Newbie questions crypto thread

I have recently learned how use crypto exchanges to buy alts. If I am not an accredited investor or a whale, is it still possible for me to get involved in a new project's pre-sale or ICO? Or is the best thing I can do just buy up the coin I want as quickly as I can the second it is offered on an exchange like Kraken or Kucoin?

Quote

I am curious about learning more about cryptocurrency. I know very little about it. So I was hoping you guys could point me to some reading material, videos, courses or people to follow or sites to visit in order to learn from the best.

Quote

(01-10-2018 01:44 PM)Eddie Winslow Wrote:  I have recently learned how use crypto exchanges to buy alts. If I am not an accredited investor or a whale, is it still possible for me to get involved in a new project's pre-sale or ICO? Or is the best thing I can do just buy up the coin I want as quickly as I can the second it is offered on an exchange like Kraken or Kucoin?

With ICOs there's 2 phases, pre-sale and crowdsale. While you won't get in on a pre-sale (unless you pool or have good connections besides being accredited investor) you still can get in on the crowdsale ICO. Currenlty (pre-sale) ICOs is where the big money is made. Note that pre-sale usually gets a bonus around 30% or so, but more and more pre-sale tokens are locked up for a specific amount of time so crowdsale people can't really get dumped on.

Whether you should buy a coin right after it's listed really depends... Sometimes they're sold 3-400% (ore more) upon listing on an exchange, other times they dump, other times they do an insta 3-400% and just keep going up. Basically depends on the market cycle (BTC going up/down, market FUD/FOMO and hype of that coin..). Currently we're in a phase where most coins coming out of aICO

Quote

What would be the best way to educate oneself in the realm of blockchain? Are there any courses out there that walk people through how things work/operate and educate an individual on how to better understand white papers/coin intent etc.? Basically a general education of the realm and an assist in sniffing out bullshit coins.
Thanks everyone, this forum just keeps on giving.

Quote

Looks like Binance has opened up registrations for the time being.

Quote

(01-11-2018 09:59 PM)spygoat Wrote:  What would be the best way to educate oneself in the realm of blockchain? Are there any courses out there that walk people through how things work/operate and educate an individual on how to better understand white papers/coin intent etc.? Basically a general education of the realm and an assist in sniffing out bullshit coins.
Thanks everyone, this forum just keeps on giving.

I would check out some YouTube videos. Just type in Cryptography and What is Blockchain and you will find some good stuff.

Quote

Good place to find info about projects is datadash on youtube. He gives great info on projects and technical analysis.

Quote

Thanks. I don't work in the computer science/programmer realm but this tech interests me but I like to try and understand it before I dump a ton of money into something. Seems like there are quite a few guys on this forum that are really well versed on the subject. Thanks again.

Quote

Ok guys, so I have been fortunate enough to befriend a dude who has been involved in blockchain and crypto from its beginning times. He has worked for blockchain companies, has a large investment portfolio and is literally a block chain and crypto enthusiast. I’ve no idea how wealthy he is, but he seems knowledgeable and certainly passionate.

So my question is; If you had direct access to such a person, on a friendly level, not just some online figure - what would you ask them?

I know very little about it all, but what a great head start I could be given. If you guys give me good questions to ask, I’ll be happy to share the responses I get.

Quote

(01-13-2018 05:43 AM)ynwa1892 Wrote:  Ok guys, so I have been fortunate enough to befriend a dude who has been involved in blockchain and crypto from its beginning times. He has worked for blockchain companies, has a large investment portfolio and is literally a block chain and crypto enthusiast. I’ve no idea how wealthy he is, but he seems knowledgeable and certainly passionate.

So my question is; If you had direct access to such a person, on a friendly level, not just some online figure - what would you ask them?

I know very little about it all, but what a great head start I could be given. If you guys give me good questions to ask, I’ll be happy to share the responses I get.

What's your investment portfolio allocation? To try to gauge in what technologies/projects he believes medium/long term.

A lot of people are interested in gambling but I imagine a knowledgeable guy like him is looking at edge breaking projects that eventually will have excess returns.

Quote

(01-13-2018 05:43 AM)ynwa1892 Wrote:  Ok guys, so I have been fortunate enough to befriend a dude who has been involved in blockchain and crypto from its beginning times. He has worked for blockchain companies, has a large investment portfolio and is literally a block chain and crypto enthusiast. I’ve no idea how wealthy he is, but he seems knowledgeable and certainly passionate.

So my question is; If you had direct access to such a person, on a friendly level, not just some online figure - what would you ask them?

I know very little about it all, but what a great head start I could be given. If you guys give me good questions to ask, I’ll be happy to share the responses I get.

Here's what I would ask:

Which coins/tokens/platforms have true differentiated technology? Please describe what makes them unique.

Which coins/tokens/platforms are closest to having the best combination of decentralization and scalability? Please describe the decentralization/scaling methodology and why it is superior.

Which cryptocurrencies do you invest in and why? What is your investment strategy? How long do you usually hold a particular asset?

Quote

I don't know how knowledgable this person is, but if I had a crystal ball, here's the things I would ask it.

1.) How likely is the lightning network to actually work, and when will it likely be put into use?
2.) If ETH does go proof of stake, will it still be decentralized or will there be enough major groups holding from ICO to control the coin's future?
3.) If XRP *WERE* used by banks, absent its non-speculative FOMO value, how much would it be worth?

Quote

I think a lot of investment banking dudes get their bonuses on 15 January. Now might be a good time to go long.

What do you guys think of etoro by the way?

Quote

HODL
O
D
L

Quote

This sell-off is just because of the Chinese New Year, r-r-ight?

Quote

(01-16-2018 04:06 PM)Jean Gabin Wrote:  This sell-off is just because of the Chinese New Year, r-r-ight?

Chinese new year is a month away.

Quote

So which exchanges are allowing new registrations to buy alt coins? Bittrex and Kraken still won't let me trade.

Quote

(01-16-2018 09:24 PM)Arado Wrote:  So which exchanges are allowing new registrations to buy alt coins? Bittrex and Kraken still won't let me trade.

Try Kucoin or Binance, though I've heard kucoin is having issues right now, while binance has a limited amount of new accounts daily.

Liqui has an ok range too.

If it comes down to it you can get some shitcoins at shapeshift or changelly at a slight premium over exchange prices.

Quote

Let’s say I want to sell ETH for $ on Coinbase or another exchange.

Since it’s so volatile and there are so many delays in sending/selling crypto, will Coinbase ”sell” my ETH for the current $ value at the time of sell order? Or if there’s a delay, does it ”sell” at another date and thus another possible value?

Quote

(01-20-2018 10:24 AM)DarianFrey Wrote:  Let’s say I want to sell ETH for $ on Coinbase or another exchange.

Since it’s so volatile and there are so many delays in sending/selling crypto, will Coinbase ”sell” my ETH for the current $ value at the time of sell order? Or if there’s a delay, does it ”sell” at another date and thus another possible value?

From what I know the current market value is locked in at the time of the transfer for buying and selling. Quite some people have gotten burned with Coinbase on buying/selling coins with the delay between the transaction and reeciving the coins or funds.

Quote

2 questions:

1. For a huge percentage of the coins -- if we want to cash out, we have to convert buy them with BTC, ETH, etc. and then convert them back to BTC, ETC, etc before getting fiat. I see a lot of people here talking about a coin gaining 60%, or what not (which is 60% higher in USD value. So a coin bought at 1.00, now 1.60). Is this a bad way of thinking about the market? We had to buy BTC anyway, and the gains/losses that BTC makes a huge impact on our actual ROI. Is it ok to think of our gains like that? Is there a better way?

2. Please correct me if I'm wrong. A big majority of ICOs are built using Ethereum's platform/codebase. How do they distinguish themselves and establish value as a currency? Good marketing aside, is the value more as an app/interface/whatever that solves a problem? I have a hard time understanding how much better one coin can be than another if they're all just slightly modified Ethereum. I see a value in using Monero as a crypto. Not very educated on a lot of the others, but they all seem like "Ethereum for x industry"

Quote

(01-20-2018 01:44 PM)pfeffer Wrote:  2 questions:

1. For a huge percentage of the coins -- if we want to cash out, we have to convert buy them with BTC, ETH, etc. and then convert them back to BTC, ETC, etc before getting fiat. I see a lot of people here talking about a coin gaining 60%, or what not (which is 60% higher in USD value. So a coin bought at 1.00, now 1.60). Is this a bad way of thinking about the market? We had to buy BTC anyway, and the gains/losses that BTC makes a huge impact on our actual ROI. Is it ok to think of our gains like that? Is there a better way?

Your example doesn't make sense. That $1.60 coin you'd then convert back into $1.60 worth of BTC and then cash out immediately. The % change that BTC has meanwhile makes no difference if you're not actually holding the coin.

Quote:2. Please correct me if I'm wrong. A big majority of ICOs are built using Ethereum's platform/codebase. How do they distinguish themselves and establish value as a currency? Good marketing aside, is the value more as an app/interface/whatever that solves a problem? I have a hard time understanding how much better one coin can be than another if they're all just slightly modified Ethereum. I see a value in using Monero as a crypto. Not very educated on a lot of the others, but they all seem like "Ethereum for x industry"

Almost none of these coins are slightly modified Ethereum, instead you're talking about tokens created on the Ethereum platform. Ethereum is mined whereas tokens can be created whenever.

Go to coinmarketcap, go to tokens and look into all the tokens built on the Ethereum platform. You'll quickly understand what each token is being used for.

Quote

*Ether is mined.

Not being a dick.

Quote

(01-20-2018 01:44 PM)pfeffer Wrote:  2. Please correct me if I'm wrong. A big majority of ICOs are built using Ethereum's platform/codebase. How do they distinguish themselves and establish value as a currency? Good marketing aside, is the value more as an app/interface/whatever that solves a problem? I have a hard time understanding how much better one coin can be than another if they're all just slightly modified Ethereum. I see a value in using Monero as a crypto. Not very educated on a lot of the others, but they all seem like "Ethereum for x industry"

A coin is better than another coin if it is something you can sell to someone else for a higher price than you bought it.
"Value" is a lie. "Fundamentals" are an illusion. There is only the price you bought it at, and the price you will sell it at. Everything else is white noise, or data to help you figure out what people will pay you more for in the future.

This is the first truth of crypto, and the first key to enlightenment.

(The second key is to remove your initial stake as soon as possible so you're playing with house money. The emotional detachment this gives you will make you a vastly better trader.)

Quote

It's so frustrating seeing prices go up while you're waiting for verification from the fiat exchanges, coinmama, bitstamp. Kraken isn't even doing verifications at the moment and Changelly is not working...I want my gainz!!!

Quote