Select to expand quotedmitri said..
Just replace "Bardo" with "Power ledger" and see how this "Perth Company" with .io domain popped up from " Creating an ICO Scam in 5 simple steps" book
steemit.com/scam/@moonjelly/how-to-create-an-ico-scam-in-5-simple-steps
I bet their team of the "Blockchain specialists" and "Ethereum engineers" came strait from uifaces.com
It is a free country. People can do whatever they like with money, as long as it is their own of course. Fortunately, judging by what I read, all the "investors/speculators" only dip their toes in, and not going the Full Monty.
I am not sure it is anything like the Dot Com bubble, but if you put a pile of money in front of someone, I am sure that some clever slippery characters will find a means to grab it from you. Who knows in 20 years' time, Razzonator and Evil Panda will be sucking on a Martine on an island somewhere where it is too out of reach for tax men 
Select to expand quotealbers said..
The top 4 cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple and Litecoin (based on Market Cap) have all been around for a few years.
However, trading volumes (and price) in these currencies have only just recently spiked, commencing around the March-May 2017 period.
Does anyone have an idea as to the reason behind this recent surge?
PS: This link displays all cryptocurrencies in one place
coinmarketcap.com/
The increase in volume seems to correspond to the increase in ICO activity.
How about fat finger coders and no checking saw $30 million taken from ethereum users!
www.theregister.co.uk/2017/07/20/us30_million_below_parity_ethereum_bug_leads_to_big_coin_heist/
An "in-browser wallet". What could go wrong?
Man, I still do not understand Ethereum. It's leaning way more toward using a blockchain to build applications on, than as a currency. Of course. Although the underlying currency "ether" does power the applications that sit on top. I've yet to see a real "killer app" built on ether though. Or perhaps I'm not looking hard enough. All I see are ICOs with nothing more than an idea behind them. Very similar to renaming your company with a ".com" at the end of it. Remember that?
By the way if you are confused about all of this crypto-blockchain bull**** let me try to put it as simple as I can : )
The blockchain is an immutable database. It can't be changed. <<< Ponder this for a bit. It is the absolute core of the technology.
If you understand that you will come to the same conclusions yourself, what you could do with that. You could create a currency ledger that is completely incorruptible (cryptocurrencies like bitcoin). You could create a contract system for, say, real estate. All of these would be completely incorruptible. This is exactly what has happened.
I'd add "bonus: nobody controls them" but that is not the case for Ethereum nor Litecoin. Only bitcoin has no central authority. Hell, nobody even knows who first created it.
By the way stealing is not the same as corruption, in this respect. If someone can steal your keys they can steal your money. Neither the keys nor the lock has been corrupted.
Select to expand quotewestozwind said..
How about fat finger coders and no checking saw $30 million taken from ethereum users!
www.theregister.co.uk/2017/07/20/us30_million_below_parity_ethereum_bug_leads_to_big_coin_heist/
Did you do it, EvilPanda 
Bitcoin for Dummies continued (from page 4)...
As a lot of people use smart phones there's a rather excellent app for both Android and iOS calledBreadWallet:
brd.com
BreadWallet is a "deterministic" wallet that uses a 12 word seed phrase to generate its addresses. Remember the phrase and you can regenerate the wallet complete with all its addresses.
1. Buy bitcoin on an exchange (coinbase.com or coinjar.com)
2. Send bitcoin to your BreadWallet wallet.
Now you are completely storing your own bitcoin yourself instead of trusting a website. This is a good solution for beginners.
_____
Advanced:
When importing private keys to BreadWallet it sweeps the address, leaving no change to get lost. Good for beginners.
You still don't know your private keys though! Luckily there is a solution: github.com/iancoleman/bip39
Using this program you can enter the same 12 word seed phrase you used/got when you created your BreadWallet wallet on your phone. It will generate the same wallet with its public and private addresses. And the change address too (important).
Finer points of the solution including how to use the program are here:
www.reddit.com/r/breadwallet/comments/6hh84b/how_do_i_generate_private_keys_using_the/?st=j5d33o39&sh=b6f4f1fa
_____
By the way it looks like all the losses from the last week have been made back again. Btc is almost back to all time high again!
...oh that's why! coin.dance/blocks
A change to make bitcoin better has been widely accepted. It's about to go up. A lot!
Up from ~2,500 to ~3,500 the last 24 hours.
I've just finished buying all I want to ever buy, the last little fraction to make a nice number : )
What, so If I had bought a coin on Sunday night and sold today - I would have made a $1,000?
Select to expand quoteMackerel said..
What, so If I had bought a coin on Sunday night and sold today - I would have made a $1,000?
I am sorry to be forever on the side of skeptics. Yes, I do share your amazement, Mackerel. It is bordering on hyper speculation, probably not too far from gambling. But that is their money.
The question that is burning in my mind is this..."What does this $1,000 windfall come from ?" Perhaps it is like an auction where you place a bid higher than anyone else to get it. In time like such, emotions and other factors drive one to do silly things. How about mass feeding frenzy ?
Demand and supply - just like shares, property, precious metals, fiat currencies....
I just read an article on the ABC about the DarkNet. The top honcho Cazes was arrested in Thailand recently. He was found dead in his police cell !
At a very tender age of 25 he drives around a $million car, and many more expensive ones. He has properties all over the world. Besides flogging illegal drugs such as LSD, his other business activity is dealing in BitCoins. So what do you make of it ?
^^ isn't decentralisation grand ?
No middle man (the Judge).. straight to execution.
The beauty of Blockchain.
Select to expand quoteJupiter said..
At a very tender age of 25 he drives around a $million car, and many more expensive ones. He has properties all over the world. Besides flogging illegal drugs such as LSD, his other business activity is dealing in BitCoins. So what do you make of it ?
The future of Bitcoin will be a sum of the following:
1. Buying drugs and other shady shady products/services off the internet
2. International transfers
3. The blockchain and business
If you believe bitcoin is limited to 1 and 2 then there's not much point buying and it's over-valued currently.
If you believe in the blockchain and applications to business, then number 3 will well and truly overtake 1 and 2 - I'd say it already has! This is what's currently driving the value (demand) for bitcoin. People believe in the blockchain. Tech start-ups are developing blockchain applications and raising obscene amount of capital through ICOs. Big 4 accounting firms, big banks, big investment houses, big law firms, BP, Microsoft, Samsung, Intel are involved ( entethalliance.org/members/ ). It's well and truly on it's way, there might be a correction to the current "bubble", who knows, but blockchain is here and over the next 10 years it's going to change everything. It's internet 2.0
Select to expand quotebene313 said..
It's internet 2.0
It is more than a bit of a stretch, innit ?
The Internet enables the society to come together in many ways. In some cases, I would say it is becoming an out of control beast, when terrorists and bad people use it to work against the common good of the society. In regard to the virtual money, I would go as far as calling it "funny money". It only created opportunities for people to speculate. It is just another form of currency but potentially with a sting in the tail.
My usual skepticism would say "Achtung, dangers ahead !".
I don't think it's a stretch at all. We're just in the early stages. Even conservative media agrees:
Blockchain and artificial intelligence is coming, ready or not
www.theaustralian.com.au/nocookies?a=A.flavipes
Select to expand quoteJupiter said..
The question that is burning in my mind is this..."What does this $1,000 windfall come from ?" Perhaps it is like an auction where you place a bid higher than anyone else to get it.
That is about right. There is a finite number of coins. The highest bidder gets the coins and the lowest seller gets the fiat.
Andrew and Bob are brothers, aged 10 and 11. Andrew has 10 red smarties, and Bob has 2 red smarties. Both like red smarties more than the other colours. Bob offers Andrew 2 green smarties for 1 of his red smarties. Andrew declines the offer. Bob offers Andrew 3 green smarties for 1 of his red smarties, and Andrew accepts the offer.
1 red smartie = 3 green smarties.
A bit later on Bob offers him another 3 green smarties for 1 red smartie. Andrew declines the offer. Bob really wants another red smartie so offers him 4 green smarties. Andrew accepts the offer.
Now 1 red smartie = 4 green smarties. + 33%
It's that simple, as is trading anything from horses to stocks to currency to cars.
Select to expand quoteevlPanda said..
Now 1 red smartie = 4 green smarties. + 33%
It's that simple, as is trading anything from horses to stocks to currency to cars.
I thought we were crazy to gamble in the stock markets. Now I am wrong. There are actually crazier things out there. Sorry, EvilPanda. Just can't help myself 
But than again, we trade futures. But at least behind the trading in futures, there actually are real stuff like grains, oranges, apples, etc that are being sold, although well into the future.
So at some time in the future, if you have a job which pays you in Cryptocurrency, and you can purchase all your daily requirements in Cryptocurrency, you are literally "off the financial grid".
No tax on your salary.
No GST on your purchases.
Until the bureaucracy can work out how to deal with Cryptocurrencies
Select to expand quotealbers said..
So at some time in the future, if you have a job which pays you in Cryptocurrency, and you can purchase all your daily requirements in Cryptocurrency, you are literally "off the financial grid".
No tax on your salary.
No GST on your purchases.
Until the bureaucracy can work out how to deal with Cryptocurrencies
Getting around tax would not be as easy as you describe. For one any business that pays its employees in btc has to consider if they are going to claim that salary as a business expense. Of course they are! Your PAYG summary will reflect that.
The same business would surely want to claim stock and rent and transport and electricity and on and on and on as business expenses. And *those* stock and real estate and transport and electricity companies would surely do the same for their business expenses. All the way through the entire supply chain!
The only way btc could be used to get around tax entirely is if the entire supply chain is using btc. This might work for drug dealers and dodgy builders.
There is practically no difference in execution between an all-cash business, and an all btc business. It is perceivable that current, dodgy all-cash businesses might transfer to btc. They would continue to not pay tax like they already don't.
www.ato.gov.au/General/Gen/Tax-treatment-of-crypto-currencies-in-Australia---specifically-bitcoin/
Select to expand quoteevlPanda said..Jupiter said..
The question that is burning in my mind is this..."What does this $1,000 windfall come from ?" Perhaps it is like an auction where you place a bid higher than anyone else to get it.
That is about right. There is a finite number of coins. The highest bidder gets the coins and the lowest seller gets the fiat.
Andrew and Bob are brothers, aged 10 and 11. Andrew has 10 red smarties, and Bob has 2 red smarties. Both like red smarties more than the other colours. Bob offers Andrew 2 green smarties for 1 of his red smarties. Andrew declines the offer. Bob offers Andrew 3 green smarties for 1 of his red smarties, and Andrew accepts the offer.
1 red smartie = 3 green smarties.
A bit later on Bob offers him another 3 green smarties for 1 red smartie. Andrew declines the offer. Bob really wants another red smartie so offers him 4 green smarties. Andrew accepts the offer.
Now 1 red smartie = 4 green smarties. + 33%
It's that simple, as is trading anything from horses to stocks to currency to cars.
Gotta love allegories..
Bob tells Andrew he knows the trick how to turn 1 red smartie into 2 overnight.. Andrew gives Bob 1 RS..
Next day Bob gives Andrew 2 RS..
Andrew likes the trick he says: "again ! again !" and gives Bob 1 RS..
Next day he gets 2 RS from Bob..
Andrew is very exited.."again ! again!" and gives Bob all his 12 RS..
Next day he gets back none..He goes: hey Bob what happened ?..
And Bob goes" sorry mate, a dingo got 'em"
Andrew=0 RS
Bob = 12 RS 600%
Select to expand quoteevlPanda said..
Getting around tax would not be as easy as you describe. For one any business that pays its employees in btc has to consider if they are going to claim that salary as a business expense. Of course they are! Your PAYG summary will reflect that.
The only way btc could be used to get around tax entirely is if the entire supply chain is using btc. This might work for drug dealers and dodgy builders.
There is practically no difference in execution between an all-cash business, and an all btc business. It is perceivable that current, dodgy all-cash businesses might transfer to btc. They would continue to not pay tax like they already don't.
www.ato.gov.au/General/Gen/Tax-treatment-of-crypto-currencies-in-Australia---specifically-bitcoin/
And why would businesses want to go through another level of complexity by paying employees in virtual currencies ? I thought they already have had more than their fair share of problems in their daily operations ?
Dodgy business dealing may not entirely bypass the conventional transaction circuit, but doing it partially will still reap some tangible illegal benefits, wouldn't it ? Like you said, virtual currencies work for drugs deals and illegal cyber dodge, isn't that my point all along? That such currencies are enablers for illegal activities.
Businesses can't operate in total "cash only" environment because as we all knew, the ATO is not as stupid as we would like them to be. So my second point above stated that only a portion of the tax avoidance can be done using cash or virtual currencies. I hope ATO wakes up sooner than later if such activities did occur.
Select to expand quoteJupiter said..
Sure, like you and some experts said, they will be here, they are already here. However, I just don't see how you can equate a shed-load of virtual currencies to the Internet. The Internet allows you to do thing with it, in it on it. What do virtual currencies do beside giving you a pile of money which may just vanish in a puff of smoke if it falls into the wrong hands ? And perhaps you can do a song and dance about it when you did hit it big time ?
Sorry, not buying it.
There's a bigger picture. Bitcoin runs on the blockchain. The blockchain is the bigger picture.
You keep saying cryptos don't produce or do anything. Here's an example I gave earlier of a real company with real life projects on the go:
medium.com/power-ledger/hello-world-meet-power-ledger-b67a2a62301e
Another previously mentioned in this thread. Pretty interesting idea: basicattentiontoken.org/
You can download the web browser. It's ready to use at brave.com/ and even participate in the ad testing in 2018.
.
