> But Patrick, > > How do i use these anonymous bearer instruments you've been working > on? "What's the URL"?
http://lucrative.thirdhost.com/ > > How does it all work? Is it true that if you lose one you've lost it > (just like cash I guess). Yes, if you lose the document you lose the asset. Fortunately, this is what backups are for... not to minimize the problem. It's real. But you can be better protected against asset loss in DBI form than in folding paper form because you can keep multiple copies in different locations. > > How do I unbail the gold? Is gold involved? This is where an introduction to Lucrative would be handy. OK. So here goes. The Lucrative project is an attempt to produce all the software necessary for commerce in anonymous digital cash. It takes advantage of the work done by David Wagner, Ben Laurie, and others over the last several years, building on the crypto foundation they created. The Lucrative Mint is an issuer: it's the software tool used by an underwriter to issue digital coins representing some value. It's a web service. It speaks SOAP, a common Internet protocol, and any client that speaks the same can talk to it to retrieve, renew, or redeem digital coins. These coins are the digital bearer instruments (DBI). They can represent arbitrary assets: cows, dollars, gold grams, zero-coupon bonds, shares, email tickets, etc. I've also created a format for the interchange of bearer instruments, FIBIs. These are lightweight XML documents that represent bearer instruments, requests for instrument issuance renewal or exchange, and so on. These are flexible enough to represent nearly any asset type, and clients should be able to interpret, store, and exchange DBIs from multiple independent bearer instrument issuers (like a wallet that can store and spend e-gold and e-bullion and e-cows too). For end users there is the Purse, a graphical client application (the 'wallet', or 'walletware'). Since the specification for the server is open, anyone could write a client that communicates with the server. The Purse is just a reference implementation, though I hope to make it a very good one. It stores bearer instruments for the user and does all the crypto magic to make the coins anonymous. Additional software includes interface packages and merchant SCIs. The interface packages are what end users can use to transfer assets into and out of the mint operator's system. A couple of examples are on the website. SCIs allow merchants to accept Lucrative DBIs like any other form of payment for goods or services. No SCI is available for download yet. The possibilities for this technology boggle the mind. Software agents can manage your portfolio in real-time, always in direct possession of your assets, maximizing your returns to your exact specifications. Automatic escrow and currency exchange servers will be almost trivial to build. The whole idea of 'web of trusts', easily exploitable, could be replaced with automated transaction insurance. It may even be possible that widespread use of digital bearer currencies can reverse the adage and make "good currencies drive bad ones out of circulation." PDAs loaded with DBIs can beam cash to each other, or to points of sale (POS) equipment. If PDAs can be coaxed to display bar codes, this might not even require additional equipment in some locations. I haven't explored this thoroughly, but it gives an idea of how much there is to explore. It may be a great way to bridge the gap between net money like e-gold and in-person transactions. I don't intend to start a digital cash venture myself at this time. Not that I don't think it would be "lucrative" - I really think it would be - but I know what I personally am good at, and it's the software, not all the many other things that a successful venture would have to do: business and legal requirements, funding, and so on. So where is Lucrative now? The mint works. The client works. The purse needs some polish and a few end-user friendly features. There are interface packages but no merchant SCI. And a few more administrative tools would be very useful, including an 'e-gold examiner'-like live statistics and auditing service. Bear in mind that I started this project just seven weeks ago, in my spare time, and you can see how far it's come. I would spend full time on it, if I had enough donations or sponsors or downright funding. And the things we could accomplish... nevertheless I continue to think about it and work on it as much as I can. Lots of information is available at the website, http://lucrative.thirdhost.com, where there are downloads, a development blog, instructions for joining the mailing list, archives of the list, architecture diagrams, documentation, a few links to other relevant sites and documents, etc. And finally, to directly answer your question, (" How do I unbail the gold? Is gold involved?") this is up to the mint operator(s). > > What are midiclorines? Microscopic life-forms that inhabit every cell in your body... without them, life could not exist! Or something like that... Sincerely, Patrick --- You are currently subscribed to e-gold-list as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Use e-gold's Secure Randomized Keyboard (SRK) when accessing your e-gold account(s) via the web and shopping cart interfaces to help thwart keystroke loggers and common viruses.
