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Showing 20 of 40 results by melacs
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Topic OP
Satoshi Origin (fictional story)
by
melacs
on 10/02/2014, 08:03:42 UTC
Hello everyone.

I have recently started a page on which I will regularly post new parts of a fictional story about Satoshi Nakamoto.
It has lots of references to bitcoin, is set in Japan and hopefully it is quite fun to read (that is for you to decide).

I hope you will at least take the time to read some of them and if you like it, you can check the updates that will follow.

I know this might seem like shameless self promotion, but let's face it. Not a lot of people randomly stumble onto webpages these days anymore.
Note that I have been published both online and in print before, but this is more a random project with little editing so work with me.

The story can be found on: http://scalemx.wordpress.com/

Please read the disclaimer/FAQ before getting worked up about something that doesn't fit.

You can reply to this thread or contact me directly if necessary.

Happy reading.
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Topic
Board Project Development
Re: [ANN] CoinMap - Map showing places where Bitcoin is accepted
by
melacs
on 12/01/2014, 04:18:46 UTC
Could someone translate the map into French? Compared to the rest of Europe, rural France is a big black hole.
It could also be useful for North African countries.

I could probably do it, but it would take lots of time (has been ages since I used French on a daily basis).
Anyone up for the challenge?

(also Spanish is still missing)

If no one here jumps up would it be okay to put a request in the French section of this forum?
Post
Topic
Board Development & Technical Discussion
Topic OP
Miners Reward => Transaction Discount
by
melacs
on 10/01/2014, 09:01:58 UTC
I am not very tech savvy and I have no idea how it can be implemented, but:

Would it be possible to give miners a discount on transaction fees, rather than a reward.

In that sense all merchants or users of bitcoin would have benefits from mining. It would make sense to mine or run a node to support the network even if one does not have the hash power to reap in the rewards. (This would mean more honest miners believing in bitcoin, rather than dubious mining pools who might go to 51% anytime)

In the current model, the hashpower is outsourced to mining pools who collect the fees (and rewards), while the average bitcoin joe pays transaction fees. It would make sense if the average joe's computer supporting the network would be enough for him to not have to pay transaction fees (or at least pay less).

When one thinks of the internet, servers are run everywhere. They use electricity for the owners, but there are still benefits.
The sad thing about the bitcoin network is that it is a lottery based system leading to an arms race.

Anyway, just looking to start a discussion here. Smiley
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Topic
Board Goods
Re: [WTS] Casascius coins, unredeemed fully funded
by
melacs
on 07/01/2014, 23:20:28 UTC
What is a holo-error? Embarrassed
Post
Topic
Board Service Discussion
Re: Can i sue mtgox?
by
melacs
on 24/12/2013, 01:08:52 UTC
Quote
If you realized your account had been hacked before the BTC was taken, you should have withdrawn them immediately
Rule No. 1: When in doubt, sweep the coins
Rule No. 2: When something seems fishy, withdraw withdraw.
Post
Topic
Board Service Discussion
Re: Can i sue mtgox?
by
melacs
on 23/12/2013, 10:21:40 UTC
I think you cannot sue mtgox, I mean you can sue but you will lose.

The problem is that you didn't verify your account. This means that they can never know if you are the real owner of the bitcoin.
You could just have moved the coins yourself and then try to double them by blaming mtgox. Since your google account got hacked, how could mtgox know anything?

If you had a key to your safe, but the bank does not know your identity. Then how can they be blamed for the usage of that key? Obviously they cannot know who is the real owner and who is the hacker? How can they know that it is the owner that requests the funds to be frozen? Mtgox will claim that the funds have been stolen in November.

I am very sorry your coins have been stolen. However, I wouldn't advice trying to sue and spend even more money. Since you are in China and you would need to sue a Japanese company it will even complicate more.

You could try to keep talking to Mtgox and they might try to refund if they are nice.
Post
Topic
Board Altcoin Discussion
Re: its xmas, 20 SXC coins to the first 50
by
melacs
on 19/12/2013, 05:13:34 UTC
SJ3vyqHZkX5eLwZGdQVaZkmxSfqKCVRMng

Merry X-mas!
Post
Topic
Board Altcoin Discussion
Re: [GIVEAWAY] -- 10K DOGE -- GET 50 DOGE FOR EACH POST!
by
melacs
on 19/12/2013, 00:39:05 UTC
D9g7vwDQXkmshJZjw1yAK1v7cAzF68knwL

Post
Topic
Board Speculation
Re: why no harder crash ?
by
melacs
on 18/12/2013, 02:46:53 UTC
I would say that (as everyone knows) the current use value of bitcoin is much lower than the price. Anything above 378 is pure speculation.
People sell when it is going down in order to rebuy when it will go up.
Some speculators are selling even though they believe in bitcoin, just so they can improve their position.
When will it bottom out? No one knows.
Post
Topic
Board Politics & Society
Re: Zeitgeist movement
by
melacs
on 18/12/2013, 02:34:03 UTC
Quote
He called the zeitgeist movement communism...

Obviously it is not completely communist in nature. If you read Marx, one of the main points is that he sees human labor as a resource.
This would be one of the biggest inconsistencies with the 'resource based economy' model. What if you need more than one person to design something or to work on a project? The human labor cannot be available to everyone because it would mean that the human would become a slave to whatever the vision is at that time.
The idea of the website about how the US built 90000 aircraft when they didn't have money, but lots of resources, is true. What is forgotten is the human labor that they used and how they did that. The war and fear and autocracy that instilled people to sacrifice their labor to build the aircraft is forgotten. How about the thousands who wanted to do something else, but felt compelled to work for the war game?

Post
Topic
Board Games and rounds
Re: SatoshiGrid.com - WIN 3 BTC! IF YOU FIND THE POT - FREE TRY FOR A 0.1BTC POT
by
melacs
on 17/12/2013, 23:35:14 UTC
Same here, no coupon arrived yet. Cry
Post
Topic
Board Project Development
Re: [ANN] CoinMap - Map showing places where Bitcoin is accepted
by
melacs
on 16/12/2013, 05:37:27 UTC
Quote
So, I ended  up just saying "screw it" and removed them. There are a gazillion online shops that accept BTC, and they aren't on coinmap. Coinmap, and openstreetmaps, are maps, not meant for online spamming.
Good job, I'd say. No one is served by empty locations.

Quote
My next question is, is there a way to see all of the new businesses that are added to coinmap? It's really cool checking from time to time and seeing 20 new locations on coinmap, but I never know where they are. I'd like to see all of the new ones every day. Is this possible?
It would be cool indeed, but it doesn't add any direct use value, so I guess that is why it hasn't been implemented? I would like to hear a reply on this too.
Post
Topic
Board Games and rounds
Re: SatoshiGrid.com - WIN 3 BTC! IF YOU FIND THE POT - FREE TRY FOR A 0.1BTC POT
by
melacs
on 14/12/2013, 04:58:45 UTC
I was thinking and while I do like the concept, the interesting thing (and maybe problem) is that it is statistically anomalous.

Suppose you have 5 options and 1 price.
The first person's chance is 1/5
The second person's chance is 4/5 times 1/4 =1/5
The third person's chance is 4/5 times 3/4 times 1/3 =1/5
The fourth person's chance is 4/5 times 3/4 times 2/3 times 1/2 = 1/5
The last person's chance is also 1/5

However, in the case of the grid the second person doesn't pay until the first person has tried and failed. This means that the chance goes up until a pot or price is found and so on. This means that it can be statistically calculated when it is the right time to play.

This is not necessarily problematic (people still play blackjack without counting cards), just thought I'd let you know.

If it becomes a problem, the effect can be countered by providing more multipliers in the beginning and taking them away after a certain amount of blocks are removed.
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Topic
Board Games and rounds
Re: SatoshiGrid.com - WIN 3 BTC! IF YOU FIND THE POT - FREE TRY FOR A 0.1BTC POT
by
melacs
on 14/12/2013, 02:53:18 UTC
I guess I could give it a try if I get a free coupon.
Post
Topic
Board Altcoin Discussion
Re: [ANN] LuckyCoin LKY | Free Coin Giveaway | 100 Coins
by
melacs
on 14/12/2013, 02:38:25 UTC
LK9snYpKef4La3geLVmca6NPiiP23PWGqZ

I hope this is still going
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Topic
Board Altcoin Discussion
Re: [FTC] Free FeatherCoin Giveaway for Everyone! Over 500 coins left to give away!
by
melacs
on 14/12/2013, 02:33:34 UTC
6yShUUm6NKHvPx3RvN6d21fjPuJZiWaVdT

Fingers crossed Grin
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Topic
Board Altcoin Discussion
Re: [AMC] AmericanCoin Giveaway, 10 AMC each - EMPTY
by
melacs
on 14/12/2013, 02:27:10 UTC
Ar2arqYorVbjBXbDHwzGTUw4a9hahfeMDM

Many thanks
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Topic
Board Economics
Re: What about the travel industry and hotels?
by
melacs
on 13/12/2013, 04:23:26 UTC
Quote
Well , she can always look at the blockchain , and you're out of luck at this point.
And if you manage to get a separate address that she doesn't know about it , you can get also a debit card for that purpose also.

No real advantages here , sorry.

It was more meant as a joke, but yeah of course there are other ways.

Bitcoin doesn't send mail to your house like credit card companies do, but yes I get your point.
Post
Topic
Board Economics
Topic OP
What about the travel industry and hotels?
by
melacs
on 13/12/2013, 00:53:52 UTC
One of the main reasons lots of people hold credit cards is the fact that they can use them anywhere in any currency.
With the low transaction fees and easy usage, bitcoin could take over a huge portion of the wealth spent at hotels and on holidays.
Seeing the amounts of hotels and resorts that accept bitcoin on coinmap there is definitely room for growth there. The fluctuations in price are high at the moment, but obviously the same can be said for fiat currencies in some countries. (if you lose 3% in fees/conversions and 4% to currency fluctuations no one bats an eye, but if...)

In addition there is also a market for anonymity in hotel visits. Let's say you are taking your mistress out on a trip and book a hotel. You can't pay by credit because your wife checks the bills. You can pay in cash, but do you want that amount of cash on you? Bitcoin could solve this problem. Certainly the Chinese are not the only ones creating 'black wallets' to spend abroad.

I wonder if any of the hotel chains could be persuaded to accept coins and what the impact would be on the bitcoin economy. No chargebacks also means they have their money every time.
Post
Topic
Board Legal
Re: Time to start thinking about taxes
by
melacs
on 12/12/2013, 08:37:19 UTC
Intention/use would make sense to matter.
If you bought bitcoin to speculate (and I guess hold it over a year) it would be capital gains.
If you did an online job for bitcoin, I guess you could claim it as income.
What if it was a gift?
I guess if you kept bitcoin and used it to buy something now that the price is higher it would count as bartering if you didn't change it to fiat?

I guess the middle investor is going to be the victim here. Small amounts will be overlooked, millionaires will go to cash havens/change citizenship to avoid taxes and the middle man is going to have to pay up.