Crown

What is a good place to buy Bitcoin (and other sci-fi money). Is it Kraken ? Thanks 

You can buy directly from any of the established exchanges such as Kraken, Bitstamp, Coinbase, etc. You need to check your preferred way of transferring your medieval fiat coins over (some accept bank transfer, some only credit card, etc)  Onboarding to the exchange can usually be done over a smartphone app within a day or two.

If you plan to invest a larger amount then I recommend getting a hardware wallet that you use for the storage such as Ledger or Trezor. Once you are done with the transfers then put the wallet in your bank’s vault. Don’t keep large funds on the hot wallet on the exchange. That is how people get hacked.

It might seem counterintuitive, but physical security is paramount for digital assets.

If this all sounds like gibberish to you then spend a good amount of time reading up on it. Digital assets done right is super secure, BUT if you f’k up the funds are gone. Transfers are irreversible. It is not like a SWIFT payment to the bank that your client advisor can reverse  

If you plan to invest very large amounts then I would onboard with a regulated entity or bank that handles the trading and custody for you. Just like your bank handles trading and custody for traditional securities. There are a few of them around the world. 

If you want to know more then PM me. I used to work in the space.

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2016 Porsche 981 GT4 | Racing Yellow
2018 Audi S6 Avant | Ibis White

thanks a lot for the advice 

schmoell:

thanks a lot for the advice 

Very good advice, especially about the (physical) safety. 

Take a look at ISIN DE000A27Z304 if you don't want to worry too much. Basically like a stock.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes GLC63 S AMG (2020), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)

Thanks Christian for the hint. Will have a close look at it !

schmoell:

Thanks Christian for the hint. Will have a close look at it !

Disadvantage is fees (2% per year) and it varies with the USD exchange rate. Not a big deal though.

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes GLC63 S AMG (2020), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)

If you have a REVOLUT credit card account, you can buy them directly there. 

You can also just open an account on SWISSQUOTE ( an online trading bank ) and buy them there.

The practical part with these two is that you do not need a wallet . They keep it for you. Makes it much more easy. 

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 964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm -- 991.2 GT3 RS 

Gnil:

The practical part with these two is that you do not need a wallet . They keep it for you. Makes it much more easy.

I hope they have a good protocol as it is surely an hacker target.

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GT Lover, Porsche fan

991.2 GT3 manual

Cayenne GTS 2014

the-missile:

Gnil:

The practical part with these two is that you do not need a wallet . They keep it for you. Makes it much more easy.

I hope they have a good protocol as it is surely an hacker target.

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GT Lover, Porsche fan

 

991.2 GT3 manual

Cayenne GTS 2014

Swissquote is the biggest Swiss online bank. If they can't do it properly , don't know who else would .

REVOLUT is '' the '' digital credit card . I do not use them for my crypto but I use them as a credit card. Again, if they can't do it right, not sure who else would. 

Then, I  stay cautious with cryptos...  best to keep it as a side game, not a major investment .

 964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm -- 991.2 GT3 RS 

Gnil:

the-missile:

Gnil:

The practical part with these two is that you do not need a wallet . They keep it for you. Makes it much more easy.

I hope they have a good protocol as it is surely an hacker target.

--

 

GT Lover, Porsche fan

 

991.2 GT3 manual

Cayenne GTS 2014

Swissquote is the biggest Swiss online bank. If they can't do it properly , don't know who else would .

REVOLUT is '' the '' digital credit card . I do not use them for my crypto but I use them as a credit card. Again, if they can't do it right, not sure who else would. 

Then, I  stay cautious with cryptos...  best to keep it as a side game, not a major investment .

 I own two Bitcoins now: One in a wallet (bought at 3700 EUR) and one ( through BTCetc Bitcoin Exchange Traded Crypto (ETC Issuance GmbH) bought at 8300 EUR, for 1000 shares, one share was 8,30). Unlike other investments, I will never sell these two Bitcoins, unless it is worth it. With the years passing, I think the value will rise substantially but of course there is no 100% guarantee. 

I read somewhere that a crypto pro said that one Bitcoin will be worth one billion at some point but maybe I misunderstood it.  There seems to be a general consensus though that one Bitcoin will be worth at least over 100k USD after five years...latest. Some are even talking about 200-300k. 

For me, Bitcoin is just something I got just to make sure I didn't miss an opportunity. I owned 100 Bitcoin when it was slightly under one USD, sold it way too early (I do not remember anymore but I think I made a thousand bucks or so. This time, I just let it sit and I forget about it. 

Oh, I know a couple of people who lost a lot(!) of money in farming Bitcoins, the electrical bill just killed their business. Just recently, I wanted to buy a refurbished Antminer S19 Pro (110 Th/s), just for fun but it just isn't worth it (I did some calculations). I never was really interested in mining but I would try it if it is worth it but apparently, it isn't. Not the way I planned to do it and going big is too expensive and probably not worth it either.

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RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes GLC63 S AMG (2020), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)

The issue I have with Revolut (more so) and Swissquote (less so) is that you don’t own the crypto currencies. It is not your wallet nor your private key. What you trade is a CFD, but what actually happens with the crypto currency you cannot control. Revolut could decide to halt all trading e.g. if the price goes up. They sell it all, buy back lower and then enable trading for you again. Read the small print and ensure that this cannot happen (I think they can).

While these companies have a far higher level of security than most people can achieve themselves (unless you manage your own hardware cold wallet with the correct procedures) they also have significantly larger exposure to external risks (e.g. hackers) or internal risks (e.g. fraud).

If you let someone else be the custodian of your crypto currencies then I would make sure that the company:

• Is licensed by the financial regulator within that jurisdiction 
• Is ISO27001 certified
• Have insurance for their hot/cold storage assets in case of cyber attacks, fraud, etc. 

If you only have a handful of BTC then I would not worry too much about the above. The more you have the more relevant it gets.

2016 Porsche 981 GT4 | Racing Yellow
2018 Audi S6 Avant | Ibis White

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes GLC63 S AMG (2020), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Range Rover Evoque Si4 Black Edition (2019)

I’m surprised this Twitter string wasn’t posted before. Tesla enthusiast Green the Only posted video he recovered from a crashed Model 3. The video and corresponding narrative paints a significant safety-related defect with the Autopilot.  
 

The driver of the crashed Model 3, apparently fell asleep while Autopilot was engaged.  Without any driver input Autopilot disengaged but the lane keep assist continued to function, keeping the car, with Autopilot engaged in an active lane of traffic.  Complicating matters, the driver’s foot applied pressure to the accelerator with the Tesla reaching 135 mph before running into a Honda Civic in the same lane traveling at half the speed. Safety system after safety system disengaged.   The Automatic Emergency Braking System, for example, does not function if the speed of the car is greater than 90 mph.  
 

The failure of interlocking safety systems is gross negligence and while some here will express doubt, this is a real world example of the shortcomings of Tesla’s Autopilot.  https://mobile.twitter.com/greentheonly/status/1326755485610020864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Yeah I saw that video, that's just a whole bucket of cluster f@ck. At the end of the day though the most liable by far is the driver. 

Past-President, Porsche Club of America - Upper Canada Region

CGX car nut:

The failure of interlocking safety systems is gross negligence and while some here will express doubt, this is a real world example of the shortcomings of Tesla’s Autopilot.  https://mobile.twitter.com/greentheonly/status/1326755485610020864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

 

+1

Mithras:

Yeah I saw that video, that's just a whole bucket of cluster f@ck. At the end of the day though the most liable by far is the driver. 

Until someone is seriously injured or killed and the plaintiff attorney seek those with the deepest pockets.  Additionally, the federal government does not take too kindly to the lack of safety mechanisms in the Tesla Autopilot system.  

CGX car nut:

Mithras:

Yeah I saw that video, that's just a whole bucket of cluster f@ck. At the end of the day though the most liable by far is the driver. 

Until someone is seriously injured or killed and the plaintiff attorney seek those with the deepest pockets.  Additionally, the federal government does not take too kindly to the lack of safety mechanisms in the Tesla Autopilot system.  

I don't disagree with who they will go after or who has the deepest pockets. Certainly Tesla is at fault, there are safety measures that should never have been shut down or left out. The guy that fell asleep is the most culpable one though. 

No different than someone waving a gun at someone and saying "don't worry! It's got this cool new safety that won't let me shoot you!" right before he pulls the trigger and shoots you. The manufacturer has fault but the guy waving the gun (or falling asleep while driving) has the majority of the blame. 

Past-President, Porsche Club of America - Upper Canada Region

https://www.evo.co.uk/electric-cars/19743/uk-bans-sale-of-petrol-engined-cars-from-2030

2016 Porsche 981 GT4 | Racing Yellow
2018 Audi S6 Avant | Ibis White

Tesla needs to learn up its act.

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/tesla-slides-to-bottom-of-consumer-reports-reliability-survey-11605816647

A good memory is fine but the ability to forget is the one true test of greatness.

“NHTSA Opens Investigation Into Widespread Tesla Media Control Unit Failures And The Cause Seems Weirdly Preventable“

(20 November 2020)

Over 12,000 Tesla Model Ss and Xs built between 2012 and 2018 have had failures of their Media Control Units; the computer system that runs the big center-stack touchscreen and controls all kinds of things, from rearview camera displays to some HVAC functions to even the little clicking sound when the turn indicators are on. These units have been failing at an alarming rate, making cars almost underivable and costing thousands of dollars to repair. The NHTSA has started an engineering analysis, and it seems that it’s all because of a questionable design.

The issue is quite well-known in the Tesla community and has been covered by other media outlets like our pals over at Ars Technica. Fundamentally, this is what the issue seems to be: in the MCU there is something called an 8GB eMMC NAND flash memory module. 

This is essentially the same sort of flash memory as you may have as the main storage device in your computer or as a little USB flash drive. These units are fast and work extremely well, but they have a limited number of times they can have data written to them.

For most of the contexts we interact with flash memory, like with USB thumb drives, we’re never likely to come anywhere near the write cycle limit of the device. But, for embedded systems where data is being written and read automatically, over and over, this limitation becomes a much greater issue.

Figuring out the lifespans of such memory chips is a big deal, and seems to be at the root of what Tesla misjudged.

The chip in the MCU has log files written to it on a regular basis, and Tesla’s original estimates expected the unit to last between 11 and 12 years, what they considered to be a reasonable life of the car.

That hasn’t proved the case for many cars. As the NHTSA report states:

On June 22, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE20-010 to investigate incidents of media control unit (MCU) failures resulting in loss of rearview camera in model year (MY) 2012-2015 Tesla Model S vehicles equipped with the NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor with an integrated 8GB eMMC NAND flash memory device. EMMC NAND flash devices have a finite lifespan based upon the number of program/erase (P/E) cycles. The subject MCU allegedly fails prematurely due to memory wear-out of the eMMC NAND flash. Tesla used the same MCU with the Tegra 3 processor in approximately 159 thousand 2012-2018 Model S and 2016-2018 Model X vehicles built by Tesla through early-2018. In response to ODI’s Information Request (IR) for PE20-010, Tesla provided ODI with 2,399 complaints and field reports, 7,777 warranty claims, and 4,746 non-warranty claims related to MCU replacements. The data show failure rates over 30 percent in certain build months and accelerating failure trends after 3 to 4 years-in-service. 

The likelihood of failure seems to be correlated with how much the car has been driven since that’s when logs get written to the flash memory, though this is not always the case with the failures, which can vary pretty wildly.

Here’s more description from the NHTSA report:

According to Tesla, for subject vehicles equipped with the NVIDIA Tegra 3 processor with an integrated 8GB eMMC NAND flash memory device, the eMMC NAND cell hardware can fail when reaching lifetime wear, for which the eMMC controller has no available blocks to recover. 

With this failure mode, the only recovery available is a replacement of the eMMC device, achieved by physical part replacement of either the MCU assembly or visual control module subcomponent. Tesla provided the effects of MCU failure on vehicle function which result in loss of rearview/backup camera, loss of HVAC (defogging) setting controls (if the HVAC status was OFF status prior to failure.) 

There is also an impact on the advanced driver assistance support (ADAS), Autopilot system, and turn signal functionality due to the possible loss of audible chimes, driver sensing, and alerts associated with these vehicle functions. 

There are precedents for addressing defects that result in loss of either backup camera, defogging, or turn signal functions under Investigation: EA 20-003 Open Resume Page 2 of 2 safety recalls. Tesla has implemented certain Over-The-Air or OTA updates to subject vehicles to mitigate the effects of MCU failure. 

These updates include firmware changes to reduce memory usage of the subject memory card, improve eMMC error correction and storage management strategies, changing the control logic for turn signal activation, and defaulting the HVAC system to Auto (71.6F) for drives after MCU failure to address windshield defogging. Tesla indicated that the MCU failures are likely to continue to occur in subject vehicles as vehicles continue.

Tesla has only repaired these by swapping the entire MCU, which can cost between $2,000 and $5,000...

Link: https://jalopnik.com/nhtsa-opens-investigation-into-widespread-tesla-media-c-1845727279 

https://www.motor1.com/news/456411/driver-assist-systems-less-safe/

Whoopsy:

https://www.motor1.com/news/456411/driver-assist-systems-less-safe/

 

How many times have I posted here about the problems with man-in-the-loop control systems. That article confirms my posts.  

Oh well...I think combustion engines are definitely "done" now. 

https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-lawsuits-environment-california-gavin-newsom-f30458eb13b6ff967d05b12c178621e8

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes GLC63 S AMG (2020), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk (2019 EU)

wait 4 years 

⇒ Carlos - Porsche 991 Carrera GTS

Carlos from Spain:

wait 4 years 

RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Lamborghini Huracan Performante (2019), Mercedes GLC63 S AMG (2020), Mercedes C63 S AMG Cab (2019), Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk (2019 EU)

RC:

Oh well...I think combustion engines are definitely "done" now. 

https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-lawsuits-environment-california-gavin-newsom-f30458eb13b6ff967d05b12c178621e8

Stupid crap. The best and only way is to allow the market and for people to decide for themselves.  It will happen anyway but to force it is nuts. If anything it will slow the rate of adoption and cause money to be wasted. Why can politicians not accept, just once, that they don’t know better and that they can’t legislate economics and spending habits?

It will be interesting to see how some of the niche brands (e.g. Ferrari etc.) will respond to this. It seems the combustion engine will be gone in most major markets by 2030. I cannot really picture an EV Ferrari, Maserati, etc.

While personally I support the notion of reducing our environmental footprint, I don't like how politics is trying to decide which shall be the winning technology going forward. Who knows at this stage whether EVs are really the best solution (so far there are inferior in almost all relevant criteria)? The market should decide what's best. 

I agree with you Tim except there is only no reason why in the future all categories of car performance will be dominated by EVs except engine noise.  Pick any category except that and explain how the future looks bright for ICE

Tim:

It will be interesting to see how some of the niche brands (e.g. Ferrari etc.) will respond to this. It seems the combustion engine will be gone in most major markets by 2030. I cannot really picture an EV Ferrari, Maserati, etc.

While personally I support the notion of reducing our environmental footprint, I don't like how politics is trying to decide which shall be the winning technology going forward. Who knows at this stage whether EVs are really the best solution (so far there are inferior in almost all relevant criteria)? The market should decide what's best. 

Vanity. virtual signalling is your answer.

What do you think about synthetic fuels for the fun cars ? Too small a market ?

https://www.motor1.com/news/453621/porsche-investing-in-synthetic-fuels/