Cryptos: Intro
Hey folks,
I'm into learning a whole new topic in-depth: cryptocurrencies.
In public. #learninpublic
I like to learn, I like to explain.
It helps me to deepen my knowledge.
That's why I share this stuff with you.
Why?
In the last few months, a lot of my friends have been talking about crypto.
But when I ask them questions about it, because I want to learn from them, they literally know nothing, zero, niente about it.
Q: Oh cool, why did you buy this cryptocurrency?
A: A Youtuber talked about it.
Q: Which consensus mechanism does this cryptocurrency use?
A: Eehm, what is a "consensus mechanism"?
Q: What is your investment strategy (1, 2)?
A: I don't have one.
So most of the time I think they just want to ride the hype-train. Some uncle's step-daughter's friend become a millionaire, so maybe there is a lof of fear-of-missing-out involved.
"I have to work 9-5, and this non-intelligent guy made some 10.000 bucks, I don't want to miss this next opportunity!"
Don't get me wrong, this is a normal human emotion, so it is not bad. I just think making bad decisions based on this emotion is not so fruitful.
Actually, I think this is very dangerous. Because this nurtures a very dangerous habit: acting based on bad decision-making patterns.
And I think one of the worst decision-making patterns is: not knowing the fundamentals.
This is why I want to talk about the basics of cryptocurrencies - as a software developer.
Our objectives
- Which problems do we want to solve with cryptocurrencies?
- What is a ledger (e.g. a blockchain)?
- Who decides what the state of the ledger is?
- What is a wallet?
- How does a transaction work?
- What is a cryptocurrency?
- How do I buy cryptocurrency?
- ...
One simple disclaimer: Always double-check your informations, also my posts - everything. If you don't understand it, read up about it, ask questions ("What does X mean?"), paraphrase in your own words ("So this means, that ...?"). Don't act like a fool, always understand the underlying fundamentals.