Quote from: TimJBenham on February 12, 2013, 09:36:00 AM

Many of the propositions listed on bitbet are dangerously ambiguous. A few examples follow.

Quote

Djano Unchained at the Oscars

The Tarantino film will win in one or more category at the 2013 Academy Awards.

http://bitbet.us/bet/6/djano-unchained-at-the-oscars/

What film is that? I have never heard of it. Of course they mean Django Unchained, but such an elementary mistake detracts from the credibility of the site. What does it mean for a film to win a category? Only a few categories such as Best Picture are nominally awarded to a film. What if it wins Best Production Design only? "No" bettors would point out that is awarded to a named production designer for a film, not to a film.

Quote

Bitcoin price in USD on the MtGox exchange will rise above $200 before the end of 2013

http://bitbet.us/bet/215/bitcoin-price-to-rise-above-200/

End of 2013 in which timezone? there is an approximately 24 hour ambiguity in the spec. There is no default timezone mentioned in the FAQ. This defect is common and I will not labor it.

Quote

Before June 2013 one plane from P.R.China (non-military or military) will be shot by one military plane from Japan. Warning shots with no touching on the Chinese plane will not be counted.

http://bitbet.us/bet/148/one-plane-from-p-r-china-will-be-hurt-by/

Does this mean it has to be exactly one plane that is hurt and exactly one plane doing the shooting? Does shooting encompass rockets or only ballistic projectiles? Accounts of any confrontation between Chinese and Japanese planes are certain to be contested.

Quote

Price inflation in the USA (as measured by official CPI-U) will reach 4.2% or more in 2013. To be measured by the "change avg" value here

http://bitbet.us/bet/144/us-inflation-to-double-in-2013/

Sounds all technical and correct, doesn't it? Not really. Actually there is no "change avg" value in the linked BLS page. The poser has misread the column headers. There is a "Percent change" units specification above two columns labelled "Dec-Dec" and "Avg-Avg". Moreover BLS inflation figure are subject to official adjustment.

Bitbet needs someone with gambling experience and research skills tightening up these propositions. It is imperative that the settlement of propositions be as uncontroversial as possible.

I would not recommend betting on an ambiguous outcome. Try betting on real-life events, such as sportsbooks, or BetOnEurovision.com

sambrose

Posts

Merits