Bitcoin mining

[Jintan]

I am setting up a nice board/processor with a 4Gb GPU and installing NiceHash. Thinking about just sharing cloud bandwidth at first to earn some coin percentage. Test things out. No plans for an ASIC device - too much money for just playing around.

Find it odd that I can't entirely explain clearly to some computer knowledgeable friends what mining is. Read quite a few variations on the gold mining analogy. You dedicate not inexpensive hardware, bandwidth and power to do work that basically produces nothing, and get paid for it. In money that only exists because too many people have invested too much and want it to exist?

[Mr Bean]

Tell me more.

I'm all ears.

What's the return?

[Jaytee]

I am more than a little cynical of a currency that is used primarily on the dark web.
You get the bit coin fractions by letting your machine do data mining. I no likee...

[Jintan]

Shoot, Bitcoins are big biz, and definitely not part of the dark web. Feel free to start a thread about the dark web though. Never seen it discussed here. Think I used Tor browser to check it out.

No no amigo Beano, this ain't "Takes the pebbles from my hand grasshopper" teaching time.

I am just at the starting point, so not someone that can provide info. But I can talk my way through it here as I go.

You need a good processor and at least gamer GPU's for starters. And install some mining software, like you can get from NiceHash, and an hashed address from your Bit wallet (a website).

I installed NiceHash on my regular desktop just to try it out. No device found. Nice enough computer, but onboard graphics and just nothing NiceHash would use for mining. Got a nicer board/gpu setup now. Try Hash on it likely tomorrow.

First went to BitGo to create a wallet (an online Bitcoin bank account). Holy Mazolly Batman! The security at that site is ungodly. Need to have a smart phone and install Google Actuator on it, then have your camera on your phone scan a bar code that the BitGo website shows you. the Actuator shows you two 3 digit numbers, and you type them in on the website.

Nothing tells you the two 3 digits change every 10 seconds, and you have to type in the numbers showing right then on your phone. Then it provides you with a security .pdf file, tells you to print it, and keep that copy in a bank safe deposit box. Rejected every password I could think of as too vulnerable. Snuck out the door and bid that site adieu.

Friend sent me to BlockChain Wallet, and I'll likely use it. Went to the bar a while ago and the same friend ordered and had pizza delivered to the bar using bitcoins from his wallet. Not a bad racket for money that doesn't exist paid by work that produces nothing.

[Jaytee]

Enjoy it while you can Tom...
Newsflash:
The two largest dark web markets, Hansa (left) and AlphaBay (right), have been shut down.
Payment methods mainly bitcoin

[Jintan]

Surfed the dark a few times. Boring. Bunch of sales and a lo of spam.

Finished setting up my first board. NiceHash apparently about sharing bandwidth with miner's (cloud), so I'll try that first. Have to buy NiceHash software to do mining.

[Jaytee]

Originally Posted by Jintan

so I'll try that first. Have to buy NiceHash software to do mining.

Why not get FREE software?
[Search domain en.bitcoin.it] https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Open_Sour..._Bitcoin_Miner

[Jintan]

Spent the day cloud sharing, or at least the board spent the day doing that. Earning about 5 cents a day. Spending 8 cents or more in electricity.

[Jaytee]

Looks like an amazing impending financial success.

[Jintan]

Actually only 4 cents. Darn.

That link you posted John is for FPGA devices, which were the second step in bitcoin mining.

First was computers with latest processors, and eventually they learned gaming graphics cards were important.

Then FPGA boards/devices.

And the latest, and most expensive, is ASIC devices.

Check the bottom of this page. On that list:

TerraHash DX Large (full) 180 Gh/s 7.11 W/Gh $10500.0

On that page it says Bitcoin mining is difficult to do profitably. 10 thou USD, for one device? Of course it's large, and full too (large and full of hoobly gook).

[Jaytee]

Cheers for that Tom. My point was that there is a strong likelihood that you can get the software you need without the need to pay for it. We did have a guy give us all the ins and outs on bitcoin earning and all a couple of years ago but most of that information has now evaporated into the "senior moment" part of my decreasing brain....

[Jaytee]

Hmmn! Things have changed quiet a bit in the last little while.
Anyone got a spare ten grand so I can earn 24 cents a day??

[Jintan]

Let's head over to the beer thread, where we can share brew stories, make fun of Trump and goobers who quit drinking for a month.

I'll still mess with this bitcoin stuff for a while, but just messing around.

[Jaytee]

That's a good idea but I still need to wait 5 days for a few beers

[Jintan]

That's actually a good idea. Let me try it