Silk Road forums

Discussion => Newbie discussion => Topic started by: Glassius Maximus on September 28, 2013, 12:26 am

Title: Greetings
Post by: Glassius Maximus on September 28, 2013, 12:26 am
I'm one of the newest newbs here, and I'm curious about a couple of things. First off, I'm a glassblower looking to sell some of my handmade "tobacco accessories" on the SR, but I didn't see any way to register as a vendor. Is it required to get past the "newb" status here first, or did I miss something on registration?

Also, I'm new to the Bitcoin market. I've looked into trying to understand the Bitcoin market, but I still don't really understand how it works. I've seen some places saying it's anonymous, and others saying that each transaction is on public record and you need multiple "wallets" for different transactions and such. It's very confusing, and I was hoping someone could point me to a definitive answer. It would be much appreciated, thanks.
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: kilroy on September 28, 2013, 12:59 am
Bitcoins are generated by solving a very hard maths problem. For that, a lot of computing power is needed. That's why it is not easy money! The bitcoin "miners" try to solve this math problem before any other miners do. Whoever solves it first get 25 BTC. Then, it starts all over again, each cycle taking approximately 10 mins. That's how BTC are created and will continue to be created until all BTCs are finally released, approximately 21 million BTCs. It will take many years for that to happen.
BTC transactions are based on private-public keys, also know as public key cryptography. Every time you create a wallet a new Key-pair is created and only you know your private key, like a new bank account. You don't "have to" create a wallet for each transaction, technically speaking. It is like having all transactions you do be deposited in the same bank account all the time. As it is easy to create new wallets, you should do it in order to increase security even more. It is very, very unlikely that someone will be able to find out your private key by brute-force, but keep that key in a safe place.
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: SmokesHisBroccoli on September 28, 2013, 01:06 am
Hey welcome to SR!  So to answer your first question, all you need to do is go on SR and create an account if you haven't already.  Click on your account link at the top of the page where it shows how much bitcoin is in your account.  When you do, on the right side of the page will be a link that says "become a seller."  Just click that and I'm sure it'll walk you through the rest of the process. 

And to answer your second question (perhaps somewhat briefly), bitcoin is anonymous to a certain degree.  It's true that every transaction is a public recorded that can be downloaded via what's called the block chain.  Whenever a bitcoin is sent from one address to another a public record of that transaction is added and confirmed on the block chain and will be there forever.  In order to be anonymous on here, you want to ensure you are getting bitcoin in the most anonymous of ways and that is cash.  For example, there is a site localbitcoins.com where you can meet people in your area that have bitcoins and setup a meeting with them so you can hand them cash and they'll send you bitcoins.  That would be the best way to go about getting them. 

The worst ways are through bitcoin exchanges or other services where you have to provide ID and proof of who you are in order to secure your bitcoin.  There's always a possibility of those bitcoins being traced back to you so avoid this method. 

And all a wallet is is just a place to store your bitcoins.  A wallet will have a bitcoin address attached to it which is just a series of letters and numbers.  That series of letters and numbers is important because it's the bitcoin address that you send bitcoins to/from.  On the site blockchain.info you can setup a free wallet and use it to store your bitcoins.  There are many other sites for wallets, but this is what I recommend. 
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: IForgotMyFuckingPassword on September 28, 2013, 01:08 am
Quote
but I didn't see any way to register as a vendor.
I'm not logged into SR, but there used to be a link on the main page (welcome) for opening a vendor account. You have to put down an deposit; it's not free.

Quote
I'm new to the Bitcoin market
If you google it, there's a bitcoin wiki. If you want to buy coins, try localbitcoins.com. As for anonymity, I can't advise you. It all depends on what you do. Some of us are more anonymous than others. Don't use usernames on here, SR, bitcoin exchanges, etc. that you use for other sites (Like not your email and IM names for example). That's my first piece of advice.

Oh, and don't give personal information about yourself in the forums. They are indexed by google and can be searched by LE.
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: cryngie on September 28, 2013, 01:14 am
It doesnt matter where you buy them I use an exchange as localbitcoins is useless where i am but I do tumble them through blockchain before sending the to SR thus making it virtually impossible to track to the purchase
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: Glassius Maximus on September 28, 2013, 04:30 am
Thanks for the help clarifying the Bitcoin info. I tried mining but my rig is old and none of the miners were working on it. Then I tried Bitcoin Plus in my browser, but 0.00000016 Bitcoin every 2 hours is a joke. Didn't realize there was a deposit required for a vendor account, but it makes sense, and I imagine it keeps the scammers at bay. I hadn't planned on actually buying Bitcoins, I was hoping to sell pipes for Bitcoins and turn around and buy some ganja for personal use. I guess I'll have to buy some to get the ball rolling.

I have a couple of last questions regarding the community. Is trading or asking to trade my products for someone elses products frowned upon? Is it strictly a Bitcoin economy? I don't want to get off on the wrong foot, or piss anyone off by asking. Thanks again for the help.
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: yabbadabbadoo on September 28, 2013, 05:15 am
I have a couple of last questions regarding the community. Is trading or asking to trade my products for someone elses products frowned upon? Is it strictly a Bitcoin economy? I don't want to get off on the wrong foot, or piss anyone off by asking. Thanks again for the help.
Don't quote me on this but all transactions are suppose to go through SR Escrow to help support the community.  Its forbidden to do transactions out of SR Escrow and I've never noticed any trade options when purchasing.  More than likely it would be a difficult feature to implement and honestly probably wouldn't be used often.  The idea of both trading partners having sensitive information(addresses) of each other would make some situations a little scary.

Bitcoins only, its pretty easy once you get the hang of it.  Localbitcoins with a cash deposit at a major bank has been my go to route, and is pretty popular in the community.

Welcome, enjoy your stay!
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: boge on September 28, 2013, 05:32 am
These questions are greatly appreciated.  I'm new as well and want to start off with the most knowledge as possible.  Still wrapping my head around the whole bitcoin community.  I feel like I've been asleep the the last 50 years and woke up to a futuristic society.  So much to figure out and learn.
Title: Re: Greetings
Post by: Glassius Maximus on September 28, 2013, 06:08 am
Just found the vendor section. Didn't see it on the welcome page, had to go into my account to find the option. Looks like the bond is going to be to pricey for me to start a vendor account any time soon unfortunately. It's too bad I can't trade my stuff for other stuff either as I was hoping to avoid Bitcoins altogether, but I completely understand the reasons why it's bad, and will abide by the rules of the community. Appreciate the help.