Tue Dec 08, 2015 7:31 am

Hi theZergThank you very much for your Bitcoin Unlimited Initiative and for doing this AMA.First, as I see the block size situation it is no longer about which way to scale bitcoin. It is about keeping open the original and tested scaling method with more and more traditional bitcoin transactions. We know that way can work. If not, the bitcoin network would already have been smashed. There may be "smarter" ways to scale but that is pure speculation. Those possibly smarter scaling methods may be vulnerable to attacks. Our focus should be on keeping the original path open. The block size limit serves the same purpose as a road block.If or when that road block is removed user confidence and investor confidence in bitcoin will rise significantly leading to an increase in the bitcoin price. That price increase will make it more profitable to be a bitcoin miner which will attract more miners and make the bitcoin network safer. It will also lead to a new wave of bitcoin users attracted by the higher prize.I expect that those in the bitcoin network who will face attempt to lift or remove the block size limit will face a huge denial of service attack from different forces of destruction. That is what we saw happen in August to those who adopted Bitcoin CT. The attackers won that battle. My main idea for dealing with this challenge is:Prevent all access to the upgraded bitcoin nodes from Tor, either permanently or temporarily. This can be attempted at different levels, i.e at the bitcoin software level, the operating system level, the local network level at the miners/nodes, and/or further upstream at the ISPs. One method doesn't exclude the other. The purpose is that whatever attack we will face will at least reveal the ip addresses of the attackers. If we do not succeed in the first attempt of removing the block size limit we will at least be better prepared for a second attempt. We will be in a better position to start a public outcry and block traffic from known attackers. In the next attempt at lifting the block size limit all traffic from ip addresses controlled by attackers can hopefully be blocked at the level where it is most effective.Comments?Second, do you see any ways a bitcoin owner can use his bitcoins to "vote" for a bigger block size?Third, I fear some of the "smarter" bitcoin scaling solutions risk taking away the profitability of mining in the other end of the life cycle of the bitcoin system, ie when miners will need to earn large transaction fees to be profitable. That will only be possible if the miners get to include a large volume of transactions in their blocks. A small transaction fee from a huge number of transactions can still become a large income. If the miners are deprived of most of the transaction volume mining will not be profitable unless most miners leave the business. That will make the bitcoin network very vulnerable and might ultimately kill bitcoin. The solution is to let the block size grow and avoid implementing ”smarter” bitcoin scaling which risk undermining the long term profitability of bitcoin mining. Do you agree?Best RegardsBitcoinsteffen