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Perhaps "intangible" was the wrong word. But domain names, unlike bitcoins, are actually useful for something. Bitcoins are just placeholders for value or wealt

Perhaps "intangible" was the wrong word. But domain names, unlike bitcoins, are actually useful for something. Bitcoins are just placeholders for value or wealth, like any other currency. The only reason they are useful is because we say a bitcoin is worth x dollars. We don't have to make an artificial distinction like that for a domain name because it is obvious what it is used for. Even if domain names were free they would still have value, if bitcoins were free they would have 0 value.

fundament 12y ago
If domain names were free one guy/robot would inevitably take them all. If he couldn't sell them or be paid for the monumentally complicated service of allocating them to the world (they're "free") then in the end nobody would have any domains except him, and everyone would use a different resolution system that wasn't free. The guy's domains would be worthless. If domains were free they would have zero value. Just like bitcoin and virtually everything, ever.
- wodenokoto 12y ago
  No, if the price of domain names collapses tomorrow to zero dollars news.ycombinator.com would still point to this website. This is the intrinsic value.
  - fundament 12y ago
    This intrinsic value isn't so intrinsic when every DNS registrar stops providing DNS services because they are unable to make money doing so. Fat lot of good it would do for n.yc.com to "point" here if there are no more authorities to do the pointing, and everyone has moved to a different system. There is absolutely no "intrinsic" value in a domain, other than that provided by the economic structures around it.
deeviant 12y ago
Eh, I can trade a bitcoin for +/- 200$ bucks, currently. That seems like a example of "good for something". I can also transfer currency of any type, via the internet, without interacting with a financial institution(buy bitcoin using your preferred currency, trade bitcoin, the received converts bitcoin into their preferred currency), this capability also seems like it could be "good for something". I feel like the "it's internet funny money!" claims are just as wrong as the "bitcoin will change everything about currency" claims.
- wodenokoto 12y ago
  That's not what the intrinsic value argument is about. The "good for something" (as intrinsic value was put here) is the question if something is still useful if its use as a placeholder for value collapses. If the price of rice collapses, I can still eat it. If the price of cars collapses I can still drive mine to work. If the price of web domains collapses, people can still use it to visit my web page. If the price of Bitcoin collapses to zero, you can still do what with your coin?
  - deeviant 12y ago
    US Dollars have no intrinsic value either, this does not stop anybody from using them. Talking about rice is silly, we are talking about currency. No major economies currencies are based on anything with intrinsic value.
    - Igglyboo 12y ago
      Technically they do because the paper and metal cost money. Other than that, they are actually backed by something.
      - deeviant 12y ago
        Backed by what? Faith? Confidence? You can't trade your US dollar in for gold. The note literally just says, "You must accept this for any debt(Because)". Are we really going to go down to that intrinsic value of the paper it's printed on??? To be honest, I actually have little faith in bitcoin myself, but I can at least see the reason why it has taken off as far as it has, and it did earn me a pretty penny when I got out(I mined all my own bitcoins and just to experiment with a new technology, right from the beginning). I just get tired of hearing extremophile arguments this way or that.
    - wodenokoto 12y ago
      You have to pay taxes in US dollars if you are an American citizen. So the intrinsic value is not getting thrown into jail. But you are right, we mostly use USD because we trust that we can always find someone who will want it. All major fiat currencies have an army/police force backing them up. Not that long ago all major currencies were backed by gold or silver. Fiat is a very small, recent part of the history of currencies. Talking about rice makes perfect sense in explaining intrinsic value. If we look at major currencies that are not upheld by force we have gold and silver which have been staple currencies with intrinsic values throughout probably most of civilized history. Other societies uses cigarettes (jails) as currency, because even non-smokers know they can easily find someone to trade with, so cigarettes become a storage of value that is not upheld by any violent force.

fundament 12y ago

If domain names were free one guy/robot would inevitably take them all. If he couldn't sell them or be paid for the monumentally complicated service of allocating them to the world (they're "free") then in the end nobody would have any domains except him, and everyone would use a different resolution system that wasn't free. The guy's domains would be worthless. If domains were free they would have zero value. Just like bitcoin and virtually everything, ever.

wodenokoto 12y ago
No, if the price of domain names collapses tomorrow to zero dollars news.ycombinator.com would still point to this website. This is the intrinsic value.
- fundament 12y ago
  This intrinsic value isn't so intrinsic when every DNS registrar stops providing DNS services because they are unable to make money doing so. Fat lot of good it would do for n.yc.com to "point" here if there are no more authorities to do the pointing, and everyone has moved to a different system. There is absolutely no "intrinsic" value in a domain, other than that provided by the economic structures around it.

deeviant 12y ago

Eh, I can trade a bitcoin for +/- 200$ bucks, currently. That seems like a example of "good for something". I can also transfer currency of any type, via the internet, without interacting with a financial institution(buy bitcoin using your preferred currency, trade bitcoin, the received converts bitcoin into their preferred currency), this capability also seems like it could be "good for something". I feel like the "it's internet funny money!" claims are just as wrong as the "bitcoin will change everything about currency" claims.

wodenokoto 12y ago
That's not what the intrinsic value argument is about. The "good for something" (as intrinsic value was put here) is the question if something is still useful if its use as a placeholder for value collapses. If the price of rice collapses, I can still eat it. If the price of cars collapses I can still drive mine to work. If the price of web domains collapses, people can still use it to visit my web page. If the price of Bitcoin collapses to zero, you can still do what with your coin?
- deeviant 12y ago
  US Dollars have no intrinsic value either, this does not stop anybody from using them. Talking about rice is silly, we are talking about currency. No major economies currencies are based on anything with intrinsic value.
  - Igglyboo 12y ago
    Technically they do because the paper and metal cost money. Other than that, they are actually backed by something.
    - deeviant 12y ago
      Backed by what? Faith? Confidence? You can't trade your US dollar in for gold. The note literally just says, "You must accept this for any debt(Because)". Are we really going to go down to that intrinsic value of the paper it's printed on??? To be honest, I actually have little faith in bitcoin myself, but I can at least see the reason why it has taken off as far as it has, and it did earn me a pretty penny when I got out(I mined all my own bitcoins and just to experiment with a new technology, right from the beginning). I just get tired of hearing extremophile arguments this way or that.
  - wodenokoto 12y ago
    You have to pay taxes in US dollars if you are an American citizen. So the intrinsic value is not getting thrown into jail. But you are right, we mostly use USD because we trust that we can always find someone who will want it. All major fiat currencies have an army/police force backing them up. Not that long ago all major currencies were backed by gold or silver. Fiat is a very small, recent part of the history of currencies. Talking about rice makes perfect sense in explaining intrinsic value. If we look at major currencies that are not upheld by force we have gold and silver which have been staple currencies with intrinsic values throughout probably most of civilized history. Other societies uses cigarettes (jails) as currency, because even non-smokers know they can easily find someone to trade with, so cigarettes become a storage of value that is not upheld by any violent force.