Nostr notes by Judge Hardcase

NOSTR fixes this. Also, if you got suckered by this because ...

2026-10-11T15:23:28Z

In reply to nevent1q…yq7p
_________________________

NOSTR fixes this.

Also, if you got suckered by this because you're still too lazy to just generate your own seeds off-device: 🤦‍♂🤷

I think you mean thanksAmerica. 😉

2026-10-10T12:56:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…kf2f
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I think you mean thanksAmerica. 😉

Effectively a fractionally reserved bank without withdrawals. ...

2026-09-22T10:18:24Z

In reply to nevent1q…vmjw
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Effectively a fractionally reserved bank without withdrawals.

"Why didn't I think of that?!!!!" - Jamie Dimon (probably)

"Most of the developers who worked on Liquid and introduced ...

2026-09-15T13:49:33Z

In reply to nevent1q…hz6r
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"Most of the developers who worked on Liquid and introduced the initial bug, or missed it, have long since moved on..."

I think it's worth noting here that apparently it wasn't the 'initial' bug that was exploited; but a buggy fix to that recently discovered 'initial' bug. Regardless, it is absolutely Blockstream's responsibility for critical bugs not to continue to be missed regardless of the turnover of their developers.

That said, despite the obviously deserved hit to Blockstream's reputation, I agree they shouldn't be paying any ransom.

BTW, this was a theft from Blocksteam's users in the same way a bank robbery is a theft from the banks' account holders (i.e. it isn't). If a bank ends up with no choice but to rug those clients due to resulting issues of insolvency; then, those clients just happened to trust the wrong bank.

*none of this is intended to imply that Blockstream should never be used for anything again in the future... just stay informed of the risks; and proceed accordingly with caution.

*also worth noting that the federated model of custody was revealed to completely breaks down to mere theater when each member uncritically relies on the same code to direct them on which transactions to authorize.

Nice! Looks like peg-outs still not active. Someone out there ...

2026-09-14T17:04:14Z

In reply to nevent1q…wtue
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Nice! Looks like peg-outs still not active. Someone out there must *really* be confident that reactivation of peg-outs is imminent in order to be willing to swap BTC for L-BTC in the meantime.

"How dare YOU not allow ME to make use of YOUR relays ...

2026-09-14T12:41:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…73l0
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"How dare *YOU* not allow *ME* to make use of *YOUR* relays however *I* see fit?"

LOL! Now THAT must be some kind of fucking joke.

Na... they're commie in name only. That is, the means of ...

2026-09-13T14:17:48Z

In reply to nevent1q…txww
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Na... they're commie in name only. That is, the means of production aren't owned by the public; but owned privately at the pleasure of the state. That's more fascist than commie; but ya, that pretty much describes both them and us.

🤷 Ex-Lehman Bro's executive? 🤣

2026-09-12T00:23:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…tpuk
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🤷 Ex-Lehman Bro's executive? 🤣

Peg-ins on; but Peg-outs off? That doesn't sound scammy at ...

2026-09-12T00:10:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…3tj9
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Peg-ins on; but Peg-outs off? That doesn't sound scammy at all.

Nostr event nevent1qqs86kynezya7emh8gsq8laf0d95svd94rvmff2hkjz40c459yz5elgzyzment38uqmsk2zknylx6j83t5t98822550m704ah54ugrmq5nf9uqxy08x

2026-09-10T18:35:08Z

In reply to nevent1q…xmf5
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"... the stock market says it isn't" How is the ...

2026-09-10T09:39:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…s350
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"... the stock market says it isn't" How is the market saying this, exactly? by NGU?
Yeah, that's what a bubble looks like.

*note: not all NGU are bubbles; but all bubbles are NGU (until they pop).

I agree that federated custody wasn't the cause of this ...

2026-09-09T09:54:18Z

In reply to nevent1q…n36g
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I agree that federated custody wasn't the cause of this issue.

However, a federated custody whose members don't individually competently scrutinize the unifying software on which they collectively operate that has been provided by a single development entity is de facto 'federated' in name only.

I also hope the assets are returned to Liquid and that it ...

2026-09-09T00:55:16Z

In reply to nevent1q…2amf
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I also hope the assets are returned to Liquid and that it continues to improve.

That said, Liquid's reputation in particular - and Blockstream more generally - will undoubtedly take a huge hit... and, rightfully so, IMO.

The tech being worked out by Liquid is absolutely important to the success of Bitcoin.

It's not important that that tech necessarily ultimately be worked out specifically by Liquid.

Seems to me it was pre-paid - when it was voluntarily traded for ...

2026-09-08T09:44:41Z

In reply to nevent1q…ycg7
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Seems to me it was pre-paid - when it was voluntarily traded for 'paper' BTC.

ouch

2026-09-07T15:51:41Z

In reply to nevent1q…f2gk
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ouch

To those who dismissed the ColdCard fiasco as a result of the ...

2026-09-07T12:37:32Z

To those who dismissed the ColdCard fiasco as a result of the code merely being 'source-available' and not fully 'open-source', let this serve as a reminder that ultimately there is no distinction as long as no one is bothering to audit the code either way.

quoting
nevent1q…rwzm
Liquid hack explained.

Liquid has confidential transactions that hide the amounts for improved privacy. A bug in how these transactions are validated caused inflation of Liquid BTC (L-BTC) and allowed hackers to empty the entire side chain.

Liquid nodes don't see the amounts of a confidential transaction, so to make sure that the transaction is still valid and doesn't cause inflation nodes check something called a balance proof and a range proof.

The balance proof establish that sum of the input amounts equal the output amounts, i.e., that "x L-BTC going in and x L-BTC going out". But there's a catch. Only relying on a balance proof isn't enough. You also need the range proof.

The range proof establishes that a hidden output amount falls within a positive range. That means a valid output must be at least 1 L-sat and at most 2^64 − 1 L-sats. Range proofs make sure that you can't mint "negative L-BTC".

Why is this even necessary? Remember, the amounts are hidden and a hidden negative amount would allow extra positive outputs to balance against it. Without a range proof, a transaction could say "I've put 1 L-BTC in, and I'm taking two outputs out: one with 4000 L-BTC and one with -3999 L-BTC)."

This is going to cause a disaster in a little bit.

Once the balance proof, the range proof, and other validations pass, a transaction is regarded as valid and can pass consensus. However, because especially the range proof is computationally expensive, Liquid nodes cache the result of a successful range proof in memory. Essentially, the node remembers "I saw this range proof before and it was valid, all good!".

In order to recognize the same range proof later on, you need to assign a label to it. This is called a cache key. This cache key is the actual cause of the bug.

The way this cache key was constructed allowed two different transactions to collide on their cache key. Essentially, one valid transaction (1 L-BTC in, 1 L-BTC out) had the same cache key as an invalid transaction (1 L-BTC in, 4000 L-BTC out).

Here's the hack: the attackers submitted the valid transaction (1 L-BTC in, 1 L-BTC out) first. Liquid nodes verified this transaction successfully, created a cache key called REKT and stored it in their cache. Then the attackers carefully crafted a second invalid transaction with (1 L-BTC in, 4000 L-BTC out) that created the same cache key REKT.

Instead of validating the second transaction and realizing that it printed money out of thin air, Liquid nodes found it in their cache and said "hey I saw this transaction before, everything is fine" and that caused the inflation.

The attackers then took their 4000 L-BTC and withdrew 4000 BTC onto the Bitcoin base chain.

#nevent1q…acjm CORRECTION: #nevent1q…5fvr

2026-09-06T20:41:45Z

quoting nevent1q…acjm

So, apparently the 'stolen' coins were moved right into the address they were 'stolen' from... I guess that's a good sign that they are in fact whitehats 🤷 ... for now at least.

CORRECTION:

quoting
nevent1q…5fvr
but then again, the peg outs happened in the transaction before that.

yeah... probably not... it looks like liquid stopped processing ...

2026-09-06T20:30:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…mmmj
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yeah... probably not... it looks like liquid stopped processing blocks several hours ago:

🤔#nevent1q…s227

2026-09-06T20:25:19Z

🤔nostr:nevent1qvzqqqqqqypzqc4fyp9rz484zld7ukpjqvsg89ltm7a2r0hle0c5d4lsvyugtklrqythwumn8ghj7un9d3shjtnswf5k6ctv9ehx2ap0qyfhwumn8ghj7mmxve3ksctfdch8qatz9uqzpm9zf2wvnjp6w2eavs32x0kmw9yvepanh7fjch9w6du26ll64vy866s227

ah... that would make more sense.

2026-09-06T20:21:07Z

In reply to nevent1q…han6
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ah... that would make more sense.

the hours of deffenning silence in response to this may be the ...

2026-09-06T20:07:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…205m
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the hours of deffenning silence in response to this may be the most concerning part.

So, apparently the 'stolen' coins were moved right into ...

2026-09-06T20:05:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…phu9
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So, apparently the 'stolen' coins were moved right into the address they were 'stolen' from... I guess that's a good sign that they are in fact whitehats 🤷 ... for now at least.

All of my friends and family are WAY more normie than I am. As ...

2026-09-05T15:31:18Z

In reply to nevent1q…0nau
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All of my friends and family are WAY more normie than I am. As such, inviting them would implicitly obligate me to serve as their nostr help desk - which would just be a nightmare, because (for example) I can't even explain to myself why the behavior between clients and relays seems to always be changing.

Maybe a good solid reference manual on best practices for how to use a client's relay settings would help in this area. But maybe the existence of such a manual in itself isn't yet viable due to those best practices still being in a constant state of flux? 🤷

As it stands now, inviting my normie friends and family to nostr now would likely just be a setback to their eventual adoption in the future - and likely do more harm than good to their appetite for freedom tech more generally.

* none of this is intended as a criticism of Nostr. I view Nostr as still being in a 'move fast and break things' phase necessary for its growth. It's just not yet ready for prime-time. It is what it is.

They're right not to trust a foreign power with their gold. ...

2026-09-03T19:08:10Z

In reply to nevent1q…xrs0
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They're right not to trust a foreign power with their gold.

Also, this is obviously projection derived from what they would do if the shoe was on the other foot.

🤣 Let's just say I'm well past my 100-hours quota of ...

2026-08-28T15:19:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…63ya
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🤣 Let's just say I'm well past my 100-hours quota of bitcoin Youtube. 😉

hence: "it deliberately omits the most dangerous thing: ...

2026-08-28T12:41:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…x3xa
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hence: "it deliberately omits the most dangerous thing: gerneating entropy..."

quoting
nevent1q…u6np
If you are praising libsecp256k1's code quality, then 2 things:

1/ you are very right. It is outrageously well tested and high quality.

2/ it deliberately omits the most dangerous thing: generating entropy, leaving that to the caller (where it's needed, which, thank god, isn't very often).

💯 Twitter is awful. I got suspended like 9 years ago... not ...

2026-08-28T10:21:39Z

In reply to nevent1q…0jde
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💯 Twitter is awful. I got suspended like 9 years ago... not even sure why. I think they just wanted me to provide a phone number as an anti-bot measure. I decided it wasn't worth it; so, I just abandoned it. Shortly thereafter, I stopped using Facebook; and had been completely free of social media until I found Nostr. Nostr obviously has it's problems; but, the high-concentration of high-quality content is well worth it.

yeah, me neither. The Nostr experience in general for me has been ...

2026-08-27T18:40:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…pm2p
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yeah, me neither.

The Nostr experience in general for me has been slowly degrading (even aside from the lower engagement). That's not necessarily a criticism of Nostr, though. I kind of assume best practices keep changing for the better (like how to best make use of relays, for example); but I'm just too slow to adapt fast enough.

... apparently, replying to your notes from Jumble works fine.

2026-08-27T18:29:07Z

In reply to nevent1q…uaku
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... apparently, replying to your notes from Jumble works fine.

Yes. For whatever reason, Jumble won't allow me to react to ...

2026-08-27T18:28:36Z

In reply to nevent1q…ajwg
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Yes.

For whatever reason, Jumble won't allow me to react to your notes (just spins but ultimately does nothing) ; but I can react to others' notes. 🤷 I can react to your notes from Nostrudel just fine, though.

Also, for the last couple of days, I've noticed that the subtly flashing bar at the top of the feed page would never stop flashing... as if it would never finish trying to load more content.

*It's also not updating notifications for me; but I'm only just now checking on that thanks to your note.

Anit-authoritarianism on the left and the right have historically ...

2026-08-27T18:01:08Z

In reply to nevent1q…klmj
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Anit-authoritarianism on the left and the right have historically often agreed on the diagnosis. It's in the remedy where they typically disagree. (probably worth noting that the posted site seems heavy on diagnosis; light and conspicuously vague on remedy).

Nostr event nevent1qqswnuzs4a6ra2zr9ewxd9t2m7v6q6teujs8hd0tl8j03r9krxcct5czyzment38uqmsk2zknylx6j83t5t98822550m704ah54ugrmq5nf9u3gusvf

2026-08-26T18:58:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…9v5g
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I'm just auto-rejecting those requests. I'm guessing that ...

2026-08-26T18:50:37Z

In reply to nevent1q…wrpz
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I'm just auto-rejecting those requests. I'm guessing that means I'm not seeing some content by the users who choose to use those relays. If so, I wonder if those users realize they have chosen to censor themselves.

Maybe I'm not watching enough TV (or more likely: I'm not ...

2026-08-26T12:05:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…m5ag
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Maybe I'm not watching enough TV (or more likely: I'm not watching the exact right amount); but, I don't even know what the non-government red hats are doing to Canada.

Regardless, I wouldn't be expecting apologies from the red hats. Psycho partisans have been around just about as long as there have been psycho governments.

after about an hour of retries maybe?

2026-08-25T20:41:58Z

In reply to nevent1q…7hey
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after about an hour of retries maybe?

I'm also not convinced... especially after seeing the 5-black ...

2026-08-25T20:27:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…qn6f
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I'm also not convinced... especially after seeing the 5-black tile drawn back-to-back within the first 3 draws.

hmmm.... in my testing, 20% bias turned out to be a massive ...

2026-08-25T20:12:58Z

In reply to nevent1q…k0mu
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hmmm.... in my testing, 20% bias turned out to be a massive underestimate:
🤣

#nevent1q…mm68

2026-08-24T18:47:37Z

In reply to nevent1q…ytmm
_________________________

quoting nevent1q…mm68
A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE FROM COIN FLIPS (no conversion from binary to decimal required):
*assistance from some form of hardware will be necessary for checksum calculation (see opening note of the Instructions):

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

CORRECT: ColdCard is to blame. Signing devices should be able ...

2026-08-24T18:40:28Z

CORRECT: ColdCard is to blame. Signing devices *should* be able to provide secure seeds. ColdCard victims are NOT to blame; they did exactly what they were told to do.

Also, be careful uncritically doing what you are told to do. Do your own research. Verify advice for yourself.

Rolling dice or flipping coins, etc may feel ridiculous at first... but only until you understand what it is actually accomplishing. It's just too damn easy not to do for yourself - even if for use in a multi-sig setup. The trade-off of not otherwise trusting some device to tell you what your seed words will be ought to be a no-brainer (especially now, post-ColdCard fiasco).

The culture around self-custody needs to change: less emphasis on making it easily accessible to everyone; more emphasis on the trade-offs that should be understandable by anyone.

quoting
nevent1q…vv3d
BITCOIN WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN
alexthorn (nprofile…2xyg) with walker (nprofile…yza6)

FOUNTAIN: https://www.fountain.fm/episode/lJsjvBlA6W3HEs1S8vtU
YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/KJ6LsMNesiY
RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/v7elcpu-bitcoin-will-never-be-the-same-again-alex-thorn.html
SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1KLKkGevrHdFbhADYgs3of
APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bitcoin-will-never-be-the-same-again-alex-thorn/id1694392423?i=1000785568021
GET EMAILED: https://walkeramerica.substack.com/
SHOW NOTES: https://walkeramerica.substack.com/p/alex-thorn-bitcoin-will-never-be
EVERYWHERE ELSE: https://bitcoinpodcast.net/podcast

Circular economies have an inherent chicken-and-egg problem ...

2026-08-24T10:14:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…u7qp
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Circular economies have an inherent chicken-and-egg problem almost by definition of them being 'circular'.

This is why store of value going mainstream must come first...

...and even then, it may turn out that bitcoin never becomes a mainstream preference for exchange of value in a person-to-person trade...

...and that's okay. What ultimately matters is that bitcoin is the best way to store that value in between making those trades.

Absolutely! Took me a sec to realize it wasn't just a shaker. ...

2026-08-22T23:24:44Z

In reply to nevent1q…02yh
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Absolutely! Took me a sec to realize it wasn't just a shaker. 🤣

I think you're just not thinking big enough: 6-day weeks; ...

2026-08-22T12:52:10Z

In reply to nevent1q…mt4v
_________________________

I think you're just not thinking big enough:

6-day weeks; with 10 6-week months; plus *5* public vacation days at the end of the year.

The campaign platform writes itself:
"Everyone hates Mondays, right? So, I'm going to ban Mondays."
"Under my plan, your monthly rent pays for 6 weeks; not just 4".

How could you lose?

🤣 #nevent1q…2jtd

2026-08-21T12:29:01Z

In reply to nevent1q…8rg5
_________________________

🤣

quoting
nevent1q…2jtd

Good point. Gold price in 1970 was fixed by law... i.e. not a ...

2026-08-20T20:41:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…8m56
_________________________

Good point. Gold price in 1970 was fixed by law... i.e. not a particularly good baseline from which to measure progress.

Interesting round-table conversation on @npub1rxy…hnp8 . ...

2026-08-19T11:21:42Z

Interesting round-table conversation on npub1rxysxnjkhrmqd3ey73dp9n5y5yvyzcs64acc9g0k2epcpwwyya4spvhnp8 (npub1rxy…hnp8) .

Perhaps most interesting is that all but one of these signing-device spokesmen seemed more interested in not scaring off 'grandma' from self-custody than they are in "don't trust; verify".

Coincidentally, all but one of the corresponding signing-device projects stand to directly benefit by offering to sell their devices - including to 'grandmas'. 🤔

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zolz8EI6eYc

HOW TO BE YOUR OWN BANK: Step 1: Do your own due diligence. Get a ...

2026-08-19T10:14:26Z

HOW TO BE YOUR OWN BANK:

Step 1: Do your own due diligence. Get a really good safe. This step is not simple. There is a bottomless pit of things to consider. And ultimately, there is no perfect safe.

Step 2: Do your own due diligence. Don't be satisfied with using a combination that the safe manufacturer provides you. Instead, generate your own combination that you can verify by yourself has in fact been generated as randomly as can reasonably be achieved. This step is very simple. So simple it's not even worth considering skipping. In fact, it should be viewed as borderline malpractice for safe manufactures to be offering to choose a combination for you in the first place.

Also, even if you didn't get rugged by a fat, stupid asshole ...

2026-08-18T14:38:27Z

In reply to nevent1q…fqsq
_________________________

Also, even if you didn't get rugged by a fat, stupid asshole this time, make sure you're taking the proper precautions to not just get rugged by the next fat, stupid asshole.

video from about 50:25 -

I know that a hardware wallet should be required and expected to provide great randomness for seeds. But how do you validate that? So, you know what I mean? Like, if there's no way to validate it, then what's the point? What is the point?

And so, this is again, if you're learning the wrong lessons, the wrong lesson would be, "Thank God I didn't trust NVK. That guy was a dickhead. You know, pat on the back. I was smart not to trust him and so I'm good."

No, that's the wrong lesson.

Or, this is, okay, you know, yeah, this is isolated to this one thing, and if you didn't get taken by this one thing, you're good.

That's not the lesson.

The lesson is, do you actually know that you're good? And how? And I'm sorry, but if you're trusting a hardware wallet, random number generator without seeing like a robust review, I think you're fooling yourself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la63ROwLCnU

Fair. I guess my thinking is that (as many say) 'being your ...

2026-08-18T14:01:55Z

In reply to nevent1q…tfvz
_________________________

Fair. I guess my thinking is that (as many say) 'being your own bank' responsibly requires caring about such things. i.e. get a device that allows you to bring your own seed that you manually created (which is simple enough for just about anyone to learn to do safely) and avoid the otherwise unnecessary risk introduced by an RNG altogether.

Of course, it's trade-offs all the way down, though. I guess Bitkey could makes some sense for someone who understands the risks that come with making those trade-offs... or even for a normie who just doesn't want to be bothered with understanding them. (though, personally, for those people, I think I would be recommending they just stick with CashApp).

I know bitkey abstracts away the seed phrase; but, at some level, ...

2026-08-18T11:14:01Z

In reply to nevent1q…4pfr
_________________________

I know bitkey abstracts away the seed phrase; but, at some level, it must be relying on an RNG for key generation, right? How do you validate that? Or, is the thinking that its multi-sig (albeit, not multi-vendor) is in itself a good enough mitigation against a potential coldcard-like fiasco?

💯 I'm having a hard time coming up with a use-case that ...

2026-08-18T10:29:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…a8af
_________________________

💯 I'm having a hard time coming up with a use-case that even justifies it at all. Maybe for testing purposes only? Regardless "*** Advanced! For EXPERT use only!!! ***" ought to be flashing all over the place.

Same. I know I never would have used this easy button myself ...

2026-08-18T10:22:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…vvxl
_________________________

Same. I know I never would have used this easy button myself anyway; but, I could easily have led others to a recurring potential for danger (even if I had the foresight to initially warn them).

Now, I don't think I would feel comfortable recommending any signing device that even offers this easy button at all... which is seemingly like all of them. 🤷

Sparrow wallet by far - even though it's desktop only. For ...

2026-08-17T13:26:32Z

In reply to nevent1q…jchz
_________________________

Sparrow wallet by far - even though it's desktop only. For mobile: Nunchuk or Bull Bitcoin depending on the task.

Holy crap!!! Why has no one ever told me that I need to be adding ...

2026-08-17T13:15:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…q6jt
_________________________

Holy crap!!! Why has no one ever told me that I need to be adding espresso to my brownies recipe?!?

Maybe. Maybe not. What they most certainly misunderstood was the ...

2026-08-14T14:09:06Z

In reply to nevent1q…2t3p
_________________________

Maybe. Maybe not. What they most certainly misunderstood was the term 'emergency' - or they would have had a specific hard fork contingency as part of the design from the get-go in the case it turned out that the soft fork failed to achieve consensus.

It's like yelling "FIRE! Follow me!"; then jumping out a window with no plan for how you're not going to just splatter on the sidewalk if it turns out you're way higher up than you had hoped.

"There need to be more physical locations where one can buy ...

2026-08-13T14:08:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…8a9h
_________________________

"There need to be more physical locations where one can buy hardware wallets for cash!"

YES!!!!!

Obviously, supply chain attacks are a thing. But, that risk can't be completely eliminated either way... making any potential additional risks introduced by purchasing online seem unnecessary if at all avoidable.

It would probably be better for wallet manufactures to facilitate a culture of customers verifying the authenticity of their devices AFTER the customer has taken possession rather than the security theater of an unachievable protection from supply chain attacks.

Of course, a true paranoid crypto anarchist would have operated ...

2026-08-13T11:32:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…qxhw
_________________________

Of course, a true paranoid crypto anarchist would have operated under the assumption they were captured to begin with. Not that you would have had any reason to think so; or that you shouldn't have been using them. But, just, since you couldn't verify that they weren't, always be considering the consequences of what you were doing if they were.

But, yeah, they were awesome!

Absolutely: A signer provided with a seed that it has not itself ...

2026-08-12T19:17:13Z

In reply to nevent1q…5zdr
_________________________

Absolutely: A signer provided with a seed that it has not itself generated is still required to use that seed correctly.

Unlike randomness, however, this is functionality that can be deterministically reproduced with other signers... which would suggest both a) it's reasonably easily verified by a layman; and b) any such failure to function correctly wouldn't go unnoticed for more than about 5 minutes; let alone 5 years.

Ideally, independent research would have led someone to the ...

2026-08-12T14:29:49Z

In reply to nevent1q…wrna
_________________________

Ideally, independent research would have led someone to the conclusion that they should not be relying on a device to tell them what their seed words will be. (i.e. generate them for yourself with dice, coins, whatever you have complete control over to validate for yourself - and make sure to do the research on generating seed words from dice, coins, whatever to make sure you're doing it safely).

That said, I think it's worth answering this question from the perspective of many of those who DIDN'T get burned by coldcard just because they happened to not like its creator:

video from about 50:25 -
I know that a hardware wallet should be required and expected to provide great randomness for seeds. But how do you validate that? So, you know what I mean? Like, if there's no way to validate it, then what's the point? What is the point?

And so, this is again, if you're learning the wrong lessons, the wrong lesson would be, "Thank God I didn't trust NVK. That guy was a dickhead. You know, pat on the back. I was smart not to trust him and so I'm good."

No, that's the wrong lesson.

Or, this is, okay, you know, yeah, this is isolated to this one thing, and if you didn't get taken by this one thing, you're good.

That's not the lesson.

The lesson is, do you actually know that you're good? And how? And I'm sorry, but if you're trusting a hardware wallet, random number generator without seeing like a robust review, I think you're fooling yourself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la63ROwLCnU

Frankly, this was obvious to anyone with a brain at the time.

2026-08-12T09:52:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…3km6
_________________________

Frankly, this was obvious to anyone with a brain at the time.

*better yet: don't even have to use built-in 12th or 24th ...

2026-08-11T17:15:07Z

In reply to nevent1q…r2ze
_________________________

*better yet: don't even have to use built-in 12th or 24th word tool. Just provide final word after user has finished providing 7 non-checksum bits for 12th word or 3 non-checksum bits for 24th word.

Excellent video! I'd like to offer my 2-cent idea to ...

2026-08-11T16:54:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…s9cg
_________________________

Excellent video!

I'd like to offer my 2-cent idea to SeedSigner (npub17ty…3mgl) for a UX for flipping coins:

1 word at a time (11 flips at a time). Push UP for heads; DOWN for tails; (left or right to position for a correction; or on to next word).

After each 11 flips, device provides word result - so user may (if so inclined) verify in real-time against print-out of simple to use word lookup table (or any number of word lists available); i.e. no need for any additional risk of exposing seed material to any other device (though, I do love Ian Coleman's tool for its educational value).

Then, use already built-in tool to calculate 12th or 24th word.

Granted, 256 coin flips is more than 100 dice rolls; but it feels like only choosing between UP or DOWN for coins instead of multiple choice for dice might even turn out to be more economical in the end.

quoting
nevent1q…ragn
A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE FROM COIN FLIPS (no conversion from binary to decimal required):
*assistance from some form of hardware will be necessary for checksum calculation (see opening note of the Instructions):

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

Admittedly, this is a bit of hind-sight on my part; but, for ...

2026-08-11T16:15:19Z

In reply to nevent1q…96pt
_________________________

Admittedly, this is a bit of hind-sight on my part; but, for someone who actually chose to be invested in bip110, the potential to end up in this situation had to be foreseeable.

Frankly, if I were a bip110er - and I had been sold on the idea that this fork was an imminently existential emergency - I'd be more than a little miffed that the hard fork fall-back plan wasn't built right into the bip to begin with.

will be missed. 🫂

2026-08-11T13:08:20Z

In reply to nevent1q…9s7t
_________________________

will be missed. 🫂

This guide may be useful for anyone interested: #nevent1q…ragn

2026-08-10T16:39:43Z

In reply to nevent1q…lumk
_________________________

This guide may be useful for anyone interested:

quoting
nevent1q…ragn
A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE FROM COIN FLIPS (no conversion from binary to decimal required):
*assistance from some form of hardware will be necessary for checksum calculation (see opening note of the Instructions):

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

no clue... I normally assume a dust output indicates some sort of ...

2026-08-10T16:29:49Z

In reply to nevent1q…pc8e
_________________________

no clue... I normally assume a dust output indicates some sort of shitcoinery... wouldn't shock me if someone was just trying to trade dick-butts and got screwed by their wonky-ass shitcoin wallet. (but I wouldn't know what a standard shitcoin transaction should look like - so there's that too).

@npub12em…y99g is so freak'n good at distilling complicated ...

2026-08-10T11:59:46Z

Phundamentals (npub12em…y99g) is so freak'n good at distilling complicated concepts down to their fundamentals (no pun intended 😉).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la63ROwLCnU

I'm going to assume "executing a secret hardfork" is ...

2026-08-09T20:36:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…je02
_________________________

I'm going to assume "executing a secret hardfork" is referring to simply ignoring their softfork? That's certainly an imaginative description.

Did large mining pools 'collude' and agree to ignore the softfork? Maybe. I would. It's definitely in all of their interests to be on the same page.

It looks to me like you understand perfectly. That is, provided ...

2026-08-09T16:56:58Z

In reply to nevent1q…pzu2
_________________________

It looks to me like you understand perfectly. That is, provided the reasonable assumption that the apparently stalled chain remains stalled, a PoW change (resulting in a hard fork) would be necessary to unstall it.

If, however, by some miracle, the stalled chain got going again, and continued to persist as a viable (albeit, minority) soft fork, I think it would be fair to consider it effectively the same as a hard fork (aka, shitcoin - depending on perspective).

You mean by watching old Bill Murray movies? (IYKYK)

2026-08-09T16:07:08Z

In reply to nevent1q…gj7f
_________________________

You mean by watching old Bill Murray movies? (IYKYK)

yeah... I don't wonder whether the grifters exist.

2026-08-09T14:51:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…g7mw
_________________________

yeah... I don't wonder whether the grifters exist.

Yes: be careful. On the other hand, I would expect anyone who ...

2026-08-09T14:36:52Z

In reply to nevent1q…sjgf
_________________________

Yes: be careful.

On the other hand, I would expect anyone who truly believed that bip-110 was an imminently existential emergency to be preparing to hard fork at this time... just make sure this is what you truly believe, first (though, I wonder whether these people actually exist).

Absolutely correct. If more than just being so damn good, models ...

2026-08-09T14:22:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…930j
_________________________

Absolutely correct.

If more than just being so damn good, models continue to get so much damn better; then, supply will almost certainly continue to struggle to catch up with demand.

The question then is: when - if ever - will model improvements slow down? 🤷 Reports of 'temporary' pauses on capex investments in data centers may suggest a soft ceiling is beginning to develop.

Maybe bubble doesn't pop... but generally, basic economic ...

2026-08-09T14:05:59Z

In reply to nevent1q…0h2q
_________________________

Maybe bubble doesn't pop... but generally, basic economic incentives would suggest: higher prices -> more supply -> lower prices.

Mostly agree. I think the changes bip110 proposed would have been ...

2026-08-09T13:34:52Z

In reply to nevent1q…vsd2
_________________________

Mostly agree. I think the changes bip110 proposed would have been an improvement overall.

That said, I don't think its failure necessarily indicates the wider community just didn't care... just that it wasn't viewed as an existential emergency by the wider community to consider at this time. A non-emergency proposal would have allowed for more time and effort to be dedicated to swaying a consensus... I strongly suspect there will be even more reflexive resistance to any such proposal now.

It's above my pay-grade to know for sure... but, if it ...

2026-08-09T12:12:35Z

In reply to nevent1q…m52a
_________________________

It's above my pay-grade to know for sure... but, if it instructs a node to consider the first block specifically of the bip110 side of the chain-split to be invalid, that ought to do it. (all descendants of an invalid block are necessarily also invalid).

Basically, yes. To clarify , the first block that 110'ers ...

2026-08-09T00:01:29Z

In reply to nevent1q…w0v9
_________________________

Basically, yes.

To clarify , the first block that 110'ers mined was 110's alternative (at the same block height) to a "real" block that 110 had rejected. The next "real" block would have already been well on its way to solve for a transaction template it had constructed well before this first 110 block was even mined.

It's not so much that these transactions were "re-included" in that next "real" block as much as it is that the first 110 block was simply ignored by that next "real" block.

So, all good; business as usual... unless the 110 chain ever somehow manages to catch up (who knows?: maybe they already gave up).

Nostr event nevent1qqsdxpg97ar7lu28x9asfl300w8nrdaxkmclf7u8t65h86yuzr4jrngzyzment38uqmsk2zknylx6j83t5t98822550m704ah54ugrmq5nf9ue7dxc3

2026-08-08T19:44:11Z

Obviously, accidental collisions from ColdCard's pathetic ...

2026-08-08T14:23:45Z

In reply to nevent1q…pk20
_________________________

Obviously, accidental collisions from ColdCard's pathetic RNG-generated entropy was inevitable... but, that this collision occurred with a seed used exactly once just 3 days earlier seems incredible to me... something else (at least in addition to the pathetic entropy) is almost certain to be going on here. right?

Yup... and the fork will crash the price of each; and Wall ST. ...

2026-08-07T15:15:26Z

In reply to nevent1q…pqrn
_________________________

Yup... and the fork will crash the price of each; and Wall ST. will blame the "paranoid crypto anarchists" for not assimilating.

#nevent1q…wh7v

2026-08-07T14:44:22Z

In reply to nevent1q…a0ns
_________________________

quoting nevent1q…wh7v
A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE FROM COIN FLIPS (no conversion from binary to decimal required):
*assistance from some form of hardware will be necessary for checksum calculation (see opening note of the Instructions):

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

🤣 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Gh1lTcwdGY

2026-08-07T11:54:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…zk2e
_________________________

🤣
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Gh1lTcwdGY

Fully-functional support for a testnet environment: Testnet3?, ...

2026-08-07T11:44:38Z

In reply to nevent1q…wg0j
_________________________

Fully-functional support for a testnet environment: Testnet3?, Testnet4?, Signet?, some new one?, etc - whichever makes the most sense; but, there ought to a commonly accepted ecosystem-wide 'standard'.

Ideally, anyone should be able to just choose to take on the role of Software Tester and bang away at any and all software within the Bitcoin ecosystem as easily with their own test coins as with their own real coins.

Instead, that "Fuck it! We're doing it live!" seems to be the most commonly accepted 'standard' is a HUGE missed opportunity for both the growth and security of self-custody, IMO.

"... but I told it: 'make no mistakes'." 🤷

2026-08-06T17:23:38Z

In reply to nevent1q…w3vn
_________________________

"... but I told it: 'make no mistakes'." 🤷

So True. But; that was then; this is now: "You didn't ...

2026-08-06T13:30:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…kp26
_________________________

So True. But; that was then; this is now:

"You didn't lose all your money like everyone else?"

#nevent1q…fdz5

2026-08-06T12:29:00Z

In reply to nevent1q…5ga6
_________________________

quoting nevent1q…fdz5
A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE FROM COIN FLIPS (no conversion from binary to decimal required):
*assistance from some form of hardware will be necessary for checksum calculation (see opening note of the Instructions):

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE ...

2026-08-06T12:27:00Z

A GUIDE FOR MANUALLY GENERATING A SEED PHRASE OFFLINE, OFF-DEVICE FROM COIN FLIPS (no conversion from binary to decimal required):
*assistance from some form of hardware will be necessary for checksum calculation (see opening note of the Instructions):

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cONG2ZNjJ0c I'm sure this ...

2026-08-06T11:32:38Z

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cONG2ZNjJ0c

I'm sure this video is making the rounds (which I assume is why YouTube put it in my recommendations).

Regardless, fascinating re-watching of this blast from the past.

Andreas is the GOAT!, but some of this didn't age so well... most notably, specifically identifying ColdCard as his favorite due to its efforts to remove reliance on trust in the manufacturer.

He also expresses a commonly held assumption that has been proven false that we should feel comfortable with hardware wallet seed generation more generally due to heavy scrutiny by experts... *though, he does caveat that perfect trust isn't possible.

Regardless, he does come to the correct ultimate conclusion (IMO): in cases where it's really important to not be relying on trust, you really should be generating your own seed offline with cards, dice, etc. (PS. IMO, there are vanishingly few use-cases where it's not really important to not be relying on trust).

#nevent1q…vpwf

2026-08-06T10:32:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…568z
_________________________

quoting nevent1q…vpwf
Can someone who knows please enlighten me (a non-expert)?

Are there any mission-critical basic functions of a cold storage signing device that absolutely require the use of RNG?

A signing nonce comes to mind; but, it's my understanding that deriving it deterministically with a hash of the transaction content (or something along those lines) instead of using an RNG is now considered best practice. Is this correct?

Are there any other absolutely necessary reasons for a signing device to use RNG. If not, since seed generation could instead be achieved reasonably safely, and *verifiably* with dice or coins, etc, doesn't that necessarily mean that signing devices that even offer an inherently unverifiable RNG seed generation option are subjecting unsuspecting users to an unnecessary risk?

...verifiable physical entropy only (e.g. no entropy derived ...

2026-08-06T10:14:34Z

In reply to nevent1q…4u2d
_________________________

...*verifiable* physical entropy only (e.g. no entropy derived from mouse movements, camera motion capture, etc).

Reproducible results for all Bitcoin mission-critical functions ...

2026-08-06T09:54:42Z

In reply to nevent1q…wg0j
_________________________

Reproducible results for all Bitcoin mission-critical functions in order to allow for independent verification by alternative Bitcoin software.

Thank you for this discussion. I do believe it turned out to be ...

2026-08-05T10:25:17Z

In reply to nevent1q…veys
_________________________

Thank you for this discussion. I do believe it turned out to be productive (for me, at least 😉)

quoting
nevent1q…wrdc
You may not be able to *fully* trust a seed generated from the entropy by rolling dice.

You may not be able to fully trust (or at all) the seed supposedly generated by the RNG of a hardware device.

The cool thing is you can benefit from the entropy of both by combining them with a simple XOR. In fact, you can XOR as many seeds together as you want and benefit from the entropy that each provides - verifiably by hand reasonably simply.

For example, even if unbeknownst to you, the ColdCard RNG were to provide zero entropy (i.e. if it were to produce the same seed every single time), by XORing it with a seed you manually generate with dice, you would still at least be benefiting from the dice entropy.

PS. ColdCard did provide the option to combine RNG with dice rolls... but there was no way to verify it actually combined anything (AFAIK).

It also provided an option for seed generation by dice rolls alone. This was verifiable; but, the verification process required you to expose seed material to another device... which I kind of thought was what a hardware wallet was supposed to allow you to avoid.

You may not be able to fully trust a seed generated from the ...

2026-08-05T10:17:54Z

You may not be able to *fully* trust a seed generated from the entropy by rolling dice.

You may not be able to fully trust (or at all) the seed supposedly generated by the RNG of a hardware device.

The cool thing is you can benefit from the entropy of both by combining them with a simple XOR. In fact, you can XOR as many seeds together as you want and benefit from the entropy that each provides - verifiably by hand reasonably simply.

For example, even if unbeknownst to you, the ColdCard RNG were to provide zero entropy (i.e. if it were to produce the same seed every single time), by XORing it with a seed you manually generate with dice, you would still at least be benefiting from the dice entropy.

PS. ColdCard did provide the option to combine RNG with dice rolls... but there was no way to verify it actually combined anything (AFAIK).

It also provided an option for seed generation by dice rolls alone. This was verifiable; but, the verification process required you to expose seed material to another device... which I kind of thought was what a hardware wallet was supposed to allow you to avoid.

Yeah, I may be done with cashu for the forseeable future... not ...

2026-08-04T19:09:57Z

In reply to nevent1q…ugjs
_________________________

Yeah, I may be done with cashu for the forseeable future... not just because of this particular npub.cash issue; but I've gotten pretty janky results on and off for years now (npub.cash had actually been one of the more consistently reliable components in the past).

It's a cool project idea. I hope it eventually earns a reputation for being reliably stable someday.

Same here. If y'all are using an npub.cash address as I am, ...

2026-08-04T18:44:16Z

In reply to nevent1q…xnm6
_________________________

Same here.

If y'all are using an npub.cash address as I am, it would seem this may be the explanation:

quoting
nevent1q…45nt
Yesterday we have uncovered an incompatibility between http://npub.cash and mint software, causing signature verification failures.

Until this is resolved http://npub.cash is offline for maintenance. Use http://npubx.cash in the meantime. Funds are safe

A shout-out to @npub1cj6…86t6 for alerting me to a change I ...

2026-08-04T16:12:32Z

A shout-out to gandlaf21 (npub1cj6…86t6) for alerting me to a change I could make to the column headers that will likely make the word look-ups even more intuitive.

There is a small associated update to the instructions section. The worksheets did not require an update.

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-iLPg8GRDAF3FgMl4jteAy7QTmJjX0X/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13EdkgqkEEJcHekfhj1QmtQwQqrwsL9E0/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TXThMSc2HMVVTRXLUGySOXSgP5KzBbQf/view

quoting
nevent1q…jnem
Hello Friends!

All of the entropy generation talk has inspired me to put together what I hope is a useful aid for generating seed words from coin flips. I suspect something similar already exists; but, I wanted to make my own exactly as I wanted it; and I thought I'd share it.

If you think you might be interested in doing this, but it's not exactly clear to you what this process entails, I highly recommend reading the note at the start of the instructions section before going any further. It may easily turn out that this process is not for you.

If you already know what you're getting into, I hope to have made the rest of it intuitive enough so that you should be fine to skip the instructions.

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1esU_VnMGXjNQrY7FcehDZlcFqMKW999V/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zrQwBR5781qwr2luXI29RBBo8PgqnZNT/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jHII0iqJVu2UPUCA6RnmvKt26F-_KAAu/view

If you find this aid useful or know someone you think might, feel free to share, download, improve, or do whatever else you want to with it.

Spot on! I've been watiching religiously for years. I'm ...

2026-08-04T13:59:05Z

In reply to nevent1q…gm39
_________________________

Spot on!

I've been watiching religiously for years. I'm certain the knowledge I've gained from doing so is more than I had ever even considered. So much so that if/when ODELL (npub1qny…95gx) said something to the effect of "[just don't roll dice]", I almost certianly rejected it instantly as not being compatible with the the toolkit to figure things out for myself based on the wealth of knowledge they had previously provided me.

💯 I know I've lost out on recruits because I ...

2026-08-04T12:59:38Z

In reply to nevent1q…5cxq
_________________________

💯 I *know* I've lost out on recruits because I couldn't bring myself to give the dumbed-down to the point of being misleading advice that many others might.

quoting
nevent1q…n6jd
Taking responsibility vs convenience... and knowing the trade-offs.

IMO, this is supposed to be the ethos of Bitcoin. It seems it should be clear now that the Bitcoin community in general has been too eager to abstract away responsibility to the user for the sake offering convenience in order to recruit new adoption more quickly - without sufficient emphasis on the trade-offs. This needs to change.

It's laudable to provide a mechanism for making it more convenient for a user to take responsibility; but that's completely different from abstracting a responsibility away altogether. At the very least, maintain a reasonably useful path for a user to choose to retain that responsibility.

nevent1q…0g24

Can someone who knows please enlighten me (a non-expert)? Are ...

2026-08-04T00:04:48Z

Can someone who knows please enlighten me (a non-expert)?

Are there any mission-critical basic functions of a cold storage signing device that absolutely require the use of RNG?

A signing nonce comes to mind; but, it's my understanding that deriving it deterministically with a hash of the transaction content (or something along those lines) instead of using an RNG is now considered best practice. Is this correct?

Are there any other absolutely necessary reasons for a signing device to use RNG. If not, since seed generation could instead be achieved reasonably safely, and *verifiably* with dice or coins, etc, doesn't that necessarily mean that signing devices that even offer an inherently unverifiable RNG seed generation option are subjecting unsuspecting users to an unnecessary risk?

Hello Friends! All of the entropy generation talk has inspired me ...

2026-08-03T19:15:22Z

Hello Friends!

All of the entropy generation talk has inspired me to put together what I hope is a useful aid for generating seed words from coin flips. I suspect something similar already exists; but, I wanted to make my own exactly as I wanted it; and I thought I'd share it.

If you think you might be interested in doing this, but it's not exactly clear to you what this process entails, I highly recommend reading the note at the start of the instructions section before going any further. It may easily turn out that this process is not for you.

If you already know what you're getting into, I hope to have made the rest of it intuitive enough so that you should be fine to skip the instructions.

Instructions:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1esU_VnMGXjNQrY7FcehDZlcFqMKW999V/view

Small print (more compact) version:
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oTrz6Dd0DtLznozeH0JVljUsGOTcYkFx/view
Lookup Table:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zrQwBR5781qwr2luXI29RBBo8PgqnZNT/view

Larger print version (for those of us with less than supernatural vision):
Worksheet:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rrczg6roAEO88UzLXwtrVrcSy68Sagln/view
Lookup Table
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jHII0iqJVu2UPUCA6RnmvKt26F-_KAAu/view

If you find this aid useful or know someone you think might, feel free to share, download, improve, or do whatever else you want to with it.

Taking responsibility vs convenience... and knowing the ...

2026-08-03T10:16:02Z

Taking responsibility vs convenience... and knowing the trade-offs.

IMO, this is supposed to be the ethos of Bitcoin. It seems it should be clear now that the Bitcoin community in general has been too eager to abstract away responsibility to the user for the sake offering convenience in order to recruit new adoption more quickly - without sufficient emphasis on the trade-offs. This needs to change.

It's laudable to provide a mechanism for making it more convenient for a user to take responsibility; but that's completely different from abstracting a responsibility away altogether. At the very least, maintain a reasonably useful path for a user to choose to retain that responsibility.

quoting
nevent1q…0g24
A message to all BIP39-based wallet providers (to include signing devices):

Please make it easy for users to bring their own seed words. I'm referring to assisting a user who has generated their own seed words manually to land on a final checksum valid word.

Ideally, a user should be able to generate their own seed phrase offline with indifference to a checksum. Then, when a wallet they try to enter it into for the first time detects an invalid checksum, the wallet could offer to provide the associated checksum-valid final word; so that the user may update their own physical backup and reenter their entire seed phrase for checksum verification.

I realize some wallets already offer some version of this "generate final word" assistance. It really seems like this should be expected as a standard now for all wallets.

Also, might be best to start encouraging users to be generating their own seed words rather than relying on a wallet to tell them what their seed words will be.

PS. Thank you! Your work is greatly appreciated, and probably doesn't get the full recognition that it deserves.