Thoughts?
Proxy = single point of failure.
1)Proxys of other pool clusters seem like a good target to DDoS to me...
2Also connecting to that proxy with as many (forged/fake) clients as possible and just dropping block announcements silently might also work (and be a bit more subtle) - should also highly increase your pool's chances of winning a "block's race".
3Thirdly, non-proportional pools all don't need this Voodoo (so they would be far better connected to the network --> better chances at block solves!), and there are not that many "groups of 3 and 4" pools left for such stuff... thanks to the hoppers!
No, because it would be a private proxy, where only 2 or 3 pools have their bitcoind connected.
1) You can still DDoS their bitcoind now. Just because groups of 2 or 3 pools join together doesnt change the game much.
2)
You could not connect, it would be a private proxy only used by the bitcoind of the selected pools. Read too quick. I think if someone did something like this, it would be considered spam and some measure would be taken to avoid those clients or IP's.
3) Whats your beef against proportional pools?
1) By DDoSing the proxy you delay 2-3 pools instead of just one. This means it is 2-3 times more effective.
2) You cannot avoid clients (it is just a protocol, any information about cients in there can be faked). Avoiding them will be hard, as there is no way to check if a client has forwarded a block or not (and if there was a request, it would of course be answered "true" by the fake client). This is the exact opposite of spam by the way...
3) They offer 0 advantages over other payout systems, are however possible to be hopped, which only increases the income of hoppers and pool owners. Countermeasures lead to worse and worse transparency and services of the pool operator - again only at the benefit that the payout system stays the same (broken) one as before and you don't have to explain something new to your miners but boast about your "great service" of "fighting hoppers" (and of course there's the benefit for the pool operator that cheating gets easier for him + the income is increased by hoppers who DO work like everyone else, just not 24/7).
Such a proxy as you suggest would add 1 additional hop and need to relay ALL bitcoin related traffic for several pools... Yes, it would be a more interesting challenge to hop these pools then individually, but in the end you could just split your hash rate between all pools if it is just 2-3 pools behind this proxy. 14% increased earnings are still better then nothing, right?
If there would be a pool that is bigger than the other, then you could even weigh the splitting accordingly.
By the way, I like to get my burgers at that time of the day when they have special deals and offer them cheaper... and some people like to bitch that the normal price is higher and they always buy it at these prices!
Right now they swipe your credit card and tell you an hour later how much it did cost.