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The public thinks Bitcoin is the currency of hackers. Decentralized, technical, innovative and challenging the whole financial backbone. In reality... We have t

by Kiro 6y ago

The public thinks Bitcoin is the currency of hackers. Decentralized, technical, innovative and challenging the whole financial backbone. In reality... We have threads like this. Never seen so much hate for Bitcoin as on HN.

rantwasp 6y ago
“People fear what they don't understand and hate what they can't conquer.” Bitcoin itself may end up being worthless or being a fortune. The block-chain technology is the revolutionary part that is here to stay and will only continue to grow in the future.
- nexthash 6y ago
  Don't invest in what you don't understand is the #1 rule of investing. If you jump off the deep end without knowing what's at the bottom, you are at a high risk of losing what you put in. New technology always comes with this risk. That's kind of why most don't touch crypto - its far too technically complex for them to even comprehend the risks. If you've followed crypto and blockchain for long enough though, you realize that the risks are high and the value is low. It's a shitty technology, and a shitty investment. The cryptoverse is filled with volatility, no real-world "thing" to tie value back to, and scams upon scams. Blockchain is an innefficient, energy-guzzling excuse for a database. Oh but you forgot its decentralized So what? Most applications don't need decentralization - it makes them inefficient and slow. Why do you think the general trend of the world has been centralization into hubs, cities, and services? Here's a nice refuter of the blockchain hype: http://doyouneedablockchain.com/ http://doyouneedablockchain.com/ And of course, the classic: https://twitter.com/vgcerf/status/1019987651301081089 https://twitter.com/vgcerf/status/1019987651301081089
  - rantwasp 6y ago
    it’s okay to not see the potential. blockchain is more than a distributed database. in a distributed database someone is still in charge and can make decisions unilaterally about how the data is altered. in blockchain you have a bunch of entities that can transact with each other with zero trust and without the need of a central authority. that is the truly innovative aspect of the blockchain and what sets it apart.
    - nexthash 6y ago
      No, no, no! That's the whole reason behind why it sucks... you can't trust it! You have to verify every record on that chain by yourself, and if you make a mistake in a transaction or other operation there is no court or process that can give you restitution. Its also very inefficient (massively slow) compared to a distributed database, while functionally doing the same thing. There are barely any use cases where you don't want central authority and you want distributed storage... centralized databases are always going to be more efficient and convenient. If you want to use a inefficient, crappy excuse for a database be my guest.
      - rantwasp 6y ago
        not sure if you’re a troll, but that’s the reason why you trust it. you can actually verify every transaction that happened on the chain. the way this is done is not unlike any system that uses event sourcing (including the distributed databases that you worship). here is a killer use case for blockchain: supply chain management with a lot of entities and lack of trust. smart contracts are a thing. also, there are blockchain implementation that are really performant (don’t get stuck on bitcoin)
        Gibbon1 6y ago
        > supply chain management with a lot of entities and lack of trust. This tells me you know zero about supply chain management.
        rantwasp 6y ago
        hmm. if you ever had to deal with a supply chain and understand all the moving parts you cannot make the argument above with a straight face.
        nexthash 6y ago
        Oh, and would you mind explaining to us your experience with supply chain management?
PragmaticPulp 6y ago
Bitcoin started as a fun distributed systems experiment. It mutated into a sort of global pyramid scheme that consumes >0.5% of the world's energy consumption to perform deliberately useless calculations. Modern bitcoin isn't even about blockchain. Most people just put money in their exchange, click the exchange button, and watch the number go up and down. Never even touches the blockchain. It's all about speculation and convincing others to become the next layer in the pyramid of hodlers. Modern Bitcoin isn't about tech or distributed systems or challenging the financial system (with $8 transaction fees that go to mining companies and exchange fees that skim every trade). It's been captured by the financial system and pumped as a speculative investment, all so financial institutions and giant mining operations can profit off of the frenzy.

by Kiro 6y ago

rantwasp 6y ago

“People fear what they don't understand and hate what they can't conquer.” Bitcoin itself may end up being worthless or being a fortune. The block-chain technology is the revolutionary part that is here to stay and will only continue to grow in the future.

nexthash 6y ago
Don't invest in what you don't understand is the #1 rule of investing. If you jump off the deep end without knowing what's at the bottom, you are at a high risk of losing what you put in. New technology always comes with this risk. That's kind of why most don't touch crypto - its far too technically complex for them to even comprehend the risks. If you've followed crypto and blockchain for long enough though, you realize that the risks are high and the value is low. It's a shitty technology, and a shitty investment. The cryptoverse is filled with volatility, no real-world "thing" to tie value back to, and scams upon scams. Blockchain is an innefficient, energy-guzzling excuse for a database. Oh but you forgot its decentralized So what? Most applications don't need decentralization - it makes them inefficient and slow. Why do you think the general trend of the world has been centralization into hubs, cities, and services? Here's a nice refuter of the blockchain hype: http://doyouneedablockchain.com/ http://doyouneedablockchain.com/ And of course, the classic: https://twitter.com/vgcerf/status/1019987651301081089 https://twitter.com/vgcerf/status/1019987651301081089
- rantwasp 6y ago
  it’s okay to not see the potential. blockchain is more than a distributed database. in a distributed database someone is still in charge and can make decisions unilaterally about how the data is altered. in blockchain you have a bunch of entities that can transact with each other with zero trust and without the need of a central authority. that is the truly innovative aspect of the blockchain and what sets it apart.
  - nexthash 6y ago
    No, no, no! That's the whole reason behind why it sucks... you can't trust it! You have to verify every record on that chain by yourself, and if you make a mistake in a transaction or other operation there is no court or process that can give you restitution. Its also very inefficient (massively slow) compared to a distributed database, while functionally doing the same thing. There are barely any use cases where you don't want central authority and you want distributed storage... centralized databases are always going to be more efficient and convenient. If you want to use a inefficient, crappy excuse for a database be my guest.
    - rantwasp 6y ago
      not sure if you’re a troll, but that’s the reason why you trust it. you can actually verify every transaction that happened on the chain. the way this is done is not unlike any system that uses event sourcing (including the distributed databases that you worship). here is a killer use case for blockchain: supply chain management with a lot of entities and lack of trust. smart contracts are a thing. also, there are blockchain implementation that are really performant (don’t get stuck on bitcoin)
      - Gibbon1 6y ago
        > supply chain management with a lot of entities and lack of trust. This tells me you know zero about supply chain management.
        rantwasp 6y ago
        hmm. if you ever had to deal with a supply chain and understand all the moving parts you cannot make the argument above with a straight face.
        nexthash 6y ago
        Oh, and would you mind explaining to us your experience with supply chain management?

PragmaticPulp 6y ago

Bitcoin started as a fun distributed systems experiment. It mutated into a sort of global pyramid scheme that consumes >0.5% of the world's energy consumption to perform deliberately useless calculations. Modern bitcoin isn't even about blockchain. Most people just put money in their exchange, click the exchange button, and watch the number go up and down. Never even touches the blockchain. It's all about speculation and convincing others to become the next layer in the pyramid of hodlers. Modern Bitcoin isn't about tech or distributed systems or challenging the financial system (with $8 transaction fees that go to mining companies and exchange fees that skim every trade). It's been captured by the financial system and pumped as a speculative investment, all so financial institutions and giant mining operations can profit off of the frenzy.