8 ms·

Part of the point of bitcoin is that it is decentralized.

by WizzleKake 10y ago

xigency 10y ago
Yes, but that isn't the entire purpose of digital currency. It is just a part of Bitcoin.
- Melkman 10y ago
  Almost all currencies are digital today. Bank notes are just a physical transaction mechanism. You could use Bitcoin notes if you want with the private key under a scratch layer. The big difference is exactly that Bitcoin has no central authority. If that doesn't matter to someone he'd be perfectly happy to use state endorsed currencies.
  - xigency 10y ago
    Digital cash doesn't have a scratch-off layer. It has information associated with its minting and mechanisms to be used in spending and transactions. > ... perfectly happy to use state endorsed currencies. Unless what you are looking for is a digital currency. Being able to send $5,000 cash in the form of information is a separate issue from who controls the money supply. If someone wants to exchange that amount without having access to a distributed network of computers, is that more centralized? What I'm saying is, I would be happy to use an information based currency, even if it means holding a key with a central authority, if it means being able to make free, anonymous transactions easily with a completely digital, offline currency. That is not what Bitcoin provides. And it isn't possible to e-mail paper bills, either.
- CydeWeys 10y ago
  I've been using central ledger currency systems (i.e. logging into my bank's website and issuing payments) for longer than Bitcoin has existed. Decentralization is the entire point of Bitcoin. Take that away and you aren't left with anything that wasn't already done long ago. What you're proposing is something that banks have already been doing widely for decades.
  - xigency 10y ago
    > Take that away and you aren't left with anything that wasn't already done long ago And that is exactly my point. There are very interesting ideas in digital currencies/digital cash that have no representation in Bitcoin or at all. By using Bitcoin, like using your bank's website, you still need an Internet connection to use your currency digitally. However, it's possible to create a digital currency that doesn't have to be plugged-in to a network to operate. Being able to send an e-mail with a cash value integrated in its data is something that hasn't been done long ago, or even yet today. Even better, some digital currencies could (conceptually) be sent in a paper letter as cash. Whether the value is created algorithmically or by bankers is a separate, economic debate, and really less interesting, in my opinion, than the technology itself.
    - CydeWeys 10y ago
      > By using Bitcoin, like using your bank's website, you still need an Internet connection to use your currency digitally. You can do all sorts of things with Bitcoin without needing to be attached to a network. You can have an address that has value associated with it and then print a private key as physical Bitcoin -- variants that have been done include coins, bills, paper wallets, and OCR-able backups of regular wallets. In a high security situation you can have Bitcoin running on an offline computer and sneakernet signed transactions from it to avoid ever exposing it to the Internet. > However, it's possible to create a digital currency that doesn't have to be plugged-in to a network to operate. Yes, like all of the above. > Being able to send an e-mail with a cash value integrated in its data is something that hasn't been done long ago, or even yet today. You lost me. How does email work without being attached to a network?! If you're giving us access to a network, why not just use Bitcoin? If you meant something like snail mail, well then, again, see above. > Even better, some digital currencies could (conceptually) be sent in a paper letter as cash. Yes. Like Bitcoin. Or are you truly trying to propose some kind of digital currency that never requires network access? How could that possibly work? If network access isn't allowed, how do I know that you haven't already sent the same "digital coin" that you're sending me to ten other people? The double spend problem is real. Bitcoin solves it. I don't see how a solution is possible that doesn't involve some kind of communication.

Part of the point of bitcoin is that it is decentralized.

xigency 10y ago

Yes, but that isn't the entire purpose of digital currency. It is just a part of Bitcoin.

Melkman 10y ago
Almost all currencies are digital today. Bank notes are just a physical transaction mechanism. You could use Bitcoin notes if you want with the private key under a scratch layer. The big difference is exactly that Bitcoin has no central authority. If that doesn't matter to someone he'd be perfectly happy to use state endorsed currencies.
- xigency 10y ago
  Digital cash doesn't have a scratch-off layer. It has information associated with its minting and mechanisms to be used in spending and transactions. > ... perfectly happy to use state endorsed currencies. Unless what you are looking for is a digital currency. Being able to send $5,000 cash in the form of information is a separate issue from who controls the money supply. If someone wants to exchange that amount without having access to a distributed network of computers, is that more centralized? What I'm saying is, I would be happy to use an information based currency, even if it means holding a key with a central authority, if it means being able to make free, anonymous transactions easily with a completely digital, offline currency. That is not what Bitcoin provides. And it isn't possible to e-mail paper bills, either.
CydeWeys 10y ago
I've been using central ledger currency systems (i.e. logging into my bank's website and issuing payments) for longer than Bitcoin has existed. Decentralization is the entire point of Bitcoin. Take that away and you aren't left with anything that wasn't already done long ago. What you're proposing is something that banks have already been doing widely for decades.
- xigency 10y ago
  > Take that away and you aren't left with anything that wasn't already done long ago And that is exactly my point. There are very interesting ideas in digital currencies/digital cash that have no representation in Bitcoin or at all. By using Bitcoin, like using your bank's website, you still need an Internet connection to use your currency digitally. However, it's possible to create a digital currency that doesn't have to be plugged-in to a network to operate. Being able to send an e-mail with a cash value integrated in its data is something that hasn't been done long ago, or even yet today. Even better, some digital currencies could (conceptually) be sent in a paper letter as cash. Whether the value is created algorithmically or by bankers is a separate, economic debate, and really less interesting, in my opinion, than the technology itself.
  - CydeWeys 10y ago
    > By using Bitcoin, like using your bank's website, you still need an Internet connection to use your currency digitally. You can do all sorts of things with Bitcoin without needing to be attached to a network. You can have an address that has value associated with it and then print a private key as physical Bitcoin -- variants that have been done include coins, bills, paper wallets, and OCR-able backups of regular wallets. In a high security situation you can have Bitcoin running on an offline computer and sneakernet signed transactions from it to avoid ever exposing it to the Internet. > However, it's possible to create a digital currency that doesn't have to be plugged-in to a network to operate. Yes, like all of the above. > Being able to send an e-mail with a cash value integrated in its data is something that hasn't been done long ago, or even yet today. You lost me. How does email work without being attached to a network?! If you're giving us access to a network, why not just use Bitcoin? If you meant something like snail mail, well then, again, see above. > Even better, some digital currencies could (conceptually) be sent in a paper letter as cash. Yes. Like Bitcoin. Or are you truly trying to propose some kind of digital currency that never requires network access? How could that possibly work? If network access isn't allowed, how do I know that you haven't already sent the same "digital coin" that you're sending me to ten other people? The double spend problem is real. Bitcoin solves it. I don't see how a solution is possible that doesn't involve some kind of communication.