What is a Cryptocurrency When it’s Not Really a 'Currency'?
Ethereum’s creator Vitalik Buterin wanted to build a blockchain that was more advanced than Bitcoin’s. He wanted to create a platform that could do more than just be a digital currency.
Ethereum allows users to build dApps and set up smart contracts. Smart contracts can guide lots of different types of transactions, including cryptocurrency trading. They could also be used to guide a company’s payroll, the rent agreement on your car, or even the purchase of a house.
Note: dApps are like regular apps (like Facebook, Google or Twitter) but they run on a blockchain, not a central server. You can find out more about dApps in our "What is a dApp" guide.
Put it this way - if Bitcoin wants to replace your online banking app, then Ethereum wants to replace all of your other apps! Now, do you see what I mean?
The way Ethereum is using blockchain technology is seen by many people as the future of cryptocurrency. Ethereum is the next big thing!
What is a cryptocurrency: the Ethereum platform.
To learn more about Bitcoin and Ethereum, see our Ethereum VS Bitcoin guide.
We now know how to answer quite a few questions;
What is a cryptocurrency?
When was cryptocurrency created?
What are the main cryptocurrencies out there?
Now, let’s ask another very important question.
Are Cryptocurrencies a Good or a Bad Thing?
Good things about cryptocurrency (Yay!)
It’s transparent: This means that everyone using a cryptocurrency blockchain can see every trade that’s ever been made. You don’t need to trust other users.
Personal control: This means that every user is in charge of their own money, no-one but the user can get to it. It’s decentralized, remember? So, it’s different from giving the bank control of your money.
It’s for everyone: Cryptocurrencies are open to every person on the planet. Banks have rules about who can have an account, crypto doesn’t. There are two billion people around the world that don’t have full access to bank accounts!
It’s fast: A Bitcoin trade takes about an hour, although it can take as little as ten minutes. At most banks, an international bank to bank transfer can take 1-5 days.
It’s safe: A cryptocurrency blockchain network is spread over thousands of computers, making them nearly impossible to hack.
Some bad things about cryptocurrency (Booo!)
It can be unstable: Cryptocurrencies need to be more popular before everyone starts using them. Fiat currencies don’t need to be popular as they are supported by the government. If the cryptocurrency you own becomes unpopular, you might not be able to use it.
If you lose it, it’s gone forever: If your cryptocurrency goes missing - or you lose your private key - you can’t get it back. You can’t telephone Bitcoin to complain. Remember, it’s not a bank.
Criminals like it: If you’re a criminal then this probably isn’t a bad thing, but for the rest of us — it is! Cryptocurrency accounts are hidden, so people can use them for a crime. If people see that criminals and terrorists are using it, they might not want to use it themselves.
Before we finish our guide to cryptocurrency, let’s answer one more question.
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Conclusions - How Can Cryptocurrencies Change the World?
In life, we must be very careful about who we trust. Most people only really trust their family and their friends. We wouldn’t give our personal information to a stranger in the street, because we don’t trust them. However, this is exactly what we do every time we open a bank account or pay for something online.
We might be able to trust banks, governments, and other third parties most of the time, but we can’t trust them all the time.
In 2008, the world economy crashed. Banks had used the money they had been trusted with very badly. The governments of the world were unable to stop millions of people from losing lots of money.
Something else was also happening in 2008 — Bitcoin was being created. Coincidence? I think not.
Cryptocurrencies remove the power that banks and governments have over our lives. They give the power back to us. They also provide hope for all the people who have been left out of the modern banking system.
What is a cryptocurrency: the 2008 financial crisis.
Think of what cryptocurrencies could bring to countries like Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, only 10% of adults have bank accounts, and these are mostly controlled by men. What is a cryptocurrency to an Afghani woman? Freedom.
Syria, Yemen, and Libya are all in a state of civil war. Imagine being able to send aid to the people of these countries directly. What is a cryptocurrency to a Syrian? It’s a link to the rest of the world, to people who want to help.
And finally...
When we ask questions like “what is a cryptocurrency?”, we are really asking “what is a cryptocurrency going to do for me?”. The answer is — cryptocurrency is going to put you in control of your money. Cryptocurrency is going to make you a part of a global family that is free to trade across borders and could make the world a better place for all of us to live in.
Read more on this in our guide 'What are the Applications and Use Cases of Blockchains?'.bitcoin зарегистрировать 1070 ethereum SummaryHere’s a use case that illustrates how Blockchain works:хешрейт ethereum bitcoin nodes And recall that a pre-defined number of bitcoin are issued in each valid block (that is, until the 21 million limit is reached). The bitcoin issued in each block combined with network transaction fees represent the compensation to miners for performing the proof-of-work function. The miners are paid in bitcoin to secure the network. As part of the block construction and proposal process, miners include the pre-defined number of bitcoin to be issued as compensation for expending tangible, real world resources to secure the network. If a miner were to include an amount of bitcoin inconsistent with the pre-defined supply schedule as compensation, the rest of the network would reject the block as invalid. As part of the security function, miners must validate and enforce the fixed supply of the currency in order to be compensated. Miners have material skin-in-the-game in the form of upfront capital costs (and energy expenditure), and invalid work is not rewarded.The blockchain grew since that time, a lot of people asked themselves, 'Should I buy Ethereum?' and most of them answered YES!genesis bitcoin сети ethereum