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One thing with Bitcoin that still needs to be decentralized is the exchanges. This shows again that mtgox is the achilles heel. Sure, there are many other excha

One thing with Bitcoin that still needs to be decentralized is the exchanges. This shows again that mtgox is the achilles heel. Sure, there are many other exchanges and ways to sell/buy, but it's telling (and sad) that DDoSing mtgox is an effective price manipulation method. As the stakes grow higher Bitcoin is turning into an interesting endeavor in building resilent systems and preventing Single Points of Failure.

TazeTSchnitzel 14y ago
It is already decentralised in the sense that there are plenty of alternatives, and there are "over-the-counter" places like Bitcoin's #bitcoin-otc.
- wladimir 14y ago
  I know that. But for some reason there is an extreme reliance on mtgox for price information. Even trades in -otc are usually based on the mtgox price. So maybe I worded it wrong, it's not so much trade that is centralized but the trade/price broadcasting.
  - TazeTSchnitzel 14y ago
    Ah, I see. Well, there are some sources that aggregate data, like Bitcoin Charts: http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/ http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/
    - deleted 14y ago
      [deleted]
    - wladimir 14y ago
      Agreed. Still, bitcoincharts is a centralized site too, and could be DDoSed, overloaded, blocked, etc. Maybe ticker/trade data could be spread over a gossip network as well. That's not as trivial as it sounds, though, for example how to check that trades are real and not just spam/manipulation. Maybe some way of authenticating exchanges by signing the packets (but then -otc would be left out... maybe their reputation system could be integrated somehow).
mtgx 14y ago
If the banks ever start adopting it, then trading Bitcoins should become pretty decentralized.
- wladimir 14y ago
  In what sense are banks decentralized? Aren't those too-big-to-fail giants what we're trying to get away from in the first place? :-)
oleganza 14y ago
The reason for a lack of easy to use exchanges is the artificial cost of entry. You cannot simply set up a website to trade coins for money with some friends because of licensing, regulations, capital requirements etc. If you were free to move your money how you want on the internet without questions asked, we would have many exchanges (and probably wouldn't need Bitcoin in the first place).
tlrobinson 14y ago
This is one of promises of Ripple. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.

TazeTSchnitzel 14y ago

It is already decentralised in the sense that there are plenty of alternatives, and there are "over-the-counter" places like Bitcoin's #bitcoin-otc.

wladimir 14y ago
I know that. But for some reason there is an extreme reliance on mtgox for price information. Even trades in -otc are usually based on the mtgox price. So maybe I worded it wrong, it's not so much trade that is centralized but the trade/price broadcasting.
- TazeTSchnitzel 14y ago
  Ah, I see. Well, there are some sources that aggregate data, like Bitcoin Charts: http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/ http://bitcoincharts.com/markets/
  - deleted 14y ago
    [deleted]
  - wladimir 14y ago
    Agreed. Still, bitcoincharts is a centralized site too, and could be DDoSed, overloaded, blocked, etc. Maybe ticker/trade data could be spread over a gossip network as well. That's not as trivial as it sounds, though, for example how to check that trades are real and not just spam/manipulation. Maybe some way of authenticating exchanges by signing the packets (but then -otc would be left out... maybe their reputation system could be integrated somehow).

mtgx 14y ago

If the banks ever start adopting it, then trading Bitcoins should become pretty decentralized.

wladimir 14y ago
In what sense are banks decentralized? Aren't those too-big-to-fail giants what we're trying to get away from in the first place? :-)

oleganza 14y ago

The reason for a lack of easy to use exchanges is the artificial cost of entry. You cannot simply set up a website to trade coins for money with some friends because of licensing, regulations, capital requirements etc. If you were free to move your money how you want on the internet without questions asked, we would have many exchanges (and probably wouldn't need Bitcoin in the first place).

tlrobinson 14y ago

This is one of promises of Ripple. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.