Take a look at http://e-pickaxe.com/

They've been on the button in my experience. 

I think it is a service.  Where would you classify it?

I have been in software technology for a long long time and when I get home, I want some peace from technology.  

I don't want to mine.   I want to know and understand the complete bitcoin/crypto landscape but I don't want to manage the hardware side, contend with difficulty, and babysit mining rigs bit for bit or hash for hash and electric unit for unit.
  
I don't want to start a bitcoin business - later down the track, when I can include it for more local trade, yes, but not now.  Besides work, I'm into clean food production and you in the US or Germany will not buy my beetroot for bitcoin if I have to send it along many many miles to get to you.
    
The exchanges drive me batty.  The hoops that one has to jump through, the uncertainty and the sheer pain of buying bitcoins through exchanges, the risks, as well as the integration of the current financial system and bank accounts with bitcoin, I don't like.  I like my bank account and my bitcoin account nicely separate.  
I live in a small town and I'm probably one of three people into bitcoin in my town.  No!  I don't want to evangelize the world and meeting someone to buy or trade bitcoins, is not possible.
 
Mining Pools - did I mention hardware?  No way.   Collecting fluff .. haha ...  

So, I'm a believer and would venture to guess there are many more like me, that believe in crypto and in bitcoin, and want to continue gathering some bitcoin peacefully and without jumping through hoops, willing to venture small investment.  Of course the economic play is that bitcoin price will rise against fiat or fiat drop against bitcoin over the next number of months.
  
So, what is left for me to gather some bitcoin, are mining contracts.  Yes, I can just go and buy some bitcoin but there is no spice to that and those damn exchanges!  I have a low gambling tolerance and I'd rather lose money to someone that is genuinely involved in the business, than what I would lose it to the exchanges where the legal landscape is still full of unknowns.  There are many people in my position I would say.  People that by choice do not want to enter into the daily ups and downs, but believe in the future of crypto and want a safe off-line savings wallet full of a hedge called bitcoin.
  
So, I went and searched for a basic mining deal, like - I pay you, you use my investment to gather hardware and mining environment, you mine for me and look after hardware and contend with difficulty, upgrades and the daily grind.  I don't want to sell hashes, I don't want to trade, I don't want to gamble, I don't want to play games, I just want a simple contract where we both understand this environment.  We would both know that we are taking risk - you on the mining side and me on the investment side and both of us inherently bet on an increased value over time.
  
I looked at everything in this forum and eventually got what I wanted from a smaller group, fairly new, a group out of Argentina.  You can get rig information from them if you are in a similar position wanting to gather coin, but not mine it.  Can I sue them?  No!  But if this goes wrong, I don't think I've invested so much that I would want to go after them.  There is the issue of trust as well, and besides hard data, trust also is a sense and a feeling.  

So far, they have delivered well ahead of their forward looking statements, I am happy with the price I paid and happy with the first mining results.  An optional extra was that I've been chatting with the miners and they know their business, are really sweet and take customer service seriously.  Disclaimer .. I have no interest, investment or anything else to gain from plugging them here and so far can genuinely say good things about them: e-pickaxe.com

As far as I can determine, they are not overselling contracts and I believe there is a huge opening in the market for smaller non-complicated investment.  If I ever wanted to start a pure bitcoin business, I would do consulting to people like me, but as yet, I'm still in a learning curve.  

Got full $ refund from Bitfloor.  It feels good.

The current direction of bitcoin is a reach to get into stuff like traditional markets.  (Paypal, current traditional methods of trade on markets or exchanges, Max Keiser's work, etc).

I'm of the opinion (but I might change it tomorrow), that bitcoin is not a currency per se, but more of a platform toward currency.  If it gets pushed in a traditional way, it seems as if it will just be the same thing as fiat.  No value and much greed and a lot of manipulation.   

What about arbitrarily hooking the value of bitcoin to the value of a basic basket of foodstuffs? 

If you have btc, why do you need paypal?  Is btc not designed to be able to trade without that 3rd party?  It seems completely un-intuitive to have paypal in the mix.
Thing is, the bitcoin community has a huge education burden that needs to be picked up.  Also the scammers and the junk need to be relegated to a lower level of noise.  Also, the 'wallet' concept needs to be more secure and simpler to administer and it is getting there!  Also, we need exchanges that are hardened and trustworthy.  So, ease of use, reliability, security and education ... what's not to like and who needs paypal?    

So the case of a 'hacked wallet' changed into the case of a disappearing wallet.  With jim618's recovery suggestions I have my bitcoin back.  

Basically created a new wallet and this time created it on an external disk - so, no hot wallet any longer.  The method to import private keys is a little fiddly, but eventually it worked fine and my wallet is now restored with all of my bitcoin.  

Now I can drink that beer!  

Backup!  Daily!  Don't be lazy like I was and just accept your wallet software.  Learn it .. play with it, so that you know it, where it puts stuff and what it calls things and so on.

Great Tech Support from Jim618 and thank-you all.  

 

One address in multibit - very simple. Other addresses online and not at issue here.   

Blockchain balance is as you say ... 27.26794131 BTC in unspent outputs.

I have not seen anything go out.  Perhaps because I saw it so fast .. and reported it here so fast?  If it is a software problem, well, that we can fix yes.   But so far, no fixing has worked.  We'll wait for multibit to say their say.  I'm happy that I am not in their shoes ... if someone came to me for tech support on this, I would be really suspicious.     


 

Nothing outgoing as yet.  
Done all the security stuff.  In fact, I'm even on a backup internet connection - I'm not even physically connected currently to the main router.  I cut everything!  I dropped everything!.  Checked logs, checked firewall, soft and hard logs ... could not see anything out of wack. 

I'll keep watching the blockchain and see what multibit has to say. 

Strange stuff ... only spoke on here about bitcoin - the rest was all private.  Yesterday asked some newby type questions about a Multibit upgrade.  We actively look after our security, hard and soft.  We're not security unconscious.  I knew that wallet needed to go cold, even though there is not massive amounts in there.  For having a non-cold wallet, I upped other security measures.  Strange stuff!     

I have contacted multibit to see if it could possibly be a software issue.     

I was busy doing research on this forum, to cold store that wallet.  I looked at the wallet to check something, and closed it .... I read some more on here ... perhaps half an hour ... and looked again to look at the help files.  And there was no wallet, and there were no transactions, and there was no bitcoin address ... and there was nothing - balance 0 BITCOIN.  Multibit software sans wallet.  There is no .wallet file anywhere to be found.  Of course, I've got private keys in a backup.  I restore those and there is still nothing.  The software connects fine ... it is online ... It synchronizes fine but it does not replay the blockchain because the wallet is gone.  No, I did not delete it by mistake ... been in software for many years.     

I of course messed about a little ... to see if I had lost my mind ... but seemingly my mind is intact and my wallet and coins are gone.

https://blockchain.info/unspent?active=1LVRoNFddLmBpt7n2MFVUWqt5u5vFghstZ&format=html

So, how can I be more sure?  (grins).    I'd really like to know whether to cry in my beer or just drink it.   





 

Nice Analogy ... one feels a little lost and totally stupid you know and the thinking processes disappear.  Anyway, I'll have to survive.  Believe me, this coin of mine is gone.  No footsteps left behind although I am still looking.   

So I guess the new killer app for bitcoin besides an exchange that is halfway reliable ... is a secure wallet.   At least they have not yet stolen my fiat bank account ... Going to paper?  with this software sophistication?  Dammit! 

Thanks for the help anyway. 

Well, I hope so - that I have my bitcoin ... but I don't see any evidence. 

What will happen if I restore and synchronize?   

 

in fact, while I was browsing here taking a look at sandboxie.

Can you tell me what to do and how to find that hacker.  I have a backup from yesterday, private keys exported, Multibit latest version.  Computer has firewall, soft and hardware ... Opened the software wallet to see 0 balance and no existing wallet.

What's next?

Anyone have an update on USD repayments from Bitfloor?

Thanks jim618 - no problems, no worries, install is sweet and my coin is right there! 

I have the multibit client 0.4.23.  Backups good and private key in safe place.  I have only one bitcoin wallet on there.
I'd like to upgrade to the new wallet, but cannot seem to find specific upgrade instructions for windows anywhere.  Don't wanna mess up, 'cause I probably cannot fix up.  Kindly show me toward upgrade instructions, or I am a quick study - and just tell me how you've upgraded.
Thanks. 

Good heavens ... what does it mean "they are on backlog up to 3 days"?  

What they say is normal and common procedure:

ACH (direct deposit)

ACH withdraw is free and takes about 1-3 business days before the funds are available in your bank account. Before you can withdraw funds via ACH you must fill out the form below with the required information. A member of our support staff will review your request and respond once ACH is setup.

There is no backlog and there is no 3 days 'before they shut down'.  

Just send all the money through whatever means?  What would 'whatever means' be?  Paypal?  I don't think so.

Bitfloor has been an honest and realistic service in the market for me.  They are doing their best to get things back to the owners.  Let's just get our facts straight here please.  

What would be a good replacement for bitfloor.  I used them because it was easy, a simple bank transfer and the funds were there within hours.  Placed my trades at my price and they fulfilled.  Quick withdrawal of bitcoin to a local and cold wallet.  As open and transparent as possible when problems showed up.  So now, I don't wanna touch MtGox on account of not wanting to hurt myself and I'm not a big trader.  10 bitcoin is my limit at any one time.  

I hate bitcoin and the compulsion to have it.  Which exchange please?  As simple and reliable as Bitfloor given that the landscape is mad unsettled?  

I hope Bitfloor works their way through this.  I had about 4 trades problem free with them.  There is some USD there that was waiting for a buy opportunity but I am quite sure we will get that back.    

ACH (direct deposit)

ACH withdraw is free and takes about 1-3 business days before the funds are available in your bank account. Before you can withdraw funds via ACH you must fill out the form below with the required information. A member of our support staff will review your request and respond once ACH is setup.

Just follow the procedure.  They must have thought it through and damn their fiat bank that stopped supporting them.