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I get that Bitcoin is now attracting much more mainstream media coverage, but do we really need to rehash the same debate every time this sort of thing appears under a new byline?

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This article actually has some substance and doesn't read like an opinion as much as others. The conjecture on Bitcoin may be getting a bit boring and over played here, but the highlights are still interesting. We are witnessing something very unique and unpredictable here, possibly with great historic consequences. For this reason, yes, it is still interesting to me and worth watching.

DISCLAIMER: I have never seen a Bitcoin in real world use as either an investment or currency.

I would like to see Bitcoin in real world use, even if just as an experiment, but part of the issue with that is that you can't just accept a payment and everything is done like you would with a credit card or cash. The network has to verify it, which could take anywhere from an hour to days. That's not exactly attractive to businesses.

However, that sort of thing is probably why Bitcoins have started to (slowly) gain wider acceptance from internet retailers. They can simply wait for the payment to be verified before processing and shipping the order, or enabling the account, or whatever it is that they sell.

Apparently yes.

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