It never ceases to amaze me how people aren't able to make decisions for themselves without having every question in the universe answered first.
Sometimes you have to make decisions without having all the bases covered, and you need to trust yourself that you can and will make as correct a decision as you can.
It may be because I've been in mangament several times in various companies that I am able to take a limited set of data and make the most out of it.
This thread is now 183 pages. If you're not able to, based on the information herein, to make a semi-proper decision foryourself without having additional questions answered... pheewweeey...
There is no hand holding in the investment business. Maybe you shouldn't have done it. Maybe you didn't understand what you were getting into, who's to blame?
I'm of the opinion that ultimately, whatever crap happens to me based on something I decided to get into, is my own fault. This makes me act and decide things in a certain way down the line, things that hopefully rectifies a shitty situation for myself somewhat. I certainly knew what I was getting into, and I knew it was a gamble... isn't it that which made the project so exciting to follow?
The way I see it; Two options were laid out. One, get the miner now with the firmware as-is (but fixed hw error), or wait for usb boot loader (which I personally think is impossible to get working).
I went with as is, because I have the knowledge and skill(?) to get hold of and use a PicKit3 to reprogram the pic should it become necessary (ie the usb bootloader is working and there are additional optimizations available).
Sorry if this comes across harsh and or rude or something... I just think it's the way it is at the moment
If this was directed at me, let me say this:
The only question I personally want answered from Steamboat is "When am I getting my assembly and shipping refunded?"
I HAVE managed to figure out for myself when to bail on this fiasco.
However, there ARE still questions that others need addressed, that really aren't clear from reading the 183 pages.
1. When am I getting my assembly and shipping refunded? - this is the only one I personally care about at this point.
2. What is going on with hosted miners? Not one word has been said about this. I'd expect at least SOME of those who paid for hosting should have had their miners assembled by now. Are they currently hashing? If not, Why not? I thought the data center was already ready.
3. Will there ever be a USB boot loader written? Some people on this forum aren't technical enough to understand the implications of not having a USB boot loader. Also, many of them don't realize yet that a PIC 16 boot loader MAY NEVER BE COMPLETED. I think it's reasonable to expect Steamboat to provide some clarity into this. (I've been trying to nicely say for days now that I don't think a PIC16 boot loader is an easy task, or a possible one.)
So no, I don't expect "Hand Holding". I just want timely answers to reasonable questions and I'm not afraid to demand them.