The poll will be up tonight.  It will be a separate page, not a simple poll.  The options will be randomly ordered on each page to escape the problem where people tend to pick the first option.  The page will offer details on exactly how each system works.  The following is a brief summary to get some more conversation going on in this thread.  Obviously the poll on the website will not be the sole determining factor of which system we use, but it will weigh heavily on the final decision.



SMPPS (Shared Maximum PPS):  It's basically PPS, but capped at what the pool has earned to date.  When the pool has good luck, the extra BTC is added to a buffer.  When the pool has bad luck, it continues to pay PPS rates as long as the buffer has any balance remaining.

SMPPS is basically no variance, unless the pool experiences significant bad luck streaks without any good luck streaks to rebuild the buffer.  I will set the initial buffer to 500 BTC.  Details on the buffer will be visible on the stats page if this is the system we end up using.




PPLNS (Pay Per Last N Shares):  It's much more like proportional rewards.  On any block solve, the last N shares submitted are allocated rewards proportionally.  This is completely hop proof, and the rewards fluctuate with luck.  During periods of good luck, you may see the following:

N = 1,000,000
You submit Share #900,000.  A block is solved at #1,100,000.  Shares #100,001 through 1,100,000 get paid just like a proportional pool.  Then another block gets solved at #1,200,000.  The previous 1 million shares get paid out.  Since 1m shares have not elapsed since the last block, Shares #200,001 through 1,100,000 get paid a second time.  A higher value for N means each share is paid less, but it has a higher chance of being double paid, and a lower chance of not being paid at all (if a block lasts more than N shares, some shares are not paid). 

In the end, a 24/7 miner would see essentially no change from proportional.  A part-time miner will see more variance (since it's possible to get paid many times for 1 share, or not at all, depending on luck after you turned your miner off).