Well... it starts off with a list of things making bitcoins look confusing, shifty, unreliable and flakey... employing Digg-level linguistic/reasoning tactics.

So that's a whole chunk of information that people have to hold in their heads... it sets the scene.

Then it says there isn't an explanation.

Then there's a list of things that either are untrue (1,4), or are too arcane or confusing (2,3) for the average person (ie: someone who uses a car rather than knowing what goes on under the hood) to really take on board.

So um... nice idea, but I think it's actually made things even more confusing than they were before


You need a soundbite, not an explanation. If you find yourself explaining, then you've lost.

Ok... this is my first attempt:



Bitcoins are a type of electronic cash.

Payments are made using a little open-sourced program that you can run on your computer.

Other people running the same program make up a network... which makes bitcoins resiliant, and free from governmental or corporate interference.

The number of bitcoins in circulation is permanently limited by an open forumula... but the transactions themselves have the same cryptographic strength as is used by banks.

Bitcoins are quite new... so the number of things you can buy is relatively small at the moment... but because they're quite new, their value is escalating dramatically as more people begin to use them.

You can buy bitcoins on exchange websites like mtgox.com or britcoins.com. If you are in the EU or Australia, you can transfer money directly from your bank account. Elsewhere, you can use other means... eg: Dwolla (a competitor to Paypal), or even cash.

Buying bitcoins using Credit Cards is generally discouraged as Credit Cards are prone to fraud.

Bitcoins are supported by a community of people who are keen to see them work. Any questions, just ask.



 

I think it's important first to define the target reader and the goals for the text. Because given the proper audience, the result can be the one expected or not.