Crypto has a steep learning curve and can be overwhelming. Rather than try to learn about the entire crypto market all at once, let’s start with Bitcoin!
Today, there are thousands of different cryptocurrencies out in the crypto market.
And when prices have surged in the past, the total value of all these cryptocurrencies has exceeded $2.9 trillion, with daily trading volume of over $130 billion.
In other words, the crypto market has grown rapidly and it’s now pretty big. (But still nowhere as huge as the forex market.)
For crypto noobs, just trying to figure out where to begin can feel overwhelming.
So rather than try to learn about the entire crypto market all at once, and get overwhelmed, I’m going to start with Bitcoin.
Since Bitcoin was the original cryptocurrency, the technical breakthroughs that allowed Bitcoin to emerge underlie all other cryptocurrencies.
Understanding Bitcoin, like what it is, where it came from, and how it works provides a solid foundation for being able to navigate the entire crypto space.
Many of the concepts needed to understand Bitcoin can be applied to other cryptocurrencies.
So if you can get a firm enough grasp of Bitcoin to not be mystified by the topic….which is my aim….then you will have a much easier time understanding the rest of the crypto world.
I will start with a gentle introduction to Bitcoin and assume you have little to no technical knowledge.
What is Bitcoin?
Let’s start with a very simple description of Bitcoin….
Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency, based on an open-source software design, that is used to transmit value between pseudonymous users.
All transactions, after being confirmed by miners using PoW as the consensus mechanism, are stored on a distributed ledger, called a blockchain.
Changes to the blockchain are append-only and are synchronized about every10 minutes across thousands of nodes located all over the world over a P2P network. All information stored on the blockchain can be viewed publicly, in real-time.
Cryptographic techniques such as public-key cryptography, hash functions, and digital signatures are used to keep the blockchain secure and immutable so it can be accessible to everybody but hackable to nobody.
Got all that?
I’m kidding!
But give yourself a pat on the back for actually reading all that and not scrolling past it. (You didn’t scroll past it, right? )
Have no fear. Do NOT be intimidated or discouraged.
This is the BEGINNER’S guide to Bitcoin and we assume zero technical knowledge.
So this is NOT really how we’re going to start learning about Bitcoin.
But as you can clearly see, the crypto world is full of technical jargon!
Jumping into crypto introduces a large number of terms that most people will be unfamiliar with.
The crypto world seems to have its own language and those wishing to learn about the topic can quickly become overwhelmed with all the jargon, acronyms, and other technical terms.
But if you really want to understand cryptocurrencies and how they are different, it’s really important that you do familiarize yourself with certain core foundational concepts.
My goal is to cover terms and phrases that you may initially not know, but do need to know.
Together, we will blast jargon into smithereens so you’re able to easily speak the language of the crypto world with ease.
I’ve also found a lot of inconsistencies in how certain terms are used or defined on the interwebz.
I want to establish a common vocabulary with clear definitions of concepts and terms.
This will help make sure that every time a buzzword or jargon phrase appears throughout our course, it is used consistently and correctly.
I can’t stress enough the importance of learning the concepts behind all this ridiculous wonderful jargon.
How else will you impress your dinner date or wow a crowd at cocktail parties?
Do you give a nervous smile or chuckle when someone mentions crypto because you’re clueless?
Those days will soon be over.
By the end of this course, you WILL be able to understand the geeky definition of Bitcoin that I wrote earlier in this lesson.
(If you scrolled past it earlier, scroll back up!)
You’ll be knowledgeable enough to be able to approach unfamiliar crypto terminology with confidence.
You’ll go from “crypto clueless” to “crypto competent”.
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