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A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn’t Going Away

A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn't Going Awaynews.Bitcoin.com recently reported on an unknown software developer called Bitpico who stated the Segwit2x fork will still happen on November 15 as intended. Bitcoin proponents are not sure if the developer is serious but a new website has been published called Bitcoin2x.org. Also read: Closing the Curtains On Segwit2x and the Following Aftermath A New Website […]

The post A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn’t Going Away appeared first on Bitcoin News.

A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn't Going Away

news.Bitcoin.com recently reported on an unknown software developer called Bitpico who stated the Segwit2x fork will still happen on November 15 as intended. Bitcoin proponents are not sure if the developer is serious but a new website has been published called Bitcoin2x.org.

Also read: Closing the Curtains On Segwit2x and the Following Aftermath

A New Website Called Bitcoin2x.org Appears After Bitpico’s Threats

A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn't Going Away
Bitcoin2x.org’s original welcome message.

Bitcoin enthusiasts are still concerned about a fork happening next week as an unknown developer named Bitpico has threatened to fork the network anyway. Bitpico has been active on the Segwit2x mailing list for quite some time and has his own Github profile. However, there’s not much known on the open web about the character or his organization.

“We are carrying out the fork regardless as everything is set in motion,” explains Bitpico using the Segwit2x mailing list.

On November 9, many bitcoin proponents shrugged off Bitpico’s statements as empty threats. However, the very next day a new website appeared at Bitcoin2x.org which also declared the fork was still happening. It’s not confirmed at the moment whether or not Bitpico is connected to the website or who operates the site. The website’s welcome message is very much like Bitpico’s threats, with the site explaining on November 10:

We have decided to continue with the fork as planned. We will not allow the destiny of Bitcoin to be controlled by six individuals.  

Jeff Garzik: ‘It’ll be a Tiny Offshoot That Mints Blocks Very Slowly’

Bitcoiners are still concerned about the fork still happening, as the subject is still being discussed heavily across social media and forums. One of the reasons behind why people are still worried about the fork is because Segwit2x nodes are still operating. Essentially with these nodes it only takes one miner to initiate a fork in the protocol. Further, as we reported on November 9, Segwit2x futures are still quite active, and traders are still purchasing “B2x.” Because many of the Segwit2x protocol elements are still in place, alongside Bitpico’s and the Bitcoin2x.org’s statements, bitcoiners believe a fork could still happen.

A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn't Going Away
Bitcoin2x.org’s welcome message changes on November 10, 2017, at 12 pm EDT.

Even though the threats of forking continue, the lead developer of the Segwit2x working group, Jeff Garzik, doesn’t seem too concerned. “Without the miners to enforce, it will be a tiny offshoot that mints blocks once a day or so,” explains Jeff Garzik in response to a question asked on the team’s Slack channel. Also, there are no signs of any characters named Bitpico or any rogue groups discussing a continuing fork within the working group’s Slack communications channel. 

Additionally, the Bitcoin2x.org website changed its welcome statement a few hours later with an entirely new message.  

“We just forked the website — We didn’t mean to fork Bitcoin, that’s a lot of work — Check back for updates,” details Bitcoin2x.org.

Do you think a fork could still take place? Or do you think these individuals are just spreading FUD? Let us know in the comments below.


Images via Shutterstock, and Bitcoin2x.org screenshots.   


Express yourself freely at Bitcoin.com’s user forums. We don’t censor on political grounds. Check out forum.Bitcoin.com today!

The post A New Website Claims the Segwit2x Hard Fork Isn’t Going Away appeared first on Bitcoin News.

PlayKey Platform Declared Investment-Friendly by ICORating

ICORating, one of the leading blockchain startup rating agencies, has termed PlayKey’s decentralized cloud gaming platform as “Stable+” from the point of view of investing. In their report, ICORating representatives noted that PlayKey’s tokens are ideal for medium term investments, thanks to their healthy hype and low risk status. They justified their reason for rewarding … Continue reading PlayKey Platform Declared Investment-Friendly by ICORating

The post PlayKey Platform Declared Investment-Friendly by ICORating appeared first on NEWSBTC.

ICORating, one of the leading blockchain startup rating agencies, has termed PlayKey’s decentralized cloud gaming platform as “Stable+” from the point of view of investing.

In their report, ICORating representatives noted that PlayKey’s tokens are ideal for medium term investments, thanks to their healthy hype and low risk status. They justified their reason for rewarding a favorable rating to PlayKey by stating,

“PlayKey already functioned for 2.5 years, so the team has enough experience. It should be noted that the team members have been working together for a long time, which we also highlight as one of the strengths of the project.”

The rating agency also noted that PlayKey will be working in a highly competitive environment, and would need quick reactions to new products from competitors, and almost instantaneous adjustment to customers’ desires. They termed competition as the only risk factor for PlayKey.

PlayKey Proves Competitive Advantage

PlayKey has differentiated itself from other decentralized gaming platforms, stating that they already have an infrastructure at place to meet their goals quickly. The platform cited its 100 NVIDIA-based servers that are serving over 2.5 million gamers globally as a strategic advantage over its competition. It also coupled the claim by proving strategic partnerships with some of the biggest names in the gaming sector, Ubisoft, Bethesda, and Wargaming being some of them.

“Remember, the Playkey technology will allow advanced games to be run from weak and outdated computers or laptops,” the company stated while explaining the longevity of its business model. “After the ICO the Playkey operating model changes and switches to a P2P-format where any owner of a powerful PC can offer his “hardware” in a lease with gamers that have weak computers.”

The ICO of PlayKey’s PKT tokens is already live.

Overall, a favorable rating from a reputed agency like ICORating (which has been noted by Forbes and TechCrunch for its comprehensive analytical approach), certainly creates a positive buzz for PlayKey.

The post PlayKey Platform Declared Investment-Friendly by ICORating appeared first on NEWSBTC.

No SegWit2x Makes Bitcoin Cash Shine Amidst Crypto Bloodbath

Many traders expected altcoins to soar following the canceling of SegWit2x, but the entire market is down, with the exception of Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic and Dash.

Many traders expected altcoins to soar following the canceling of SegWit2x, but the entire market is down, with the exception of Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic and Dash.

Bitcoin Reaches End of An Era: Expert Blog – Cointelegraph (Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency and Blockchain News)

Cointelegraph (Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency and Blockchain News)Bitcoin Reaches End of An Era: Expert BlogCointelegraph (Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency and Blockchain News)Calling off 2MB blocks marks the end of a 3-year effort between different political groups i…


Cointelegraph (Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency and Blockchain News)

Bitcoin Reaches End of An Era: Expert Blog
Cointelegraph (Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency and Blockchain News)
Calling off 2MB blocks marks the end of a 3-year effort between different political groups inside Bitcoin trying to come to a compromise. Core developers may feel like they have won the battle, but a silent majority will leave quietly, selling their ...

and more »

Bitcoin Reaches End of An Era: Expert Blog

Expert predicts that the failure of SegWit2x averted an existential crisis, but will bring new players into market, usher in changes.

Expert predicts that the failure of SegWit2x averted an existential crisis, but will bring new players into market, usher in changes.

Bitcoin Gold Plans to Launch its Network on November 12

Bitcoin Gold Plans to Launch its Network on November 12The fork called “Bitcoin Gold” (BTG) has been quite the mystery since it announced its plans to fork the Bitcoin network and change the currency’s consensus algorithm. According to the team, the fork took place on October 25, and the network was supposed to start on November 1. However, BTG developers didn’t finish the project’s […]

The post Bitcoin Gold Plans to Launch its Network on November 12 appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Bitcoin Gold Plans to Launch its Network on November 12

The fork called “Bitcoin Gold” (BTG) has been quite the mystery since it announced its plans to fork the Bitcoin network and change the currency’s consensus algorithm. According to the team, the fork took place on October 25, and the network was supposed to start on November 1. However, BTG developers didn’t finish the project’s mainnet in time, and now the team says the network will launch on November 12, 2017, at 2 PM EDT.

Also read: Distributed Denial of Service Attack Greets Forked Bitcoin Gold on First Day

Bitcoin Gold Mainnet Plans to Launch 11 Days Late

Bitcoin Gold Plans to Launch its Network on November 12 According to the “Bitcoin Gold Community” mailer, the team plans to launch the BTG network this Sunday. The BTG team says a full node client will be available for download and the bitcoin gold blockchain will officially be live. Blocks can be mined by users and pools from all around the world explains the BTG announcement.

“Wallets and exchanges will be able to process deposits, withdrawals, and trades (as soon as they are ready). This is the culmination of months of hard work, which have led to many changes and improvements,” the BTG team details.

We are extremely grateful for the community around the world who have been contributing hash power to our testnets; besides patiently testing their own mining process.     

Codebase Changes and “Unofficial Bitcoin Gold Websites”

New protocol additions to the BTG codebase include the Equihash PoW change, Replay Protection, the difficulty-adjustment-algorithm (DAA), and a new address format. Additionally, the BTG team explains they are very grateful to all the “service providers” who’ve helped them build the BTG ecosystem. The team plans to update its mining documentation so BTG can be easily mined by anyone, and also assists service providers with more technical info. The BTG mailing list also provides a page of “unofficial” bitcoin gold websites and explains the team is not associated with these sites.

Bitcoin Gold Plans to Launch its Network on November 12
BTG futures are trading at prices between $160-260 depending on the exchange.

Ten Exchanges Are Swapping BTG Futures Markets

The cryptocurrency community is still skeptical about this fork and associated token. The pre-mine of BTG’s first blocks continues to be a controversial subject. Further, as far as wallet providers and exchanges there are not that many businesses that have announced supporting this particular fork. Right now there are ten exchanges swapping bitcoin gold futures according to Coinmarketcap data. Exchanges trading BTG futures include Bitfinex, Hitbtc, Coinnest, Binance, Yobit, Gate.io, and more. Bitcoin gold futures are trading at prices between $160-260 per BTG on these particular trading platforms.

What do you think about the bitcoin gold mainnet going live on Sunday, November 12? Let us know what you think in the comments below.


Images via Shutterstock, Coinmarketcap.com and the BTG website.


Tired of those other forums on the subject of Bitcoin? Check out forum.Bitcoin.com today!

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De-briefing Ethereum’s Parity Predicament: What’s Next?

After an unidentified actor “accidentally” triggered a series of bugs that destroyed approximately $150 million worth of digital currency, the world waits for a substantive answer — is this vulnerability an anomaly? An “I told you so”? Or a humbling…

De-briefing Ethereum’s Parity Predicament: What’s Next?

After an unidentified actor “accidentally” triggered a series of bugs that destroyed approximately $150 million worth of digital currency, the world waits for a substantive answer — is this vulnerability an anomaly? An “I told you so”? Or a humbling opportunity to secure the Ethereum network?

What Happened?

On November 6, “Devops199,” an alleged amateur programmer, set off a chain of bugs on Parity, a popular digital wallet for Ethereum. These bugs affected multisignature, or “multisig,” accounts — “wallets” that require multiple users to enter their keys before funds can be transferred. The place these wallets connect to is known as a “library” contract.

  1. According to Parity, an attempt to fix a vulnerability that allowed hackers to steal $32 million from multisignature wallets in July of 2017 inadvertently created a second vulnerability in the library contract. This allowed Devops199 to gain control of every multisignature wallet as a sole owner.

  2. After Devops199 realized what had happened, he “killed” (deleted) the code. Unfortunately, this locked all funds into multisignature wallets permanently, with no way to access them.

  3. Because of the functionality of the current blockchain, $150 million worth of ether (ETH), the tradable currency that fuels the Ethereum platform, is now effectively destroyed and inaccessible to anyone.

Among the victims of this bug are several recently successful ICOs that chose to store their funds in a Parity wallet because of its multisig option and compatibility with various hardware wallets.

Parity’s Response (So Far)

On November 7, tweets on Parity’s official Twitter account acknowledged the vulnerability and confirmed that the funds affected are frozen and can’t be moved anywhere.

A day later, on November 8, Parity de-briefed the bug, explaining that it was indeed possible to turn the Parity Wallet Library contract into a regular multisig wallet and become the owner of it, which is exactly what Devops199 did. Parity now has a tool to check if a user/wallet has been affected by the vulnerability.

Parity’s History of Hacks

This isn’t the first time Parity has fallen victim to a security exploit. Parity’s multisignature contracts were previously the target of three thefts totalling 150,000 ether in July of 2017 (the second-largest hack after the DAO fiasco). And losses could have been exponentially higher. However, the “White Hat Group,” a collection of hackers and activists, was able to intervene and drain the majority of other wallets before they could be compromised as well.

“Future multi-sig wallets created in all versions of Parity Wallet have no known exploits.”

Official Parity website post following the July 19 hack

Jeff Coleman, an expert in blockchain technologies and currently a researcher and advisor with L4 Ventures, described Parity’s response to the July 19, 2017, attack as “worrying, to say the least.”

Coleman told Bitcoin Magazine that his primary concerns centered around Parity’s immediate response and its tendency to downplay the significance of the compromise, choosing instead to blame a large number of external causes:

“They blamed observers for not finding the bug before it was exploited; they blamed lack of incentivization for observers; and they blamed the Solidity language for not blocking access by default to the functions the [Parity team] failed to protect.”

He further noted that Parity seemed to be blaming the complexity of the well-audited wallet (which they still believed to be secure) from which they had originally modified their code. And also that Parity didn’t take responsibility for their own inadequate quality control and audit procedures.

S.O.S.?

Developers in the community are desperately trying to find a fix to the Parity predicament. Coleman believes that “from a technological perspective, there is nothing short of a hard fork [a non-backward-compatible change to the Ethereum protocol] to restore the destroyed funds.”

After the DAO hack in 2016, the Ethereum Foundation had already accepted a hard fork to restore lost funds, with the common understanding that this was a sort of “mulligan” — a one-time fix for a young, developing blockchain. This scenario, nevertheless, divided the Ethereum blockchain into two parts and created Ethereum Classic, the original Ethereum blockchain, backed by a community that vehemently opposes editing transaction history to restore lost funds.

Using hard forks as interventions to “correct” worst-case scenarios like this is highly controversial, especially since blockchains are meant to be immutable. So, it’s difficult to convince the Ethereum community to use a hard fork to rescue one team from a mistake. While many acknowledge sympathy for smaller accounts storing personal ETH, sentiment is not as sympathetic for the 300,000 ETH that belonged to the Polkadot Project, a Parity initiative.

Arseny Reutov, an application security researcher for blockchain security firm positive.com, affirmed this community sentiment, while acknowledging that hard forks can be solutions. However, he agrees that Ethereum cannot simply hard fork any time there is a problem on the network. He believes blockchains should expect “more and more high profile thefts and incidents,” and that the problem lies in the infant Ethereum platform itself — specifically, in the native Solidity programming language.

If a Hard Fork Isn’t the Answer, Then What Is?

Both Coleman and Reutov believe that the key to gaining the community support necessary to restore funds is to combine the Parity situation with similar situations in which funds have been lost due to various kinds of mistakes. Coleman referenced those detailed in EIP 156: “Reclaiming of ether in common classes of stuck accounts,” for example.

Coleman also pointed out that in any of these instances, it must be “completely unambiguous who the original owners of the assets were.” The necessary changes could then be made and packaged together in an “already planned hard fork, such as the upcoming Constantinople fork.”

Even so, restoring funds is problematic. Ethereum core developers must discern which mistake-affected funds will be returned to users. Will all funds be returned or only a select few — or will this be a ~500,000 ETH learning experience?

The post De-briefing Ethereum’s Parity Predicament: What’s Next? appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

ICOs, Tiny IPOs, & OTC Securities, Oh My …

All early stage investing is risky and should be viewed through the same lens. Small IPOs, initial OTC listings, private equity/venture capital investments, crowdfunding, and even Initial Coin Offerings are all ways for early stage companies to raise c…

All early stage investing is risky and should be viewed through the same lens. Small IPOs, initial OTC listings, private equity/venture capital investments, crowdfunding, and even Initial Coin Offerings are all ways for early stage companies to raise capital. In each case, there is a large risk of failure that theoretically also carries large return potential. But none of these methods should tolerate fraud.

Bitcoin Price Analysis: Market Correction Could See Lows of $5,800

In our last discussion of the bitcoin market, an emphasis was placed on the $7,000 support level because it represented a historic point of interest and it showed strong signs of support — a break of which would ultimately prove to have a strong dow…

Bitcoin Price Analysis

In our last discussion of the bitcoin market, an emphasis was placed on the $7,000 support level because it represented a historic point of interest and it showed strong signs of support — a break of which would ultimately prove to have a strong downward move following afterward.

Bitcoin has since broken the $7,000 support level. It then took an immediate $500–$600 move downward and has, thus far, shown little interest in bouncing upward. Taking the whole move into view, we can see quite clearly that we completed a Wyckoff Distribution phase on the 30-minute candle; we are now heading downward as the supply is overwhelming the market:

Figure_1 (19).JPGFigure 1: BTC-USD, 30-Minute Candles, Wyckoff Distribution

Figure 1 shows a breakdown of the $7,000 support level, ultimately timed with the Last Point of Supply (LPSY) for this distribution phase. The LPSY represents the final, overwhelming abundance of supply in the market. As the price pushes lower, the supply outweighs the demand in the market and, as we are seeing in the current market, there is very little desire to buy at these prices.

Figure_2 (16).JPGFigure 2: BTC-USD, 1-Day Candles, Macro Parabolic Trend

Figure 2 shows the rejection of the linear ascending resistance line (shown in pink). This trendline has historically proven to be a point of reversal and, at the time of the article, is rejecting the trendline for the fourth time. If we follow the correction trend, we can expect an ultimate test of the lower parabolic curve that has proven to be support over the course of the last two years.

Figure_3 (15).JPGFigure 3: BTC-USD, 2-Hour Candles, Fibonacci Retracement Set

As predicted in the previous bitcoin analysis, we are currently finding support along the 23% Fibonacci Retracement values in the lower $6,500s. Historically, these values haven’t proven to be a significant market value, so I would not at all be surprised to see a test of the 38% values sometime soon. Figure 3 shows a lot of market activity and a well-established baseline of support in the 38% values. If the 23% values break and don’t hold support, we can definitely expect strong support in the 38% values that will require multiple tests if it tries to break the 38% support.

Summary:

  1. Bitcoin broke below the $7,000 support level and ultimately completed a Wyckoff Distribution phase.

  2. Prior to the breakdown in price, the market rejected the historic resistance line, which has signaled a strong reversal point throughout the market’s history.

  3. We are currently finding support on the 23% retracement values, but ultimately the stronger support will be found on the 38% values in the $5,800s.

Trading and investing in digital assets like bitcoin and ether is highly speculative and comes with many risks. This analysis is for informational purposes and should not be considered investment advice. Statements and financial information on Bitcoin Magazine and BTC Media related sites do not necessarily reflect the opinion of BTC Media and should not be construed as an endorsement or recommendation to buy, sell or hold. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.

The post Bitcoin Price Analysis: Market Correction Could See Lows of $5,800 appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.

Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi’s White Paper

Following the Segwit2x working group’s announcement to cancel the hard fork scheduled for next week, many shocked bitcoin proponents revealed their opinions on the web. Additionally, one of the administrators of Bitcoin.org, Theymos, wants the web portal’s recommended businesses such as wallet services and exchanges to pledge that “Bitcoin is not ruled by miners” or […]

The post Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi’s White Paper appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Following the Segwit2x working group’s announcement to cancel the hard fork scheduled for next week, many shocked bitcoin proponents revealed their opinions on the web. Additionally, one of the administrators of Bitcoin.org, Theymos, wants the web portal’s recommended businesses such as wallet services and exchanges to pledge that “Bitcoin is not ruled by miners” or otherwise be removed from the site’s link page.

Also read: XBT Provider Unveils Distribution Plan After Selling 44,471 Bitcoin Cash Coins

Bitcoin.org Wants Cryptocurrency Businesses to Make a Pledge or Take a “Bitcoin Basics” Course

Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi's White PaperThe Segwit2x hard fork has been canceled, but the drama is still not over. On November 8, the same day the Segwit2x working group made their announcement, Theymos, one of the administrators of Bitcoin.org declared a desire for bitcoin businesses to make a pledge. Theymos details that during the Segwit2x waiting period several companies declared that miners control bitcoin, and the Bitcoin.org administrator thinks this should be addressed.

“This belief is one of the most dangerous threats to bitcoin, since if most people think that, then bitcoin ends up controlled by only a handful of people — Although this issue is mentioned in a few places on Bitcoin.org, I’ve been thinking that Bitcoin.org should somehow act against this more than it is already,” explains the Github issue written by Theymos.

For example, maybe Bitcoin.org should require that wallets and services sign a very simple pledge that acknowledges that bitcoin is not ruled by miners in order to be linked from Bitcoin.org. Or Bitcoin.org could offer a free “bitcoin basics” online course and certification which would have as one of its main goals getting this concept through to people

Cobra Bitcoin: “We Seriously Need to Rewrite the White Paper”

Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi's White PaperAfter the issue was brought up by Theymos, bitcoin developer Luke Jr said there’s a different belief that developers control bitcoin. He thinks the primary focus should be that the “user or owner” of the coins should decide anything that could compromise their funds. Then the anonymous owner of Bitcoin.org, “Cobra Bitcoin,” explains his opinion of the situation and declares that Satoshi’s white paper needs to be revised.

“The white paper is to blame for all these dangerous beliefs — We seriously need to rewrite it, or produce a completely new white paper and call that the Bitcoin white paper,” details Cobra.

The whitepaper is probably the only vaguely “technical” document that many people in positions of power and influence have read, it’s what they base their understanding of Bitcoin on. And it’s very easy to misunderstand in subtle ways. It’s an extremely dangerous document for an ignorant person to read.

Bitcoin and Civic Duty

One particular quote from the white paper that Cobra disagrees with is this statement, published in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto:

“They vote with their CPU power, expressing their acceptance of valid blocks by working on extending them and rejecting invalid blocks by refusing to work on them. Any needed rules and incentives can be enforced with this consensus mechanism.”

Cobra says that when people read that statement, Satoshi is obviously talking about those who run “full nodes.” He believes that those who don’t understand bitcoin will believe miners decide on what is valid or invalid within the network’s consensus rules. Cobra goes on to detail that he’s all about giving people lessons and telling them they should be careful when updating software stating:   

I like the idea of offering a free basic course. Maybe it could be something as simple as an animated interactive experience that aims to teach Bitcoin users their civic duty?

Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi's White Paper
Bitmain’s Jihan Wu is curious about Theymos’ thought process.

Not the First Time the Bitcoin.org Owner Proposed Changing Satoshi’s White Paper

Of course, the statements were considered controversial across forums when Cobra discussed changing Satoshi’s intro to bitcoin and the meaning of the paper’s words. People take the issue seriously, because the website’s version of the paper is the first to pop up on popular browsers like Google.

Furthermore, it’s not the first time the owner of Bitcoin.org proposed revising Satoshi’s white paper as Cobra has been pushing the idea on Github back since 2016. At the time, the idea wasn’t favored as many Github developers expressed their dislike for the proposal that summer.  “Many dictatorships rewrite history to suit their political goals,” writes one individual opposed to the idea. Quite a few others have expressed their thoughts on the Github issue called Amendments to the Bitcoin paper #1325 that year.

Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi's White Paper

Adding more controversy to the subject, both Cobra and bitcoin Core developer Luke Jr have also been discussing changing bitcoin’s proof-of-work mechanism.  

Bitcoin.com would like our readers to know our web portal has always kept an archived version of the original Satoshi Nakamoto white paper here.

What do you think about the statements made by Theymos and Cobra? Do you think they have the right to alter Satoshi’s white paper? Let us know what you think in the comments below. 


Images via Pixabay, Github, Twitter, and Bitcoin.com


At Bitcoin.com there’s a bunch of free helpful services. For instance, check out our Tools page!

The post Bitcoin.org Owner Wants to Revise Satoshi’s White Paper appeared first on Bitcoin News.

Bee Token Begins Decentralized Future for Short-term Housing Rentals

thebeetokenBlockchain Powered Platform with Proven Business Model, Beenest Utilizes Bee Token Charging 0% Commission Returning Power Back to Hosts and Guests SAN FRANCISCO — NOVEMBER 10, 2017 — “Blockchain technology will disrupt many industries in the near future. We’re proud to announce that the Bee Token begins that disruption in the short-term housing rentals industry with the Beenest,” says CEO Jonathan Chou. With a team of engineering and product veterans from Google, Facebook and Uber, Bee Token is launching a blockchain powered platform that uses its coin as the platform currency. Beenest promises 0% commissions and aims to return power

thebeetoken

Blockchain Powered Platform with Proven Business Model, Beenest Utilizes Bee Token Charging 0% Commission Returning Power Back to Hosts and Guests

SAN FRANCISCO — NOVEMBER 10, 2017 — “Blockchain technology will disrupt many industries in the near future. We’re proud to announce that the Bee Token begins that disruption in the short-term housing rentals industry with the Beenest,” says CEO Jonathan Chou. With a team of engineering and product veterans from Google, Facebook and Uber, Bee Token is launching a blockchain powered platform that uses its coin as the platform currency. Beenest promises 0% commissions and aims to return power back to the hands of hosts and guests. Bee Token announced the launch of their presale on November 2nd and will continue its pre-offering until the end of the year.

Short-term housing rental, at its simplest, is when hosts list their homes and guests book these homes. While industry incumbents such as Airbnb and HomeAway provide value as intermediaries to facilitate transactions, it’s undeniable that the hosts and guests are what make short-term housing rental a reality. However, a deeper look reveals that the value of these platforms’ success is unfairly distributed to a select few, while the costs of the platforms’ shortcomings and risks fall upon the hosts and guests.

Industry incumbents such as Airbnb and HomeAway act as trusted intermediaries by charging a commission and becoming responsible for the trust and security of their users. Because the primary form of asset sharing between host and guest is real estate, identity validation and payment verification is paramount. However, increasing reports of security breaches such as the Equifax Breach compromising identity information of 145 million US citizens, and review manipulation on these platforms raises serious questions about whether proper due diligence is being conducted. Furthermore, during times of non-crisis, these platforms charge a commission of up to 22% — money that is mainly given to the company and financial institutions.

Beenest removes the complexities of intermediaries and simplifies the equation. Beenest is a decentralized short-term housing rental platform that combines the competitive advantages of blockchain and smart contracts with the proven business model of industry incumbents. Through its Bee Token cryptocurrency, Beenest is able to prioritize the needs of hosts and guests.

Bee Token is following a non-traditional route by holding a token offering; distributing 50% of its Bee Tokens, opening the opportunity for hosts and guests to become a part of the platform and grow along with its success starting day one. A particularly novel feature – Beenest employs transparent practices by ensuring reviews are immutable and stored on the blockchain. Furthermore, Beenest adds additional layers of security through a KYC (Know Your Customer) identity verification processes that are standard in financial institutions. Lastly, through Smart Contracts, Beenest eliminates unnecessary overhead and processes, delivering on our 0% commission to hosts and guests.

Blockchain is expected to revolutionize many industries, and the Bee Token is poised to be the trailblazer of the revolution in the short-term housing rental industry. Beginning with the launch of the presale, Beenest begins the journey of prioritizing the needs of hosts and guests with many exciting developments along the way. Learn more on our website and follow us on Telegram, Twitter, Facebook, and Medium.

USEFUL LINKS

Website:  https://www.thebeetoken.com/

Whitepaper:  https://www.thebeetoken.com/whitepaper

Telegram:  https://t.me/beetoken

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/thebeetoken

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/thebeetoken

Medium:  https://medium.com/@thebeetoken

ABOUT BEE TOKEN

A team of engineering and product veterans from Google, Facebook and Uber are revolutionizing short-term housing rentals. Beenest is a blockchain powered platform that utilizes the Bee Token charging 0% commission, and giving power back to hosts and guests. For more information, please refer to our website.

MEDIA CONTACT

Dan Grody

Tellem Grody PR

310-313-3444 x3

[email protected]

This is a sponsored press release and does not necessarily reflect the opinions or views held by any employees of The Merkle. This is not investment, trading, or gambling advice. Always conduct your own independent research.

Sensationalized Crypto News Coverage Will Pass, With Your Help

newspaper media outletsCryptocurrency is fast-paced, volatile, and not for the faint of heart. Forks, suspended forks, and massive code bugs can all happen within literal weeks of one another. Such developments can feel overwhelming, and may make the space look unattractive to many. However, before both crypto-enthusiasts and skeptics cast judgement on the crypto space, it may be worth noting that such chaos is not unique to crypto. At. All. Flaws in this sector Make Great Headlines Sensationalist headlines grab clicks and reads. Naturally, those are amplified when the subject matter is something much of the traditional media enjoys ridiculing or spreading FUD about like cryptocurrency. Specifically, I

newspaper media outlets

Cryptocurrency is fast-paced, volatile, and not for the faint of heart. Forks, suspended forks, and massive code bugs can all happen within literal weeks of one another. Such developments can feel overwhelming, and may make the space look unattractive to many. However, before both crypto-enthusiasts and skeptics cast judgement on the crypto space, it may be worth noting that such chaos is not unique to crypto. At. All.

Flaws in this sector Make Great Headlines

Sensationalist headlines grab clicks and reads. Naturally, those are amplified when the subject matter is something much of the traditional media enjoys ridiculing or spreading FUD about like cryptocurrency.

Specifically, I want to focus on the Parity bug that was recently revealed. Already, news outlets have picked this story up, and the narrative that cryptocurrency isn’t safe is gaining a lot of steam. Do not mistake me, this is a huge bug that needs proper attention to fix, but we cannot immediately point to this as “proof” that cryptos are unsafe.

When faced with the flaws inherent in a new and disruptive system, we need to keep in mind that our traditional, familiar systems experience these and worse problems even more frequently. Whether or not their frequency is due to wider adoption is up for debate; however, the shortcomings themselves cannot be denied.

For example, there have been multiple instances this year alone of poor paper trails leading to losses in the traditional sector. One that I find particularly chuckle-worthy is the disappearance of some student loans. As paperwork goes missing, so too does any record of loans outstanding or even being issued. The same has happened with titles in the past, and just money in general. This is not unique to crypto.

Bad actors also operate outside the crypto space, despite what some press reports may lead you to believe. Some of the first monetary attackers were known as thieves. Surprisingly, they got their start outside of the cryptocurrency space (please forgive my sarcasm).

However, cryptocurrency is not the first disruptive technology to have received a bad rap from the media. Not 25 years ago, the Internet was just getting started. While it still is sensationalized, it has largely shaken its reputation as a place solely for antisocial people. That media trope flared up during the dotcom bubble burst, but has since largely subsided.

What I am hoping to impart here is that cryptocurrency is new, and certainly flawed in some respects – so is everything else. More importantly, as crypto remains in the spotlight longer, it will receive less negative attention. So while today’s mainstream media seems to heavily favor publishing negative stories about cryptocurrency, we should not assume that is how it will always be.

Moreover, the onus of propagating a more favorable light for cryptocurrency in the media falls party on the community. We need to be vocally critical of sources bemoaning the use of cryptocurrency or those that only publish the negative aspects of this new form of money. Furthermore, we must engage with members of our own community with whom we may disagree in a constructive and productive matter.

Bitcoin Cash Up As Original Chain’s Price Recedes

The fork of Bitcoin from August 2017 known as Bitcoin Cash (BCH) surged over 30% on Friday according to industry price analysts at Coinmarketcap. This corresponded with a marked drop in the price of the original Bitcoin’s (BTC) price to its lowest point since the start of November. Analysts are attributing the redistribution to the … Continue reading Bitcoin Cash Up As Original Chain’s Price Recedes

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The fork of Bitcoin from August 2017 known as Bitcoin Cash (BCH) surged over 30% on Friday according to industry price analysts at Coinmarketcap. This corresponded with a marked drop in the price of the original Bitcoin’s (BTC) price to its lowest point since the start of November. Analysts are attributing the redistribution to the failed Segwit2x fork which was scheduled later this month. However, interestingly there seems a lack of consensus as to why traders are moving from BTC to BCH.

Some believe that it’s simply a matter of those traders who were holding Bitcoin to receive a dividend of new coins like what happened in August selling and moving back into various altcoins. Looking at the sea of green over Coinmarketcap immediately following the decision would suggest there’s a fair bit of truth in their opinion too. For them, part of the huge run up in price was caused by people buying in to get free coins. Now that there are no new coins, the money is flowing elsewhere. Chris Burniske, author of Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor’s Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond believes this to be the case. He told CNBC:

You can see people playing back and forth between bitcoin and bitcoin cash trading depending on where they think near-term catalysts may be. It’s been a battle of investors versus traders that were stockpiling bitcoin to get their ‘bitcoin2x dividend’.

However, not all see it like this. There are some analysts who interpret the shift towards Bitcoin Cash as a belief in that version of the code, rather than the original – known in the industry as Bitcoin Core. For proponents of BCH like Roger Ver, the use of bigger blocks as a scaling method are closer to Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision. Second layer scaling solutions like Segwit are not in line with the whitepaper which the mysterious Nakamoto published before disappearing early in the life of Bitcoin.

For those like director of XTB, Joshua Raymond, Segwit2x was an important step towards scaling the chain to be able to handle more transactions per second. More pragmatic than many of the hard coding, computer science-orientation anti-Segwit2x crowd, Raymond told Business Insider:

Everyone was hoping the Segwit2x would address this [transaction cost and time] but unfortunately, the delay due to a lack of consensus on the mechanics has affected confidence. Confidence on transaction speed in Bitcoin has deteriorated significantly in recent months. As Bitcoin Cash enjoys much faster transaction speeds, we have started to see a recycling of positions out of Bitcoin into Bitcoin Cash as a consequence.

For now, it’s unclear which interpretation of the numbers holds most truth. However, what is curious is that today, many alt coins like ETH and NEO are in the red as Bitcoin Cash moves higher. This casts doubt over the thesis that Bitcoin’s decline is simply down to people selling their BTC positions because there’s no longer a free dividend up for grabs. The negative growth of the rest of the market combined with the speed that BCH is rising suggests something more monumental might be afoot.

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