What is ECash?
How go I get my ECash software?
Doesn't information want to be free?
About the Digital Jungle EShop
Browse our shelves
ECash software usage hints, tips, warnings.
| Until things settle down with the ECash infrastructure, everthing on these pages are free, Free, FREE!!! Actually, things may never actually go back to costing token amounts.... |
ECash was first described in a Scientific American article written by Dr David Chaum in 1983. The company he founded, Digicash B.V. of Amsterdam, implemented his ideas in software and then conducted the "ECash Trial", an experiment with E$1,000,000. Users of the Internet were able to purchase data with free digital money.
| Deployment wins. -- Philip Zimmermann |
The ECash Trial was ended when, in November 1995, the Mark Twain Bank of St. Louis became the first to offer a large-scale gateway between ECash and legal tender. (A small-scale Cypherpunk ECash commodities market did so earlier.) ECash is now legal tender, the digital manifestation of monies deposited at Mark Twain Bank, convertible to any of 25 world currencies. It's now possible for you to purchase information and consulting services from any EShop on the World Wide Web.
Then you're able to purchase things with ECash.
Richard M. Stallman, of the Free Software Foundation, many years ago suggested that it was wrong to charge for software or standards, but that related consulting services (such as installing and customizing the software, or training staff in its use) was the way to go. (RMS enjoyed a paying job at MIT which allowed him to create "free" software; MIT paid for its development (and RMS's rent) and then allowed their employee to give away some of the fruits of his labor).
I'm trying to make a living in the high-technology industry without daily seeing the same four walls. I write books and articles and get royalties. I write web pages for clients and consulting work (evaluation, purchase, installation, networking, troubleshooting, administration, staff and end-user training) for clients around the planet and charge an hourly fee. I alpha- and beta-test software and hardware, write reports and reviews, explore and evangelize outstanding new technologies.
I don't make a living from these web pages, but I do want to explore the dynamics of on-line finance. I don't expect your purchases of my inexpensive (but high-quality) data to even cover the monthly fee I'm charged by the bank. (You, by the way, will sooner or later have to get one of the ECash accounts that will be offered by bank just as you now need a checking account. I'm trying to set a precedent for reasonable retail, rather than some sort of goofy price-gouging that does nobody any good.
It takes many hours of on-going work to research, gather, compile, fact-check, and format the data you see for sale. I charge less for each item than I pay for a daily or Sunday newspaper, which I read in an hour and then lay aside to recycle. None of the data here are exclusive; you can do the same legwork as I do each week (or month, depending upon the data).
I would prefer that you join the experiment; help us see if a market exists for real "information workers" (not the poor bastards they chain to a data entry terminal for eight or more hours per day). If you are under-age, and may not have your own bank account, or if you are in a country or location so far removed from the usual flow of mail and commerce, let me know. You'll get what you need.
The rest of you, thank you very much for giving us a chance. You - or your children - may enjoy a change in careers because of what you spend here this day.
I try my very best to make sure that the information you'll find here is of the highest quality; tasty, accurate, and screaming for heavy-duty use. We go out and pick it ourselves, early in the morning, and rush it back to the digitizer to have it arrive fresh and crispy at your computer. Hundreds of satisfied customers have enjoyed their data and services purchased here and have come back for more.In the unlikely event you're unsatisfied with a purchase, please be sure and let us know. We've undergone a lengthy interview process to staff our complaint department with the most enthusiastic co-dependents available in Silicon Valley: they're not happy if you're not.
Our Manager of Customer Services (pictured here) will handle your message personally. (I wouldn't worry about the long knife, he seems to be smiling.)
AOL behind the times: On 24 July 1995 I heard that America On-Line (AOL) does not support the ECash client. I'm sorry about that. If you're an AOL subscriber, send a note to Stephen Case, President of AOL, and request that they make this a priority. When Digicash informs me that this has been fixed I'll remove this note. (In the meantime, enjoy Tom Finley's AOL Sux web page.)
Still having problems? Get help from Mark Twain Bank's ECash Support Team.
 |
|
 |
 |
[home]
[help]
[feedback]
[browsers]
[causes]
[digital jungle]
[webmaster]
[Made with Macintosh]
[Built with BBEdit]
Michael Sattler <webmaster@jungle.com>