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Interesting to see so much development in crypto but within my tech and personal circles, no one still really uses it. It's still hard to use as it is to send p

Interesting to see so much development in crypto but within my tech and personal circles, no one still really uses it. It's still hard to use as it is to send payments vs traditional means with PayPal/Venmo. I also had friends that got into the NFT craze but had a hard time in just setting up a wallet and even more to setup and use MetaMask. I want crypto to succeed but I'm not seeing the use within the public. Really all I see is the FOMO of getting rich in crypto investments.

randomopining 5y ago
The usability is going to be there. People will use centralized stuff like Paypal and Venmo and then move to handling their own stuff. Metamask was just copying some addresses and stuff. I realize that the average person can't even come close to doing it yet, but soon it'll be all QR scanning and stuff and they can prob do it.
- iamben 5y ago
  I don't disagree this is the direction we're moving in, but what need is there to move to handling your own stuff? If I spoke to 99% of my non tech friends - who (thanks to things like the NHS Covid Check In app) now get QR codes - I don't think any would feel the need to avoid using Stirling and a bank? (Edit: particularly when contactless/phone/watch payment is so ubiquitous in the UK)
  - randomopining 5y ago
    Tbh for the average person, I agree. Actually I think they benefit from centralized powers that can reverse fraud, etc. But the narrative is enticing: "Control YOUR money/value!"
    - iamben 5y ago
      Haha, yes, with you totally! Perhaps it's a little like the Linux vs Windows/macOS/iOS/Android thing - "have complete control of your computer! Prevent people from spying on you! Tinker under the hood!" - and yet most of us are content with changing the background picture and happy if we don't get malware. I wonder if cryptocurrency is doomed to the same fate. If we take away the speculation and get rich quick - for the average person, what's left? If it won't make me rich (and there's a risk it'll make me poor!), why move from what I already have that works (arguably) far better?
- pavlov 5y ago
  > "The usability is going to be there." This was also the refrain in 2017. Billions were raised to make it happen. Four years later, what does the cryptocurrency industry have to show? Mass market adoption seems as unlikely as ever. QR codes don't solve anything when the basic design is so user-hostile — for the end user, crypto is unsafe money that you can lose at any time even if you think you're taking precautions. The only reasonable solutions available are centralized, and at that point you're competing against Apple, Google, Visa, etc.
  - randomopining 5y ago
    Yeah I agree to a point. I think the narrative of "You control YOUR money!" is enticing to a good amount of people. Overall for the average person with low liquid assets, having it in a bank makes way more sense for fraud protection etc. I think the average people will use Paypal/Venmo as a novelty and also to get the volatile investment gains. Then the individualists will hold theirs cold storage.
  - G3rn0ti 5y ago
    Wallets got better and are more standardized (private seed generation according to BIP-39, for example). DeFi DApps have happened in the past four years allowing you to easily invest and spent your cryptos from your browser. Stable coins and lending protocols have happened enabling you to earn interest on your dollars without exposing yourself to Bitcoin‘s volatility. Decentralized exchanges happened allowing you to swap between coins without the need for a centralized exchange in that case. Major wallets integrate many of these features allowing you to manage cryptos from your smartphone. Progress happened you’re just not looking for it.
vaer-k 5y ago
It's not actually hard at all; instead it's just that the easy methods are not well known, since most crypto news is all about crypto investments and get-rich-quick schemes. Easy to use payments systems are absolutely in place. lobstr, for instance, looks dead simple to me
worldmerge 5y ago
>but within my tech and personal circles, no one still really uses it. It seems it's been made almost deliberately hard to use in the US as a currency because of the tax situation surrounding it (reporting it as capital gains and tracking when you bought/sold). Normal people aren't going to be excited about it when they find they have to pay capital gains tax for that coffee, or equivalent Venmo transfer. Edit: If I'm wrong about tax situation let me know. But I started to use a crypto transaction tracking service so I can do my taxes easily next year. The tax situation surrounding crypto makes me nervous.
reedjosh 5y ago
I paid a friend ~6 XMR to take out two 50' fur trees, I removed a sink and related plumbing for .3 XMR, and another friend paid me about .1 XMR as a thank you for hosting all within the span of a week. You have to find the directories in your area, but I've been amazed how many capable freedom focused people are now not only accepting crypto payments, but prefer it.

randomopining 5y ago

The usability is going to be there. People will use centralized stuff like Paypal and Venmo and then move to handling their own stuff. Metamask was just copying some addresses and stuff. I realize that the average person can't even come close to doing it yet, but soon it'll be all QR scanning and stuff and they can prob do it.

iamben 5y ago
I don't disagree this is the direction we're moving in, but what need is there to move to handling your own stuff? If I spoke to 99% of my non tech friends - who (thanks to things like the NHS Covid Check In app) now get QR codes - I don't think any would feel the need to avoid using Stirling and a bank? (Edit: particularly when contactless/phone/watch payment is so ubiquitous in the UK)
- randomopining 5y ago
  Tbh for the average person, I agree. Actually I think they benefit from centralized powers that can reverse fraud, etc. But the narrative is enticing: "Control YOUR money/value!"
  - iamben 5y ago
    Haha, yes, with you totally! Perhaps it's a little like the Linux vs Windows/macOS/iOS/Android thing - "have complete control of your computer! Prevent people from spying on you! Tinker under the hood!" - and yet most of us are content with changing the background picture and happy if we don't get malware. I wonder if cryptocurrency is doomed to the same fate. If we take away the speculation and get rich quick - for the average person, what's left? If it won't make me rich (and there's a risk it'll make me poor!), why move from what I already have that works (arguably) far better?
pavlov 5y ago
> "The usability is going to be there." This was also the refrain in 2017. Billions were raised to make it happen. Four years later, what does the cryptocurrency industry have to show? Mass market adoption seems as unlikely as ever. QR codes don't solve anything when the basic design is so user-hostile — for the end user, crypto is unsafe money that you can lose at any time even if you think you're taking precautions. The only reasonable solutions available are centralized, and at that point you're competing against Apple, Google, Visa, etc.
- randomopining 5y ago
  Yeah I agree to a point. I think the narrative of "You control YOUR money!" is enticing to a good amount of people. Overall for the average person with low liquid assets, having it in a bank makes way more sense for fraud protection etc. I think the average people will use Paypal/Venmo as a novelty and also to get the volatile investment gains. Then the individualists will hold theirs cold storage.
- G3rn0ti 5y ago
  Wallets got better and are more standardized (private seed generation according to BIP-39, for example). DeFi DApps have happened in the past four years allowing you to easily invest and spent your cryptos from your browser. Stable coins and lending protocols have happened enabling you to earn interest on your dollars without exposing yourself to Bitcoin‘s volatility. Decentralized exchanges happened allowing you to swap between coins without the need for a centralized exchange in that case. Major wallets integrate many of these features allowing you to manage cryptos from your smartphone. Progress happened you’re just not looking for it.

vaer-k 5y ago

It's not actually hard at all; instead it's just that the easy methods are not well known, since most crypto news is all about crypto investments and get-rich-quick schemes. Easy to use payments systems are absolutely in place. lobstr, for instance, looks dead simple to me

worldmerge 5y ago

>but within my tech and personal circles, no one still really uses it. It seems it's been made almost deliberately hard to use in the US as a currency because of the tax situation surrounding it (reporting it as capital gains and tracking when you bought/sold). Normal people aren't going to be excited about it when they find they have to pay capital gains tax for that coffee, or equivalent Venmo transfer. Edit: If I'm wrong about tax situation let me know. But I started to use a crypto transaction tracking service so I can do my taxes easily next year. The tax situation surrounding crypto makes me nervous.

reedjosh 5y ago

I paid a friend ~6 XMR to take out two 50' fur trees, I removed a sink and related plumbing for .3 XMR, and another friend paid me about .1 XMR as a thank you for hosting all within the span of a week. You have to find the directories in your area, but I've been amazed how many capable freedom focused people are now not only accepting crypto payments, but prefer it.