We've recently had a flurry of postings about digital money, and the apparently new realization by some that "double spending" is a serious issue. Folks, this is not a new issue---this is the core issue of all serious efforts on digital money (and, indeed, is the core issue of money, period). I urge everone interested in digital money to dig up and read the various articles that have appeared, including one of David Chaum's in the July or August of 1992 "Scientific American." The usual places apply, as always" - the usual books: Schneier, Brassard, Denning, etc. - Proceedings of the Crypto Conferences, aka "Advances in Cryptology," part of the Springer-Verlag series "Lecture Notes in Computer Science." (A series of silver-grey paperbacks, available in many technical bookstores, and in many university bookstores and libraries). - ditto for Eurocrypt and other crypto conferences. I urge this because there is little to be gained by slowly reinventing the wheel. The recent realization here by some that "double spending" is a Big Issue is indicative of this. Double spending, and related issues, is obviously just the _start_ of the really interesting problems with any digital money scheme. This is the _starting point_ of most discussions, not a belated realization. As I often say, I don't want to sound snippy or holier-than-thou here. It's just that there's a basic corpus of papers on the highly-technical areas of crypto that everyone working in these areas has to be assumed to be familiar with. Rocket scientists have to know that rockets don't work by pushing on air, and cryptologists have to know what's already been written about. With more than 700 people on the Cypherpunks list---though a far smaller group appears to be actively posting--it is natural that a range of backgrounds, interest levels, and dedication to the issues will exist. I'm not saying that only "experts" in digital money should speak on these issues, only that the basic papers ought to at least be skimmed. Best wishes for all, --Tim May -- .......................................................................... Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, tcmay@netcom.com | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero 408-688-5409 | knowledge, reputations, information markets, W.A.S.T.E.: Aptos, CA | black markets, collapse of governments. Higher Power: 2^859433 | Public Key: PGP and MailSafe available. "National borders are just speed bumps on the information superhighway."