is not affected by the method of payment). Banks are increasingly paranoid about ensuring it's really you who is logging in, so HMRC cannot track your money or 'oversee' it.

[1949threepence]

7 minutes ago, Peckris 2 said:

Contactless is a private transaction between you and your bank (and the retailer, but their receipt and the record of purchase is not affected by the method of payment). Banks are increasingly paranoid about ensuring it's really you who is logging in, so HMRC cannot track your money or 'oversee' it.

The contactless increase was just the springboard for the rest of the conversation. The wider point being the removal of cash meaning the end of anonymity, which many will resent.

That's where the bitcoin came in, which I still don't fully understand and why I'm asking the question.

[mrbadexample]

Sorry Mike, I am confident I know less about it than you. I don't have one in my collection. 

[azda]

On 9/3/2021 at 8:20 PM, 1949threepence said:

Talking to a colleague today about the raising of the contactless card limit to £100 next month. We then got onto the subject of a potential cashless society going forward, which seems to be what government, HMRC (which is obviously a part of government) and major financial institutions want, as they seek to possibly negate the anonymisation of exchange as afforded by the use of notes and coins, thus giving them control in the form of overseeing what we all do, and where we get our money from. 

He then mentioned bitcoin as the digital equivalent of actual hard cash and rambled on a bit as though I had the remotest clue what he was on about. I didn't, and essentially still don't even after looking it up. I didn't really want to appear thick/uninformed as this guy is a superior, condescending git.   

Websites on the issue are very technical and don't really explain the mechanics of the process as they would apply to an ordinary bod like me. How do I buy it, sell it, spend it, and what the hell is "bitcoin mining"?

I mean, I genuinely hope we don't go cashless, but would still like to know how bitcoin works for dummies like me. Anybody understand it?  

I think paypal are already accepting it.   

First and foremost, bitcoin is highly manipulated by whales (whales are people who can move the market with the amount they hold) Bitcoin can be sent to one person or another within minutes for a very small fee, millions can be moved for $10 as an example. Bitcoin and exchanges aren't regulated, so exchanges do a lot of wash trading. Exchanges have been hacked and millions stolen. This isn't for the faint hearted, people have lost their life savings due to a culmination of things I've written here.

You can become rich if you have the patience, but its a long road reading and learning, a friend of mine stuck around 140k into it around 2017, he was down to about 30k at one point, now he's at 1.5 million

[1949threepence]

6 minutes ago, azda said:

First and foremost, bitcoin is highly manipulated by whales (whales are people who can move the market with the amount they hold) Bitcoin can be sent to one person or another within minutes for a very small fee, millions can be moved for $10 as an example. Bitcoin and exchanges aren't regulated, so exchanges do a lot of wash trading. Exchanges have been hacked and millions stolen. This isn't for the faint hearted, people have lost their life savings due to a culmination of things I've written here.

You can become rich if you have the patience, but its a long road reading and learning, a friend of mine stuck around 140k into it around 2017, he was down to about 30k at one point, now he's at 1.5 million

Thanks - useful info.

Although I was thinking about its possible application as an everyday low level buying/purchasing tool, as opposed to an investment vehicle.

[azda]

1 hour ago, 1949threepence said:

Thanks - useful info.

Although I was thinking about its possible application as an everyday low level buying/purchasing tool, as opposed to an investment vehicle.

It’s not been adopted by everywhere because the SEC want the exchanges to give them info on trades, problem being, the exchanges are also screwing investors. You can buy as much or as little Bitcoin as you want, you don’t have to buy 1 whole btc (which right now is $50k) you can buy $100 of you want.

[Rob]

Am I right in thinking that if your bitcoin doesn't slab PF70, it's a bit suspect?

[1949threepence]

1 hour ago, azda said:

It’s not been adopted by everywhere because the SEC want the exchanges to give them info on trades, problem being, the exchanges are also screwing investors. You can buy as much or as little Bitcoin as you want, you don’t have to buy 1 whole btc (which right now is $50k) you can buy $100 of you want.

Thanks - just been into paypal and they have got some useful practical articles on not just bitcoin, but other crypto currencies as well. As you say, not regulated but definitely something that will grow in the years ahead, as well as probably offer ongoing virtual spending anonymity - which may be lost with conventional currency.

Screenshot from paypal.

   

[Paddy]

There are generally two reasons for getting into crypto currency:

The legitimate one is to make a profit by gambling on the value going up. This may be a great success, but may also lose everything invested. Doing through Paypal is as good as anywhere.

The other reason is to use the funds for possibly illegal purchases, or to launder illegal capital, as crypto currency is largely untrackable. Not sure Paypal would allow this as you would need to be logged in to Paypal to make your illegal purchase or transfer, and that inevitably means it is trackable!

[blakeyboy]

Bitcoin really can be the 'Mal' in 'Malarkey'......

[Peckris 2]

On 9/3/2021 at 11:05 PM, 1949threepence said:

 The wider point being the removal of cash meaning the end of anonymity, which many will resent.

Surely not true? You get your cash via either an ATM or via cashback - neither of which are anonymous.

[1949threepence]

8 hours ago, Peckris 2 said:

Surely not true? You get your cash via either an ATM or via cashback - neither of which are anonymous.

Won't be true if cash in the form of notes and coins remains viable long term.

However, my point was the many siren voices which are increasingly heralding an end to physical cash and a total reliance on digital transactions either by card or over the internet. I hope to Christ it doesn't ever happen, but there are those amongst us who seem determined that it will. 

Thankfully there doesn't seem to be this same push to go cashless, in other countries. 

 

[copper123]

On 9/6/2021 at 7:05 AM, 1949threepence said:

Won't be true if cash in the form of notes and coins remains viable long term.

However, my point was the many siren voices which are increasingly heralding an end to physical cash and a total reliance on digital transactions either by card or over the internet. I hope to Christ it doesn't ever happen, but there are those amongst us who seem determined that it will. 

Thankfully there doesn't seem to be this same push to go cashless, in other countries. 

 

I really cannot see everyone in the country suddenly wanting to ditch their pounds/dollars/euros

One of the main things is, virtualy nothing is backing these virtual currency" fads" , at least the pound or most major currencies are backed with gold and foregn currency and goverment goodwill when the 75 year old little old ladies start exchangeing their life savings into bitcoin I will join in.

Even the major pension funds dont bother" investing" if you can call it that when theres nothing backing these "Alternative investments"

By the way , if you want to have a go I  tip my hat to you , braver than me .

[Peckris 2]

South Sea Bubble...

[1949threepence]

On 9/7/2021 at 3:23 PM, copper123 said:

I really cannot see everyone in the country suddenly wanting to ditch their pounds/dollars/euros

One of the main things is, virtualy nothing is backing these virtual currency" fads" , at least the pound or most major currencies are backed with gold and foregn currency and goverment goodwill when the 75 year old little old ladies start exchangeing their life savings into bitcoin I will join in.

Even the major pension funds dont bother" investing" if you can call it that when theres nothing backing these "Alternative investments"

By the way , if you want to have a go I  tip my hat to you , braver than me .

Well I'm quite risk averse, so no I won't dabble unless it goes a lot more mainstream and reliably safe. 

Really my interest was more general. How it actually works.

[copper123]

15 hours ago, 1949threepence said:

Well I'm quite risk averse, so no I won't dabble unless it goes a lot more mainstream and reliably safe. 

Really my interest was more general. How it actually works.

there should be a book somewhere ..........

[copper123]

Amazon one of several

[PWA 1967]

Freeman already been finding varieties ?

 

[1949threepence]

2 hours ago, copper123 said:

Amazon one of several

Thanks. I might get it, or something similar.

But I was quite interested to see if anyone on here had any first hand knowledge/experience. It appears not.  

 

[Peckris 2]

21 hours ago, 1949threepence said:

Thanks. I might get it, or something similar.

But I was quite interested to see if anyone on here had any first hand knowledge/experience. It appears not. 

Ah, not in my role as coin collector. However, in my role as big time arms dealer and drugs runner on the dark web, I do have some familiarity with it...

[richtips86]

Whilst an earlier comment suggested that crypto isn't backed by gold, government IOUs etc. go on any investing forum about crypto and the die hards will tell you you're investing in the technology behind it, namely the blockchain and how this will revolutionise the world.  In terms of it replacing FIAT currency it won't catch on until a shop (eg) could reliably price something at 1BTC but with the volatility, at present that's not possible.  Another big issue is how especially in some of the more alternative crypto's, one person can be the market.  Even with BTC Elon can pump or dump the market with one tweet, meanwhile in the more 'alty' coins, one person allegedly bought 8k worth of Shiba in February of last year and it's now worth 1.5bn - how do you exit that position?

There's a few stockmarket listed companies that mine crypto - Argo Blockchain being the most prominent.

Once you feel you vaguely understand crypto, then start looking at NFTs.  That's an absolute head**** and as with everything crypto a great ponzi scheme for those that get in early enough.  Jack Dorsey the CEO of Twitter recently sold his first tweet as an NFT valued at 2.9m! 

[1949threepence]

10 hours ago, richtips86 said:

Whilst an earlier comment suggested that crypto isn't backed by gold, government IOUs etc. go on any investing forum about crypto and the die hards will tell you you're investing in the technology behind it, namely the blockchain and how this will revolutionise the world.  In terms of it replacing FIAT currency it won't catch on until a shop (eg) could reliably price something at 1BTC but with the volatility, at present that's not possible.  Another big issue is how especially in some of the more alternative crypto's, one person can be the market.  Even with BTC Elon can pump or dump the market with one tweet, meanwhile in the more 'alty' coins, one person allegedly bought 8k worth of Shiba in February of last year and it's now worth 1.5bn - how do you exit that position?

There's a few stockmarket listed companies that mine crypto - Argo Blockchain being the most prominent.

Once you feel you vaguely understand crypto, then start looking at NFTs.  That's an absolute head**** and as with everything crypto a great ponzi scheme for those that get in early enough.  Jack Dorsey the CEO of Twitter recently sold his first tweet as an NFT valued at 2.9m! 

Useful info - thanks.

Are you (or is anybody) able to explain how one of these expensive crypto mining machines work and what they are used for?

Edited October 29, 2021 by 1949threepence

[richtips86]

On 10/29/2021 at 11:09 PM, 1949threepence said:

Are you (or is anybody) able to explain how one of these expensive crypto mining machines work and what they are used for?

I really don’t know the detail. Dunno if you’ve seen the film enigma, but in my mind it’s a bit like those “computers” constantly whirling and chugging until they find the code!
 

With Bitcoin there’s only ?21m coins so in the early days anyone with a decent connection could mine them, but obviously as the number decreases, the energy needed to find them increases. A few companies have started locating their “mines” in places such as Siberia to aid with cooling costs etc

[Nonmortuus]

On 10/29/2021 at 11:09 PM, 1949threepence said:

Useful info - thanks.

Are you (or is anybody) able to explain how one of these expensive crypto mining machines work and what they are used for?

How do you mean? If your on about how they mine then rigs like this are GPU heavy as modern graphics cards are far better at mining crytpo. The more transactions the can handle/solve/mine the more chance they will earn some crypto. 

Edited November 5, 2021 by Nonmortuus