The developers of the Bitcoin Ordinals protocol have unveiled a new update that aims to fix an issue related to more than 71,000 inscriptions that are considered invalid or “cursed”.
So-called “cursed inscriptions” are ordinal numbers improperly created through the malicious use of opcodes, resulting in invalid records not being recognized by the network.
On June 4, several developers, including a Twitter user known as Raphjaph, announced the update of the Ordinals protocol to version 0.6.0. This update marks the first step towards indexing previously unrecognized inscriptions.
“We just released the new version of Ord (0.6.0), which implements the first steps in recognizing more types of inscriptions (Cursed Inscriptions). In addition, it is now possible to pass RPC credentials via command line flags, environment variables or a configuration file.”tweeted Raph (@raphjaph) on Jun 4, 2023.
End of cursed records?
The proposal to fix the problem was first presented by Ordinals creator Casey Rodarmore in late April. He suggested recognizing cursed inscriptions and converting them to “blessed”.
The update aims to support a subset of the different types of cursed inscriptions by setting a block activation time at which certain previously invalid labels are indexed as normal labels.
The influencer known as LeonidasNFT explained that these inscriptions will be added to the list of tradable indexed ordinal numbers, stating:
“This is important because now more than 70,000 existing labels that were previously considered invalid are supported. As soon as the trading platforms update to version 0.6.0, it will be possible to trade them.”
He also added that people who have “cursed entries” should expect compensation for negative entries.
Bitcoin ordinal numbers are non-fungible assets (NFTs) that allow data to be recorded in the smallest fraction of a bitcoin, known as satoshi.
The Ordinals protocol was launched in January by Casey Rodarmore, and by February it was booming in popularity, with thousands of ordinals being registered on the Bitcoin blockchain.
This increased activity has led to congestion and higher transaction costs.
Ordinal inscriptions have been compared to NFTs in terms of rarity and collectability. Users want unique information permanently recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain, which can add value to old satoshis.
Ordinals have generated $45.5 million in transaction fees since the start of the year, according to Dune Analytics.
Source: Live Coins
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
