Quote from: Ander on October 29, 2014, 11:03:13 PM

Quote from: roadkill on September 29, 2014, 12:10:50 AM
I've been calculating my cost basis for altcoins in BTC, and I'm realizing this might have been a bad idea, given its volatility.

Do you guys track your cost basis for BTSX in USD?
Is it dumb to track altcoin cost bases in BTC?

If you want to know "how bad of an idea was it for me to have bought this stupid altcoin, rather than just stick with bitcoin", then you calculate your basis in BTC.

If you want to know "how bad of an idea was it for me to blow my money on this crypto idea", then you calculate your cost basis in USD.


:D

lol

Quote from: roadkill on September 29, 2014, 12:10:50 AM
I've been calculating my cost basis for altcoins in BTC, and I'm realizing this might have been a bad idea, given its volatility.

Do you guys track your cost basis for BTSX in USD?
Is it dumb to track altcoin cost bases in BTC?

If you want to know "how bad of an idea was it for me to have bought this stupid altcoin, rather than just stick with bitcoin", then you calculate your basis in BTC.

If you want to know "how bad of an idea was it for me to blow my money on this crypto idea", then you calculate your cost basis in USD.


:D

Quote from: Mysto on October 15, 2014, 05:40:42 AM
If I thought bitcoin was going down the best place I could keep my money is USD. Alts generally follow bitcoin so it wouldn't make much sense to put ones money in them if bitcoin's price is going down. Bitshares is my first "altcoin" so I'm not to familiar with how altcoins are traded but I don't think it would make sense to buy bitcoin if you thought the altcoin's price was going down because as I said before alts generally follow bitcoin. That's why I think calculating cost basis for altcoins in btc doesn't make sense. Just my 2 cents.

oh, you were thinking of 'cost basis' as in what to buy when you think Bitcoin is going down... then I think you are right, bitUSD or USD is the thing to use in speculating.  I was just explaining how I measured "profit" ... in my head

If I thought bitcoin was going down the best place I could keep my money is USD. Alts generally follow bitcoin so it wouldn't make much sense to put ones money in them if bitcoin's price is going down. Bitshares is my first "altcoin" so I'm not to familiar with how altcoins are traded but I don't think it would make sense to buy bitcoin if you thought the altcoin's price was going down because as I said before alts generally follow bitcoin. That's why I think calculating cost basis for altcoins in btc doesn't make sense. Just my 2 cents.

Quote from: Mysto on October 15, 2014, 04:51:45 AM
Yea when I first join bitshares I was frustrated with the lack of usd/btsx charts. Now that bitUSD has launch I can use that (just need a little more volume)

I agree that it is a bad idea to calculate a cost basis for alts in btc. Unless you are trading back and forth from alts to btc and not using USD at all.

I have been using it, and to me it makes sense to use BTC.... okay, it 'made' sense.  Now I will be rethinking things.  I still think BTC has a few more rallies to live through, though.  If you look at BTC as a DAC, and you see it for what it was seen before the likes of Bitshares and other encumbents, it made sense to compare everything to it, as it has/had the best growth potential. 

I heard Peter Venesses talk about 1st order vs 2nd order Stochastic dominance, and the importance of recognizing BTC as such. (sorry, I don't fully understand it)

The point was, that when looking at one's return of investment from "mining" bitcoins, you can't use USD, because you have to consider what the same initial investment in simple purchase of BTC would have attained.  In the past, most would have done better just buying bitcoin, so it made sense to use BTC as "basis"

I am rethinking this myself at the moment, since Bitshares has so beautifully gotten rid of the need for mining... i hope

Yea when I first join bitshares I was frustrated with the lack of usd/btsx charts. Now that bitUSD has launch I can use that (just need a little more volume)

I agree that it is a bad idea to calculate a cost basis for alts in btc. Unless you are trading back and forth from alts to btc and not using USD at all.

As it turns out, BTC is among the worst of financial benchmarks one could pick. Who knew? :D

I've been calculating my cost basis for altcoins in BTC, and I'm realizing this might have been a bad idea, given its volatility.

Do you guys track your cost basis for BTSX in USD?
Is it dumb to track altcoin cost bases in BTC?