(IJCH) - Options Over HODL (Prompted by a Great Primer by @onetin84)

IJCH - Inside JaiChai's Head (meaning: My warped, personal opinions and musings.)

From the Author

Salutations.

I am JaiChai.

And if I haven't had the pleasure to make your acquaintance, it's always nice to meet a fellow Steemian.

I just read a Great Primer about mining pools by @onetin84.

See:

https://steemit.com/beyondbitcoin/@onetin84/when-bitcoin-mining-is-profitable-a-simple-approach-on-the-topic

The post by @onetin84 prompted me to submit this comment/reply:

@onetin84,

Great Primer of a Post.

Salutations. I am JaiChai. Very pleased to make your acquaintance.

RE: Your Post

"Unless you have the patience and inclination for tailoring or farming, most individuals prefer to buy their clothes and food from a mall and supermarkets."

But everyone must decide for themselves where to put their hard earned money, no?

Even Genesis mining, the mining pool with many satisfied customers, has gotten much bashing over the years for its complex and convoluted "recipes" for calculating rewards.

I believe that two high-reputation Steemians (that I know of), @boxmining and @samstonehill, swear by Genesis Mining.

And anyone who, after due dilligence, decides to try out Genesis Mining can get a discount when using those Steemians' referral codes.

The Question of At-Home Mining -

I'd venture to guess that even @boxmining would agree when I say:

"Although it can be lucrative when done wisely, there's quite a steep learning curve in regards to the whole subject and implementation of mining.

Rig components are far from being standardized and proprietary pirates are ubiquitous. It's still like the old days when you plugged in your nifty, new graphics card, Hard drive or CD player and spawn an avalanche of incompatibilities!

It is a very humbling experience when you try to run a rig with competing graphics cards. Then you'll need to eat humble pie when you grovel at the nearest mining wizard's feet! Beleive me, I KNOW.

Throw in the plethora of mining pools to choose from, the increasing difficulty thresholds and the ever-changing mining software, and...well, you get the picture.

Suffice it to say that you must have a passion for tinkering and slip-sliding on the bleeding edge for mining to be gratifying."

Now if you have deep pockets, you could try your hand at ASIC mining.

But be forewarned:

ASIC miners are loud. I mean lawnmower loud!

And unless you need to heat your house for the winter, they produce a Hell of a lot of heat. Then you have to figure in the cost of cooling that brand new "sauna" of a room where your ASIC miner is screaching like a banshee!

Don't believe the hype about getting your ASIC investment back in three months. When you factor in the energy consumption and increasing block difficulty, it will usually take years - no matter how much appreciation of whatever coin you are mining.

Note: Because of the different consensus mechanism algorithms, ASIC miners are normally limited to a narrow selection of coins they can mine. Before shelling out the big bucks, make sure the ASIC miner can harvest your particular coin.

For me, I have another avenue for garnering more than the HODL (Hold On for Dear Life) strategy.

Since I've been an active trader on the legacy markets for over two and a half decades, it wasn't difficult to switch over to cryptocurrency trading.

But then again, MOST PEOPLE LOSE MONEY TRADING CRPTOCURRENCY - even experienced traders from the commodities and FOREX exchanges.

Here's why:

https://steemit.com/cryptocurrency/@jaichai/ijch-revisiting-why-most-people-lose-money-trading-cryptocurrency

Again, choosing among the alternatives to HODL solely depends on an individual's inclination, knowledge, expereince, and skills - or the willingness to spend the time and energy to get themselves up to snuff as to compete profitably with his co-horts.

Thanks for motivating me to write this comment. It reminded me that I probably need to jockey my investments today - change order and bot parameters to exploit the crazy trading environment we are currently experiencing!

I love it!

Upvoted and following you now.

Namaste (I recognize the divine in you, my friend),

JaiChai

Many thanks for reading my post. And if you enjoyed it, please: Upvote, Follow, Comment and Resteem.

- JaiChai "My mind was a terrible thing to waste..."

About the Author

JaiChai has been in the cryptocurrency and disruptive technology space for well over 6 years. He is an enigma, regarded by his cohorts as sarcastic, funny, intuitive - but most of all, elusive. JaiChai alternates long dormant periods with concentrated episodes of frenzied commentary - only to go silent again.

He’s known for randomly submitting philosophical and contrarian posts on most cryptocoin forums.

When asked about his vanishing acts, he says, "I’m just somebody who enjoys being nobody because I look like everybody. Besides, time checking things off my 'bucket list’ - sans notoriety - is time well spent."

Parting Shot -

"F@ckin' miners! Include my transaction in your damn block now!!"