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> I'm onboard with that. Although your argument may benefit from better phrasing, because it actually does come across like that, which is a disservice to your

by v64 9y ago

> I'm onboard with that. Although your argument may benefit from better phrasing, because it actually does come across like that, which is a disservice to your advocacy effort. In the end I'm just a programmer, not an essayist :) I appreciate the feedback. > So where is the potential? What is the use case? I work in fintech and can speak firsthand about the potential use of this technology to reduce costs and reliance on third party auditing firms. I think people focus too much on cryptocurrencies just like people focus too much on AOL and Geocities. Those services weren't the internet, and cryptocurrency isn't the only use of blockchains. If anything, I would love for the shitcoin frenzy to die down so our efforts can be focused toward more useful/less scammy uses of the technology.

thatthatis 9y ago
So far, the best use case of the block chain tech is to remove the necessity for a variety of industry associations few people have ever heard of. That's not world changing. Digital nearly frictionless currency is another use case, but so far it seems there is a vicious cycle of value, scarcity, hoarding, boom, and bust in most of these that makes them unsuitable for use as a medium of exchange. To go a bit further, I'm willing to wager that there is an inherent tradeoff in crypto between usefulness as a currency (stability vs fiat) and usefulness as an investment (appreciation). a stable store of value is also useful, just not as an investment. The crypto currency that eventually works won't make anybody rich.
- v64 9y ago
  > So far, the best use case of the block chain tech is to remove the necessity for a variety of industry associations few people have ever heard of. The same could be said of many of the early hardware and software makers of the early internet. > The crypto currency that eventually works won't make anybody rich. I think the bigger point I was trying to make is that we have a technology, and so far the killer app for it has been cryptocurrencies, but that we've not yet developed the technology to the point where its broader uses can come to fruition. We didn't have Facebook or Twitter in 1995, partly because of technological implications, and partly because the idea of social media hadn't been fully formed yet. These things take time, and I think there's a bright future ahead for these new technologies once they mature and people find more uses for them. I don't think cryptocurrency will be the be-all-end-all use of blockchains, and the idea of technologies like Bitcoin may seem as quaint as services like CompuServe in the future.

by v64 9y ago

thatthatis 9y ago

So far, the best use case of the block chain tech is to remove the necessity for a variety of industry associations few people have ever heard of. That's not world changing. Digital nearly frictionless currency is another use case, but so far it seems there is a vicious cycle of value, scarcity, hoarding, boom, and bust in most of these that makes them unsuitable for use as a medium of exchange. To go a bit further, I'm willing to wager that there is an inherent tradeoff in crypto between usefulness as a currency (stability vs fiat) and usefulness as an investment (appreciation). a stable store of value is also useful, just not as an investment. The crypto currency that eventually works won't make anybody rich.

v64 9y ago
> So far, the best use case of the block chain tech is to remove the necessity for a variety of industry associations few people have ever heard of. The same could be said of many of the early hardware and software makers of the early internet. > The crypto currency that eventually works won't make anybody rich. I think the bigger point I was trying to make is that we have a technology, and so far the killer app for it has been cryptocurrencies, but that we've not yet developed the technology to the point where its broader uses can come to fruition. We didn't have Facebook or Twitter in 1995, partly because of technological implications, and partly because the idea of social media hadn't been fully formed yet. These things take time, and I think there's a bright future ahead for these new technologies once they mature and people find more uses for them. I don't think cryptocurrency will be the be-all-end-all use of blockchains, and the idea of technologies like Bitcoin may seem as quaint as services like CompuServe in the future.