Such a brilliant mind, rest in peace.
Hal Finney (4 May 1956 - 28 August 2014)
First Bitcoin recipient - 1HLoD9E4SDFFPDiYfNYnkBLQ85Y51J3Zb1
Topic: Bitcoin and me (Hal Finney) - page 5. (Read 280256 times)
I do believe everything is a set up a nice lie ... ladies and gentlemans. 
You can believe everything you read but the truth is other.
Cannot even imagine what money make a human do.
You can believe everything you read but the truth is other.
Cannot even imagine what money make a human do.
Who is login in with your account ? 2017 last seen ?
Of course, that login would not have been the actual real life Hal.. There does not seem to be any dispute that Hal died in August 2014, which would have been within the same month of any last known posts from him through the account linked to OP of this thread and about a year and a half or so after posting OP..
I recall hearing that there had been some activity from Hal's account or something like that, and the forum had locked/or blocked Hal's account sometime after there had been activity on the account.. and maybe that was the March 2017 - or so activity that shows up on the account? I cannot recall the details at this time, as I type - or maybe I am getting him mixed up with some other member.. Sometimes forum accounts do get hacked into, too.
Most likely his son, Jason.
Heads up!!!
Who is login in with your account ? 2017 last seen ?
Of course, that login would not have been the actual real life Hal.. There does not seem to be any dispute that Hal died in August 2014, which would have been within the same month of any last known posts from him through the account linked to OP of this thread and about a year and a half or so after posting OP..
I recall hearing that there had been some activity from Hal's account or something like that, and the forum had locked/or blocked Hal's account sometime after there had been activity on the account.. and maybe that was the March 2017 - or so activity that shows up on the account? I cannot recall the details at this time, as I type - or maybe I am getting him mixed up with some other member.. Sometimes forum accounts do get hacked into, too.
Very interesting and encouraging story i never heard or even read before,just now when i suddenly read with a little bit curious about the subject. Very inspiring story in crypto space specially in bitcoin. I think,i feel like i am in the beginning of bitcoin although it was already 12years past if i'm not mistaken when bitcoin was created by Satoshi nakamoto. This story tells us how great and valuable the bitcoin now.
Finally came back to my account I created years back to read about Hal, Satoshi and learn about Cryptography and it's beginnings from when I joined the "space", just to comment here and say I'm glad he found Satoshi and was able to have a say in it's foundations.
From what I can find, read about and learn about Hal he was a clever and technology pushing guy.
"Currently I'm working on something Mike Hearn suggested, using the security features of modern processors, designed to support "Trusted Computing", to harden Bitcoin wallets. It's almost ready to release. I just have to do the documentation."
I love this sentence and fully feel that the team or project that can tap into this will be a phenomenal asset to blockchain protocols forevermore.
Rest up Hal, cheers for all the work.
From what I can find, read about and learn about Hal he was a clever and technology pushing guy.
"Currently I'm working on something Mike Hearn suggested, using the security features of modern processors, designed to support "Trusted Computing", to harden Bitcoin wallets. It's almost ready to release. I just have to do the documentation."
I love this sentence and fully feel that the team or project that can tap into this will be a phenomenal asset to blockchain protocols forevermore.
Rest up Hal, cheers for all the work.
this one of a good story i read so far about crypto here in bitcointalk
im already sick of reading about Craig wright story
its just good to see this kind of story from time to time.
im already sick of reading about Craig wright story
its just good to see this kind of story from time to time.
Hal Finney is a Bitcoin leyend. May he resurrect in the future with a bioengineered, tall, strong body in the future. If cryogenics is a success in a couple of decades (or centuries.. or thousands of years) I wonder how high the BTC will be by then. If Hal is still holding his coins, he will be the richest man on earth.
Dedicating the beauty of 2020 to Hal Finney:
2020 is a beautiful number because:
o 2020 = 2^2 * 5 * 101
o 2020 = 16^2 + 42^2
o 2020 = 24^2 + 38^2
o 2020 = 2^11 - 28
o 2020 = 10 x 9 x 8 + (7 + 6) x 5 x 4 x (3 + 2) x 1 [Acknowledgement: Mikko / Finland]
o 2020 = (1 + 1) × (11111 − 1)/11 [Ack/start: Prof Taneja]
o 2020 = 2 × (2 × (222 + 22) − 2)
o 2020 = 3 + (3 + 3) × (333 + 3) + 3/3
o 2020 = 4 + (4 + 4) × (44 − 4)
o 2020 = 55 + 55 × (5 − 5 × 5) − 5
o 2020 = (6 − 6/6 )× ((6 + 6)/6 + 6 × 66 + 6)
o 2020 = 77/7 + 7 × (7 × (7 × 7 − 7) − 7)
o 2020 = (8 × (8 × 8 × 8 −
+ × 8/(8 +
o 2020 = (9 + 9) × (99/9 + 999)/9 = 2020 [Ack/end: Prof Taneja]
o 2020 = ((10 x 9 x 8 x 7 x6)/5+(4 x 3))/(2+1) [Ack: Chris & Colin)
o Q(-2020^0.5) = 8 [relating to ring of integers]
For those of us who are nuts about 2020, check out Prof Taneja's paper titled "2020 in Numbers: Mathematical Style" here: http://[Suspicious link removed]/20p2h
Blessed and Happy New Year to all!
2020 is a beautiful number because:
o 2020 = 2^2 * 5 * 101
o 2020 = 16^2 + 42^2
o 2020 = 24^2 + 38^2
o 2020 = 2^11 - 28
o 2020 = 10 x 9 x 8 + (7 + 6) x 5 x 4 x (3 + 2) x 1 [Acknowledgement: Mikko / Finland]
o 2020 = (1 + 1) × (11111 − 1)/11 [Ack/start: Prof Taneja]
o 2020 = 2 × (2 × (222 + 22) − 2)
o 2020 = 3 + (3 + 3) × (333 + 3) + 3/3
o 2020 = 4 + (4 + 4) × (44 − 4)
o 2020 = 55 + 55 × (5 − 5 × 5) − 5
o 2020 = (6 − 6/6 )× ((6 + 6)/6 + 6 × 66 + 6)
o 2020 = 77/7 + 7 × (7 × (7 × 7 − 7) − 7)
o 2020 = (8 × (8 × 8 × 8 −
+ × 8/(8 + o 2020 = (9 + 9) × (99/9 + 999)/9 = 2020 [Ack/end: Prof Taneja]
o 2020 = ((10 x 9 x 8 x 7 x6)/5+(4 x 3))/(2+1) [Ack: Chris & Colin)
o Q(-2020^0.5) = 8 [relating to ring of integers]
For those of us who are nuts about 2020, check out Prof Taneja's paper titled "2020 in Numbers: Mathematical Style" here: http://[Suspicious link removed]/20p2h
Blessed and Happy New Year to all!
There was an estimate in the low 4 figures in BTC. So anywhere from a thousand to a few thousand BTC. In USD, that would be between $9m to $18m today. If the family cashed it all out in 2018, even at $5k, that would imply at least $5m USD.
If that were all invested and the family stuck to a 4% SWR, that means $200k per year and it would last 30 years. If they didn't need the money, then it would last forever.
He said he mined solo a few blocks a day. If he mined 10 blocks a day for 10 days, that's 5000 BTC. We don't know the exact numbers, but the other guys were able to buy pizza for 10k BTC.
If that were all invested and the family stuck to a 4% SWR, that means $200k per year and it would last 30 years. If they didn't need the money, then it would last forever.
He said he mined solo a few blocks a day. If he mined 10 blocks a day for 10 days, that's 5000 BTC. We don't know the exact numbers, but the other guys were able to buy pizza for 10k BTC.
I learned a lot from here, this story is very inspiring and I do it in my life too, sometimes maybe a lot of people out there forget to teach people nearby whether it's children or their families about bitcoin and crypto currencies, at least when we leave them someday they are able to access the inheritance that we hold and are not really carried away by us
Didn't some of Hal's family members sell some of his coins last year? I don't remember the details but an address that was used in the first few BTC transactions ever ( sometime in 2009) made a transaction to an exchange sometime in 2018.
I don't have time now to do the analysis but from what I remember it was a small sum. Will try and search for the thread, it was posted somewhere in this section.
At first people were freaking out that he is alive but then we realized that it must be some of his family members.
I don't have time now to do the analysis but from what I remember it was a small sum. Will try and search for the thread, it was posted somewhere in this section.
At first people were freaking out that he is alive but then we realized that it must be some of his family members.
I've been around to have read this when it first came out, all the way to when he got into cryo / frozen thing. His heirs should be set for life if they just manage the coins properly, or at least add to what they should be otherwise doing normally without it; even if they get it all out now, keep it as fiat with no interest, they'd all have enough for the next 20 to 30 years. If they invest it conservatively, it should last forever.
Hal is a legend.
I was always curious too if he might have stashed some keys for his own future upon a possible revival? And specifically how he would have gone about that.
I've been around to have read this when it first came out, all the way to when he got into cryo / frozen thing. His heirs should be set for life if they just manage the coins properly, or at least add to what they should be otherwise doing normally without it; even if they get it all out now, keep it as fiat with no interest, they'd all have enough for the next 20 to 30 years. If they invest it conservatively, it should last forever.
We're honored to be in the ranks of this forum and send nothing but love and gratitude to Hal for what he helped create. Thank you Hal.
Glad to hear your story. Very inspiring and many lessons that we can learn from your story. You are a lucky person to get to know Bitcoin at the very beginning of its appearance. May you always be given health until this moment. We crypto users are also pleased with the growing Bitcoin, day by day. Bitcoin adoption throughout the world is increasing, and it is only necessary to wait for time until Bitcoin is used by the majority of people in the world as the best alternative transaction.
Many thanks to you for discussing such a beautiful topic. Have presented the information in a simple way. Many have been beautiful.
An impressive story, thanks for the work done, we hope it was not in vain
Oh wow, I just read this for the first time. I see it everyday but never clicked on it. R.I.P. Hal Finney. You made one of the greatest contributions to mankind.
I thought I'd write about the last four years, an eventful time for Bitcoin and me.
For those who don't know me, I'm Hal Finney. I got my start in crypto working on an early version of PGP, working closely with Phil Zimmermann. When Phil decided to start PGP Corporation, I was one of the first hires. I would work on PGP until my retirement. At the same time, I got involved with the Cypherpunks. I ran the first cryptographically based anonymous remailer, among other activities.
Fast forward to late 2008 and the announcement of Bitcoin. I've noticed that cryptographic graybeards (I was in my mid 50's) tend to get cynical. I was more idealistic; I have always loved crypto, the mystery and the paradox of it.
When Satoshi announced Bitcoin on the cryptography mailing list, he got a skeptical reception at best. Cryptographers have seen too many grand schemes by clueless noobs. They tend to have a knee jerk reaction.
I was more positive. I had long been interested in cryptographic payment schemes. Plus I was lucky enough to meet and extensively correspond with both Wei Dai and Nick Szabo, generally acknowledged to have created ideas that would be realized with Bitcoin. I had made an attempt to create my own proof of work based currency, called RPOW. So I found Bitcoin facinating.
When Satoshi announced the first release of the software, I grabbed it right away. I think I was the first person besides Satoshi to run bitcoin. I mined block 70-something, and I was the recipient of the first bitcoin transaction, when Satoshi sent ten coins to me as a test. I carried on an email conversation with Satoshi over the next few days, mostly me reporting bugs and him fixing them.
Today, Satoshi's true identity has become a mystery. But at the time, I thought I was dealing with a young man of Japanese ancestry who was very smart and sincere. I've had the good fortune to know many brilliant people over the course of my life, so I recognize the signs.
After a few days, bitcoin was running pretty stably, so I left it running. Those were the days when difficulty was 1, and you could find blocks with a CPU, not even a GPU. I mined several blocks over the next days. But I turned it off because it made my computer run hot, and the fan noise bothered me. In retrospect, I wish I had kept it up longer, but on the other hand I was extraordinarily lucky to be there at the beginning. It's one of those glass half full half empty things.
The next I heard of Bitcoin was late 2010, when I was surprised to find that it was not only still going, bitcoins actually had monetary value. I dusted off my old wallet, and was relieved to discover that my bitcoins were still there. As the price climbed up to real money, I transferred the coins into an offline wallet, where hopefully they'll be worth something to my heirs.
Speaking of heirs, I got a surprise in 2009, when I was suddenly diagnosed with a fatal disease. I was in the best shape of my life at the start of that year, I'd lost a lot of weight and taken up distance running. I'd run several half marathons, and I was starting to train for a full marathon. I worked my way up to 20+ mile runs, and I thought I was all set. That's when everything went wrong.
My body began to fail. I slurred my speech, lost strength in my hands, and my legs were slow to recover. In August, 2009, I was given the diagnosis of ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease, after the famous baseball player who got it.
ALS is a disease that kills moter neurons, which carry signals from the brain to the muscles. It causes first weakness, then gradually increasing paralysis. It is usually fatal in 2 to 5 years. My symptoms were mild at first and I continued to work, but fatigue and voice problems forced me to retire in early 2011. Since then the disease has continued its inexorable progression.
Today, I am essentially paralyzed. I am fed through a tube, and my breathing is assisted through another tube. I operate the computer using a commercial eyetracker system. It also has a speech synthesizer, so this is my voice now. I spend all day in my power wheelchair. I worked up an interface using an arduino so that I can adjust my wheelchair's position using my eyes.
It has been an adjustment, but my life is not too bad. I can still read, listen to music, and watch TV and movies. I recently discovered that I can even write code. It's very slow, probably 50 times slower than I was before. But I still love programming and it gives me goals. Currently I'm working on something Mike Hearn suggested, using the security features of modern processors, designed to support "Trusted Computing", to harden Bitcoin wallets. It's almost ready to release. I just have to do the documentation.
And of course the price gyrations of bitcoins are entertaining to me. I have skin in the game. But I came by my bitcoins through luck, with little credit to me. I lived through the crash of 2011. So I've seen it before. Easy come, easy go.
That's my story. I'm pretty lucky overall. Even with the ALS, my life is very satisfying. But my life expectancy is limited. Those discussions about inheriting your bitcoins are of more than academic interest. My bitcoins are stored in our safe deposit box, and my son and daughter are tech savvy. I think they're safe enough. I'm comfortable with my legacy.
[edited slightly]
For those who don't know me, I'm Hal Finney. I got my start in crypto working on an early version of PGP, working closely with Phil Zimmermann. When Phil decided to start PGP Corporation, I was one of the first hires. I would work on PGP until my retirement. At the same time, I got involved with the Cypherpunks. I ran the first cryptographically based anonymous remailer, among other activities.
Fast forward to late 2008 and the announcement of Bitcoin. I've noticed that cryptographic graybeards (I was in my mid 50's) tend to get cynical. I was more idealistic; I have always loved crypto, the mystery and the paradox of it.
When Satoshi announced Bitcoin on the cryptography mailing list, he got a skeptical reception at best. Cryptographers have seen too many grand schemes by clueless noobs. They tend to have a knee jerk reaction.
I was more positive. I had long been interested in cryptographic payment schemes. Plus I was lucky enough to meet and extensively correspond with both Wei Dai and Nick Szabo, generally acknowledged to have created ideas that would be realized with Bitcoin. I had made an attempt to create my own proof of work based currency, called RPOW. So I found Bitcoin facinating.
When Satoshi announced the first release of the software, I grabbed it right away. I think I was the first person besides Satoshi to run bitcoin. I mined block 70-something, and I was the recipient of the first bitcoin transaction, when Satoshi sent ten coins to me as a test. I carried on an email conversation with Satoshi over the next few days, mostly me reporting bugs and him fixing them.
Today, Satoshi's true identity has become a mystery. But at the time, I thought I was dealing with a young man of Japanese ancestry who was very smart and sincere. I've had the good fortune to know many brilliant people over the course of my life, so I recognize the signs.
After a few days, bitcoin was running pretty stably, so I left it running. Those were the days when difficulty was 1, and you could find blocks with a CPU, not even a GPU. I mined several blocks over the next days. But I turned it off because it made my computer run hot, and the fan noise bothered me. In retrospect, I wish I had kept it up longer, but on the other hand I was extraordinarily lucky to be there at the beginning. It's one of those glass half full half empty things.
The next I heard of Bitcoin was late 2010, when I was surprised to find that it was not only still going, bitcoins actually had monetary value. I dusted off my old wallet, and was relieved to discover that my bitcoins were still there. As the price climbed up to real money, I transferred the coins into an offline wallet, where hopefully they'll be worth something to my heirs.
Speaking of heirs, I got a surprise in 2009, when I was suddenly diagnosed with a fatal disease. I was in the best shape of my life at the start of that year, I'd lost a lot of weight and taken up distance running. I'd run several half marathons, and I was starting to train for a full marathon. I worked my way up to 20+ mile runs, and I thought I was all set. That's when everything went wrong.
My body began to fail. I slurred my speech, lost strength in my hands, and my legs were slow to recover. In August, 2009, I was given the diagnosis of ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease, after the famous baseball player who got it.
ALS is a disease that kills moter neurons, which carry signals from the brain to the muscles. It causes first weakness, then gradually increasing paralysis. It is usually fatal in 2 to 5 years. My symptoms were mild at first and I continued to work, but fatigue and voice problems forced me to retire in early 2011. Since then the disease has continued its inexorable progression.
Today, I am essentially paralyzed. I am fed through a tube, and my breathing is assisted through another tube. I operate the computer using a commercial eyetracker system. It also has a speech synthesizer, so this is my voice now. I spend all day in my power wheelchair. I worked up an interface using an arduino so that I can adjust my wheelchair's position using my eyes.
It has been an adjustment, but my life is not too bad. I can still read, listen to music, and watch TV and movies. I recently discovered that I can even write code. It's very slow, probably 50 times slower than I was before. But I still love programming and it gives me goals. Currently I'm working on something Mike Hearn suggested, using the security features of modern processors, designed to support "Trusted Computing", to harden Bitcoin wallets. It's almost ready to release. I just have to do the documentation.
And of course the price gyrations of bitcoins are entertaining to me. I have skin in the game. But I came by my bitcoins through luck, with little credit to me. I lived through the crash of 2011. So I've seen it before. Easy come, easy go.
That's my story. I'm pretty lucky overall. Even with the ALS, my life is very satisfying. But my life expectancy is limited. Those discussions about inheriting your bitcoins are of more than academic interest. My bitcoins are stored in our safe deposit box, and my son and daughter are tech savvy. I think they're safe enough. I'm comfortable with my legacy.
[edited slightly]
This thread should be locked as a respect to Hal for being one of the earliest contributors in the creation of Bitcoin.
Rest in peace Hal and thank you for all your contributions in the cryptocurrency space.
Rest in peace Hal and thank you for all your contributions in the cryptocurrency space.
One hopes that Alcor works and Hal doesn't Rest In Peace.
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