Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mancs
Mt. Gox, Flexcoin, Poloniex, bitstamp, BTER-according to wiki all places where bitcoins were stolen, hacked, evaporated. Keep a tight hold of your digital wallet.
Exactly. For anyone getting into bitcoin, 1) don't use a web wallet, and 2) you're most likely going to end up using a HD BIP32 wallet, which means you'll have a private key like this (even if you don't see it):
xprv9s21ZrQH143K2JF8RafpqtKiTbsbaxEeUaMnNHsm5o6wCW 3z8ySyH4UxFVSfZ8n7ESu7fgir8imbZKLYVBxFPND1pniTZ81v Kfd45EHKX73
Keep that private key safe, and your funds will be fine. With current technology, you can not brute force (ie. guess) that key, so as long as you keep it away from the internet as much as possible, nobody can ever touch your funds. It's really that simple.
As I tell all my clients, I can't guarantee safety, but in 2.5 years I have yet to have a dollar stolen, so have a pretty decent track record.
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Quote:
Originally Posted by cdnmatt
For anyone getting into bitcoin, 1) don't use a web wallet, and 2) you're most likely going to end up using a HD BIP32 wallet, which means you'll have a private key like this (even if you don't see it):
xprv9s21ZrQH143K2JF8RafpqtKiTbsbaxEeUaMnNHsm5o6wCW 3z8ySyH4UxFVSfZ8n7ESu7fgir8imbZKLYVBxFPND1pniTZ81v Kfd45EHKX73
Keep that private key safe, and your funds will be fine. With current technology, you can not brute force (ie. guess) that key, so as long as you keep it away from the internet as much as possible, nobody can ever touch your funds.
Although I *do* agree with everything you just said here.... from a factual standpoint....
The problem is.... as you well know.... Nobody here has *any* idea what you're talking about.... so what's the point? Just trying to hear yourself talk?
(1) If a user could ever get even close to seeing their own private keys... ( that long alphanumeric string you keep posting ), then whatever method they are using, IT IS NOT SAFE. A user should *never* be able to see that. And never needs to see that. You're trying to teach people how to drive by explaining the inner workings of a carburetor.... that you read out of a book. What's your point?
Quote:
...as long as you keep it away from the internet as much as possible, nobody can ever touch your funds.
(2) As long as you "keep it away from the internet" 10000%. Problem is, nobody knows what you mean by that ( not even you ). This private key can never never never touch an easily compromised laptop or desktop computer, for example. It can certainly never be passed via an easily compromised USB device of any kind.
Your private keys should either remain encrypted and offline completely ( on paper, for example)..... or they should exist *only* in the secure memory of a secure device ( Android or iPhone ) and never ever leave that device unencrypted.
Unfortunately, the apps you've recommended don't meet these minimal security requirements. They also don't have any automatic encrypted backup function. So it's very easy to lose your money in a variety of ways.... with them.
Those apps are designed for bitcoin engineers and technologists who don't need to be told the basics of security. It is *assumed* that they already know better than to run them on any type of compromised computer with any type of an Internet connection. It's also assumed that they don't need to be told to encrypt their wallet on their own, and back it up off-site, on their own. However, even some of the most famous bitcoin developers themselves have made huge mistakes. ( Members of the core team, without mentioning any names, have made "stupid" mistakes and lost *thousands* of bitcoin. For example, one guy encrypted his wallet.dat file and then stupidly copied it to his Dropbox for backup. Of course, he lost everything. )
That's the beauty of Airbitz. All the most intelligent "security best practices" are built in by design. It's all automatic. The user doesn't have to do anything. It even protects the user from himself --- from making any of those stupid mistakes on his own. And they made it as easy to use as any normal banking app.... even easier, in fact.
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Quote:
Originally Posted by bruce_nyc
The problem is.... as you well know.... Nobody here has *any* idea what you're talking about.... so what's the point? Just trying to hear yourself talk?
Because I'm trying to dumb it down for people. You can think of that private key I posted above as a credit card number, except more important, because if / when your funds get stolen there is no bank to call. AirBitz is encrypting that key, and passing it around to a P2P network when they don't even know who the owners of the nodes are, which is a massive design flaw.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bruce_nyc
(2) As long as you "keep it away from the internet" 10000%. Problem is, nobody knows what you mean by that ( not even you ).
I know exactly what I'm talking about. I've even developed an offline signing app in Python which is open sourced.
And I don't really care... I'm going to go continue my search for Kim. I don't know why, but I haven't been able to stop thinking about him for the past month. I know he's in Bangkok now, but that's all I know.
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
PS -- Saying "HD BIP32" is redundant. It's like calling them, "those gay homosexuals". Both terms mean the same thing.
Also, you don't need to be using an HD wallet to have a private key. Every bitcoin, since the beginning of bitcoin, ( years before HD wallets were invented ), has a private key. It's one of the most basic elements of the bitcoin network.
But again, users don't *need* to understand that the rod to stroke ratio (R/S) is the center-to-center length of the conrod divided by the stroke. ......in order to safely drive their Toyota to the mall. That sort of talk is intentional gobbledygook to an audience of normal people.
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
I hope you find Kim. He shouldn't be that difficult to find. Through former friends? Former coworkers?
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Quote:
Originally Posted by cdnmatt
I've even developed an offline signing app in Python which is open sourced.
If you're interested in offline signing, you might be interested in taking a look at the open source app one of my friends here in Bangkok developed. I gave him the structure and design input. We met every week. And he coded it.
It uses script key stretching to make a brain wallet that you can memorize, yet that actually cannot be brute forced. It's pretty cool.
Take a look at it here: http://easy-btc.org
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Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Also, merchants and shop owners can easily use this tool to give to every waiter and cashier.... so they can receive payments only.... directly into the shop owner's Airbitz Wallet..... ( even if the owner is in Tahiti ).
With this, they can Receive payments only. Nothing else.
http://easy-btc.org/#receive
The owner can designate one bitcoin address for receiving payments on http://onename.com and assign it to a handle.
For example, this one: https://onename.com/eatmerestaurant is the bitcoin address for Eat Me ( a gay owned restaurant I love! in Bangkok http://eatmerestaurant.com )
So now, any waiter, cashier, anyone can go to http://easy-btc.org/#receive and enter "eatmerestaurant" on the "adresss" line. ( The photo confirms that you have the correct address ) ....and enter the amount in Thai Baht.... or any world currency.
This allows the waiters and cashiers to receive the correct amount at any time.... but only receive. They cannot spend. They cannot even check the balance.
All they have to do is show this qr code to the customer to pay....
:)
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Quote:
Originally Posted by bruce_nyc
I hope you find Kim. He shouldn't be that difficult to find. Through former friends? Former coworkers?
Me too. He was an asshole, but an asshole who genuinely loved me.
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Got him! Or I should later today at least.
Now whether or not he misses / loves me is another question.
Re: Alternatives to Western Union
Perhaps you maybe want to go back and re read a few of your old posts and just remind yourself of the not so joyous time you had when with him before allowing the rose tinted glasses of love and lust to cloud your vision once more ?
By all ( of your own) accounts he treated you like shit, used you and physically threatened you - do you REALLY need all that drama back in your life, when we break up with someone it's usually for a very good reason and I'm guessing that reason still exists where Kim is concerned and surely in the whole of Thailand you can find a nice guy who won't do all the things I've already mentioned and that you have already told us and many others about before to you again just because you're feeling a little lovesick about what "might have been" - but WASN'T.
Find a nice guy, move on and don't look back ( in life ever) is my advice ( that you didn't ask for !) but of course once you post to a / the board then you're sort of opening yourself up for others opinions whether you like the answers you get back or not I guess.
Either way, no matter how things end up chok dee and all the nest with it and I just hope that history doesn't repeat itself for you.