“Bitcoin and me”, the historical text by Hal Finney

Here is a major text published in English - originally - which we decided to translate into French. The text was written and published by cryptographer Hal Finney in the “Bitcointalk” forum, March 19, 2013.

We know Hal Finney for being the first person to receive bitcoin from Satoshi Nakamoto himself. Moreover, he is one of the few to have exchanged with the creator of bitcoin, still unknown to this day.

hal finney, cypherpunk bitcoin — (You can read the original version here).

Hal Finney is one of the people who supported and actively participated in the development of the Bitcoin. It is fully part of theBitcoin ecosystem having been one of the first participants. And this, even before its actual creation. Fervent defender of individual freedom and movement cypherpunk et extropian, its contribution has been considerable in the development of blockchain technology.

Here is what he wrote in 2013, at which time Bitcoin was still known and used only by a few cryptographic and ultimate dark web geeks. Bitcoin still seemed like a financial utopia at that time. We were far, very far from the entire ecosystem that has been deployed and that we have known since 2020.

It seemed important to us - if not essential - to translate this text, because it reminds us that the origins of Bitcoin have nothing to do with financial speculation. It is above all a conquest of individual freedom.

Let’s not forget that.

Bitcoin & me (French translation)

I thought I would write about the last four years, a time that has been turbulent for Bitcoin and for myself.

For those who don't know me, I'm Hal Finney. I started working on cryptography in a first version of PGP, in close collaboration with Phil zimmermann.

When Phil decided to start PGP Corporation, I was one of the first people he hired. I worked at PGP until I retired. At the same time, I got involved in the movement of cypherpunks. I created the first cryptography-based anonymous remailer, among other miscellaneous activities.

hal finney and his wife — Hal Finney and his wife.

Now I'm going to start talking about the year 2008 and the announcement of the creation of Bitcoin. I've already noticed that gray-bearded cryptographers (I was already in my fifties at the time) tend to be cynical. I was still idealistic; I have always loved cryptography, its mystery and its paradox.

When Satoshi introduced Bitcoin to the group's email list, the reception he received was skeptical. Cryptographers had already seen too many grand schemes and schemes created by unknown novices. They therefore tend to react by instinct.

I was more positive. I have been interested in crypto payment systems for a long time. In addition, I had the chance to meet and maintain a long correspondence with Wei dai et Nick Szabo. They are known for creating ideas/concepts on which Bitcoin was built. I had been tempted to create my own proof-of-work based currency, called RPOW. So I found Bitcoin fascinating.

When Satoshi announced the first version of the software, I downloaded it immediately. I believe I was the first person, besides Satoshi, to run and launch Bitcoin software. I mined block 70 and something, and I was the recipient of the first bitcoin transaction in history. Satoshi (Nakamoto) sent me ten coins as proof.

This tweet became "iconic" because it was one of the first tweets that talked about bitcoin. It was written by Hal Finley. The expression "running bitcoin" is still used as a nod. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_tweet_about_bitcoin.png

Over the next few days, I kept an email conversation with Satoshi, in which I focused mainly on pointing out errors to him for correction.

Today, Satoshi's true identity has become a mystery. But at the time, I thought I was dealing with a young man of Japanese origin who was very intelligent and sincere. I've been lucky enough to meet many brilliant people throughout my life, so I recognize their signs quickly.

After a few days, Bitcoin was running pretty stable, so I left it running. At that time the difficulty was 1 and you could find blocks with just a CPU, not even a GPU.

I mined several blocks in the following days. But I turned it off because mining was making the computer's temperature rise and the fan noise was bothering me. Looking back I wish I could have kept it longer but on the other hand I was so lucky to be there at the start. It was one of those things where you can see the glass half full or half empty.

The next thing I learned about Bitcoin was in late 2010, when I was surprised to find that not only did it still work, but bitcoins had monetary value. I dusted off my old one portfolio. I was relieved to discover that my bitcoins were still there.

When the price started to be considerable, I transferred my bitcoins to an offline wallet, where I hope they will be worth something to my heirs.rtè

Speaking of heirs, I was surprised in 2009, when I was suddenly diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. Never in my life had I been so fit as at the beginning of that year, I had lost a lot of weight and started running long distances. I managed to run several half marathons and began training to complete a full marathon. I trained up to running 20+ miles and thought I was ready. That's when everything went wrong.

My body started to fail. I had difficulty speaking, lost strength in my hands, and my legs slowly went limp. In August 2009, I was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig's disease, named after the famous baseball player who also contracted it.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a disease that kills motor neurons, which transmit signals from the brain to the muscles. It initially causes weakness, then a gradual increase in paralysis. It is usually fatal within 2 to 5 years. My symptoms were mild at first and I continued to work, but fatigue and voice problems forced me to retire in early 2011. Since then, the disease has continued its inexorable progression.

Today I am essentially paralyzed. They feed me through a tube and my breathing is assisted through another tube. I run the computer using a commercial eyetracker system. It also has a voice synthesizer, so it's my voice now. I spend all day in my electric wheelchair. I created an interface using an Arduino to be able to adjust the position of my wheelchair with my eyes.

It’s been an adjustment, but my life isn’t so bad. I can still understand, listen to music, and watch TV and movies. I recently discovered that I can even write code. It’s very slow, probably 50 times longer than it used to. But I still enjoy programming and it gives me a sense of purpose. I’m currently working on something that Mike Hearn suggested, using modern processor security features designed to support “Trusted Computing,” to harden Bitcoin wallets. It’s almost ready to go. I just need to complete the documentation for it.

And of course, fluctuations in course of bitcoin pleases me. I have skin in the game *. (Editor's note: This is a very well-known expression in the world of business and finance. It can be translated as playing one's skin. It is said to refer to the fact of having considerable assets or possessing many shares of a company).

I got my bitcoins by luck rather than merit. I experienced the crisis of 2011. So I have already seen it: what comes easily, becomes easy.

This is my story. I'm pretty lucky overall. Even with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, my life is very satisfying. But my life expectancy is limited. These discussions about inheriting your bitcoins are of more than academic interest. My bitcoins are kept in a safe, and my son and daughter are tech-savvy.

I think they're safe. I'm comfortable with my heritage."

Halfinney.

In August 2014, Hal Finney died from his illness.

Visionary and pioneer, cypherpunk and extropian, the entire ecosystem that was built around Bitcoin owes a lot to the work of Hal Finney.

It’s a sort of homage here and a thank you.

Note: No financial advice is given in this or any other article on zonebitcoin. This is information of which you are the sole judge and master. Be responsible with your investments and only invest as much as you are willing to lose.

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