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Topic: 2013-11-19 - BBC.co.uk - 'Legitimate' Bitcoin's value soars after Senate hearing (Read 1005 times)

legendary
Activity: 3430
Merit: 3080
the info box on 'HOW BITCOINS WORK' is absolutely terrible I think!

Quote
HOW BITCOINS WORK

Bitcoin is often referred to as a new kind of currency.

But it may be best to think of its units as being virtual tokens rather than physical coins or notes.

However, like all currencies its value is determined by what people are willing to exchange it for.

Each of the 11 million Bitcoins currently in existence is represented by a unique online registration number.

These numbers are created through a process called "mining" which involves a computer solving a difficult mathematical problem with a 64-digit solution.

Each time a problem is solved the computer's owner is rewarded with 25 Bitcoins.

To compensate for the growing power of computer chips, the difficulty of the puzzles is adjusted to ensure a steady stream of about 3,600 new Bitcoins a day.

To receive a Bitcoin a user must also have a Bitcoin address - a randomly generated string of 27-34 letters and numbers - which acts as a kind of virtual postbox to and from which the Bitcoins are sent.

Since there is no registry of these addresses, people can use them to protect their anonymity when making a transaction.

These addresses are in turn stored in Bitcoin wallets which are used to manage savings. They operate like privately run bank accounts - with the proviso that if the data is lost, so are the Bitcoins contained

I spotted this yesterday scouring for Congressional coverage. The bolded trolling part was included twice on the version I read, almost like the author had to get it in, but couldn't decide where to put it. "Right at the start" appears to be the MI5 BofE BBC editorial decision.

I wonder if the writers also trolls right here on Bitcointalk?



sr. member
Activity: 272
Merit: 250
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24986264

Reasonable article but the info box on 'HOW BITCOINS WORK' is absolutely terrible I think!
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