Most of us are living with limited means. Bitcoin can be a fun way to imagine living life. However, I am effectively killing the dream idea that Bitcoin can be run as a full node with lightning for an average user. Here is why.
  1. Data caps. Yes, the blockchain is large, but more than once the data cap when running bitcoin types of apps suddenly decries the limitation. Pay to play is not acceptable--especially for developing countries.
  2. Lightening Channels. These things are way, way too expensive--especially if you aren't sure how much you are going to use said channel.
  3. Technical know-how/paranoia levels of trust . While bitcoin is awesome in the sense it can offer independence, one has to really earn it. Combine this with the data cap limitations, and one is having to literally earn it out in the fiat world more than likely. What's the point in that?
  4. Firewall Port blocking/traffic monitoring at the ISP level. Yeah, I know there is tor, but I'm not sure that doesn't draw more attention.
  5. Large Drives are needed that ain't always cheap. Solid state preferred.
In short, the blockchain stuff is great in theory, but is getting too large and unwieldy for an average user who does not have a lot of choice in ISP providers to use without incurring actual fiat costs quickly. Liberation is not going to occur while this is so. This means a person is more likely to have to return to the bank simply because the bank is not going to charge you ten dollars immediately for going in the door and tripping over some invisible usage cap. In terms of opening an account, one has to have a deposit to do that, and that money is then ready in theory to be spent. There are a thousand other issues, of course, but practically speaking one is going to do the thing that can be done over the thing that is going to cost extra with no immediate reward to the self for doing. If infrastructure were to change at an ISP level with no usage caps this would change the equation, although the energy required to download the blockchain is still a cost both in time and actual electricity.
It depends where you live. In the US ,1 TB of ssd nvme is about $80. You can stick that into any desktop with 2 vcpu and 16gb ram and you can have yourself a decent node. YOu won't break the bank either. Yeah, initial sync will take few days but after that you home free and you are your own bank. It is pretty cheap entry barrier to be a bank, I reckon. Wireguard, tailscale or cloudflare tunnel gets you online semi-anonymous (kinda). Or run node on the phone if you don't need full node and history for the last 14 years. YMMV
reply
You kinda are. VPN will only get you so far. The other problem is your ISP doing some traffic shaping pattern recognition type crap as a potential issue.
reply
Good post. I think data caps for a lot will be lifted in the coming years, which may help.
reply
reply
Actually, with regard to blockchains, I am a "NO coiner" and pretty soon you will be too unless the problems I addressed above are solved.
reply
Lightening Channels.
That say a lot about your knowledge level and from where you are coming. Only ignorant shitcoiners are saying that. You just show us that you know very few about bitcoin but you came pretending you are here to fix Bitcoin. Everybody nowadays wants to "fix bitcoin" but they have no idea what they are talking about.
reply
"No True Scotsman." It's a fallacy. If you mean my misspelling, then yeah, you caught me. I didn't correct auto-correct in time. Super guilty there.
reply
I know very well when is a misspelling or ignorance.
reply
I bet you do. Your judgment so far surely exemplifies that.
reply
Pruned nodes would assist here, I think.
reply
100 sats \ 1 reply \ @joda 13 Apr
Can you "start" with a pruned node? When I started, I'm pretty sure my only option was to download everything and then prune it.
reply
No, I couldn't. Not sure about others.
reply
They help some. But then, not everything works with pruned nodes. It isn't a silver bullet solution.
reply