After reading this article, you will understand everything about Bitcoin, blockchain, and decentralization.

In the past year, everyone has been talking about Bitcoin and mining. This year, everyone is talking about blockchain and decentralization. But I found a very interesting phenomenon. What is it?

Everyone around me: teachers, classmates, colleagues, some well-known webmasters in the Internet circle, and IT programmers, no one can tell what Bitcoin and blockchain are. "What on earth is this?" Or can you explain it to me completely?

At most, you can say that this is a "virtual currency", or you can go to Baidu, and then there will be no further information.

Almost at the earliest time last year, I also initially learned about Bitcoin. At that time, people were still discussing how mining was, with curiosity and questions, from encyclopedia, Weibo, Zhihu, I have read all over YouTube and want to know what is Bitcoin and what is mining? The explanation I almost got is:

If you have xxx money, tell everyone through the loudspeaker, and other people will write it down in a small book after hearing it. . . (Explaining the accounting system)

Some people even said: "Explaining what Bitcoin is to ordinary people is as difficult as explaining what the Internet is to people in the 1980s."

And there are also:

Bitcoin is a virtual currency rewarded for calculating mathematical problems. In the past, everyone used CPUs for calculations, but later it was discovered that GPUs were used for calculations, which saves more time and effort. . . (Explanation about mining)

and purely technical explanations you may have seen, keywords:

Private key, public key, address, Hash, signature, timestamp

However, these explanations are not actually the answers I want. What is Bitcoin and mining? I can’t wait to find out the authors of these articles and let them stand on their side. Please explain it to me carefully in front of me. Is this thing so complicated?

Until the beginning of this year, I accidentally contacted my old master (who once guided me to the Internet, probably the generation of programmers born in the 70s and 80s in China). After a long discussion and exchange, I have almost understood the issues regarding Bitcoin, blockchain, decentralization, etc. I would like to record this in this article. My understanding of these things may not be completely correct.

If you can play Plants vs. Zombies, you can understand what Bitcoin is

Take Plants vs. Zombies as an example. In the game, the most important thing is The resource is "sunlight energy" (sunlight for short). Only with sunlight can you build plants to fight zombies. The way to generate sunlight is to plant sunflowers. Sunflowers will automatically produce sunlight at regular intervals. What does this principle, which I believe even children know, have to do with Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is sunshine

What? Bitcoin is sunshine? Yes, that’s right, Bitcoin is a virtual currency, just like sunlight in Plants vs. Zombies, it is also a virtual currency (it may have been called virtual props in the past).

How can it be? Isn’t it said that Bitcoin is very valuable? I heard that you can buy a house with Bitcoin now. Don't worry, let's continue the analysis.

Bitcoin itself is a virtual currency, similar to the sunshine in the game Plants vs. Zombies. Bitcoin or sunshine does not exist alone and has no meaning. Sunshine is attached to Plants vs. Zombies. The game, or the settings in the software Plants vs. Zombies, is developed by humans.

The same goes for Bitcoin. There is "Bitcoin software". The simple understanding is that if you install a Bitcoin software on your computer, 1 Bitcoin will be generated every once in a while, just like the Plants vs. Zombies game. Like the sunshine, Bitcoin is also based on Bitcoin software or, in other words, the product of the birth of Bitcoin games. Of course, this process has a better name: mining.

Without going into the technical details, what algorithm is used to generate Bitcoin, how Bitcoin software is developed, and what are the technical principles of Bitcoin transactions, etc., let’s continue. You can understand what is blockchain, what is decentralization, and what is Bitcoin transaction.

Decentralization, no server

In the past, everyone played stand-alone games. Now with the development of the Internet, there is also an online version of Plants vs. Zombies. First, you can register an account and save your According to game records, if you encounter a difficult level and you can't beat it, you can recharge money to buy sunshine, and you don't have to work so hard to grow sunflowers. Isn't this difficult to understand?

Centralization is equivalent to the game's server. Everyone's account information and transaction data are stored on the game company's server, while the Bitcoin system does not have a server.

The so-called decentralization simply means: no server. In other words, when you use Bitcoin software, the Bitcoin account (address) you register does not exist on any cloud server, is not controlled by any company, and there is no way to say "recharge money and get some Bitcoin", and of course there is no " official website”.

All your information and data are recorded in the Bitcoin software.

Then the question is, what if I secretly modify the record, like a cracked version or modifier of the game? Or am I a GM (game manager) and can I modify the score at will? If it were Bitcoin, wouldn't it be possible to modify the number of Bitcoins yourself? The developers of the Bitcoin system must have thought of these problems early on and solved them in a decentralized manner.

Decentralized, open ledger

Through our previous analysis, the output of Bitcoin is equivalent to playing the game Plants vs. Zombies. Game settings: sunflower plants every other Sunshine is produced over a period of time, and the same is true for Bitcoin software. If you hang up the computer, 1 Bitcoin will be produced every once in a while (commonly known as mining).

Then if you don’t connect to the Internet with others, you mine silently by yourself, mine a lot of Bitcoins, and then connect to the Internet and say to others, I have xx Bitcoins, is this okay? no. Because there is no way for anyone to verify whether your Bitcoins were obtained through mining or modified by yourself. What should you do?

For example, think of Bitcoin software as a game: everyone enters the Bitcoin game and starts with 0 Bitcoins. My computer configuration is better, and I mined 1 Bitcoin in a while. Then the game will automatically tell other online users the news, "User: dadiaoge, dug 1 Bitcoin at xxx place". After other people receive this message, the Bitcoin software will automatically record that what happened just now A guy mined 1 Bitcoin. At this time, even if I changed it to 0 Bitcoins, it would be useless, because everyone’s computers clearly recorded that I had just mined. 1 Bitcoin cannot be cheated.

What is Bitcoin Transaction

If you understand the principle of Bitcoin output (mining), and also understand decentralization and public ledger, let’s look at it again, what is Bitcoin transaction? Bitcoin transactions are similar to games. You transfer 100 game coins to me in the game. In fact, the transaction data is recorded in the server's database. The Bitcoin system is decentralized and there is no server. Recall how the public ledger records the Bitcoins obtained from mining?

"User: dadiaoge, transferred 1 Bitcoin to user: sbat" messages will be sent to all online Bitcoin users to record each other in the software, and there is no way to cheat this kind of transaction. If a game company wants to cheat, just modify the database. But if Bitcoin wants to cheat, can you modify everyone’s computers in the world?

Verification of Bitcoin Transactions

Think again, for example, you obviously only have 1 Bitcoin, but you want to transfer 2 Bitcoins to me. Is it feasible? You can do this, but it won't work. What does it mean? You transfer 2 Bitcoins to me. When the Bitcoin software sends this message to the group, the Bitcoin software on other people’s computers checks the previous records. No, this person obviously only got 1 Bitcoin from mining. If the balance is insufficient, this message will not be recorded, so no one will record your message. That is an invalid transfer record, which means it will not be successful.

What is Blockchain

After understanding the principles of Bitcoin and transaction verification, some smart people start to use their brains. Aren’t these all recorded by Bitcoin software? , I cracked this Bitcoin software, can’t I modify the number of Bitcoins as I like?

For example, when I get 1 Bitcoin from mining through Bitcoin software, the Bitcoin software will send a message like "User: dadiaoge, got 1 Bitcoin from mining", then I will This software was cracked, and the message was modified to "User: dadiaoge, got 100 Bitcoins from mining", and then sent to other people who use Bitcoin in a group, so don't I have 100 Bitcoins? Yes, the idea is right, but blockchain technology comes on the scene.

Blockchain technology is data encryption and verification technology

A simple analogy: Bitcoin software will automatically convert information like "User: dadiaoge, mining got 1 Bitcoin "Such message data is encrypted into meaningless data like "dSDFf123sjFf", and as long as the message is modified, even if one word is added, it will be recognized by the Bitcoin software and treated as invalid information. This is blockchain technology, which ensures the security of Bitcoin information data. It can be said that without blockchain technology, Bitcoin is worthless and has no meaning.

Is blockchain technology safe and will it not be cracked?

Any technology will be cracked one day, especially when quantum computers appear, it is nothing more than a matter of time. , of course, for now, blockchain technology is still very advanced and safe, because most people can’t even understand it, let alone a large group of people, they don’t even know what blockchain is. I still can’t tell, what kind of cracking is there to talk about.

Why is Bitcoin so valuable?

After understanding what Bitcoin is about, and also understanding the meaning of blockchain technology, why is Bitcoin valuable? In other words, why can Bitcoin be exchanged for money?

Good question. In theory, Bitcoin is worthless, but I will answer the question with a question. Why would you spend money to buy skins? Why would someone deposit money to play games? Why do some people reward anchors for yachts, airplanes, and rockets? Haha, why?

Because some people have money

Because the system settings designed by the person who developed Bitcoin: As the number of Bitcoins mined increases, the longer it takes to produce Bitcoins. , and in the end the Bitcoins will be mined, with a total of 21 million Bitcoins.

Then some rich people say, look you are all playing with Bitcoin, I have been digging for a long time and I don’t have a single Bitcoin, can I buy a few of you?

The first Bitcoin transaction was 10,000 Bitcoins to buy 2 pizzas. Could those people at that time have imagined that Bitcoin is so valuable today? It is certainly unimaginable, so why is Bitcoin so valuable with the development of Bitcoin to this day?

Human nature, hype and some illegal uses. I will not explain too much about illegal uses. Smart people understand for themselves that hype and human nature play a large role. Here is a simple example:

After I saw someone buying pizza with Bitcoin, I realized that Bitcoin might be more than just a virtual currency, so I thought of a way to speculate on the value of Bitcoin.

For example, in the Bitcoin Post Bar, everyone is here to discuss how to play Bitcoin mining, how to download Bitcoin software, discuss blockchain technology, etc. I posted a post saying: Today is my birthday. , I wanted to buy 1 Bitcoin that was mined on my birthday, and then I asked a few good friends to reply to the post as support, and finally bought 1 Bitcoin for 1,000 yuan, and then spread the news. Go out and let more people know, and at the same time, discuss with a few of my good friends, and use the same method to spread the news about buying Bitcoin at high prices on Weibo, forums, and QQ groups. Of course, this is just the most rudimentary hype technique, let alone big companies, big consortiums, and people with ulterior motives. The techniques they use are not on the same level as ours.

Is Bitcoin a scam?

Yes and no. If you spend 2 yuan to buy a lottery ticket, if you don’t win, can you say that the lottery is a scam? This ratio may not be very appropriate. For example, if an investor invests in a project and fails, can it be said that he was deceived by the entrepreneur?

There are many factors, such as vision, situation, Internet market, etc. Although Bitcoin itself is a virtual currency, after it has been hyped, if you had dozens of Bitcoins in the past, you can sell them now. , the money you really got was not stolen or robbed, who did you deceive?

You said the person who bought it was cheated? How do you explain the stock? So for people who don’t play with Bitcoin and don’t use Bitcoin: this thing just doesn’t exist. Should you buy groceries or not? You won’t pay with Bitcoin when you go out to take a taxi. Different people have different opinions. Some say it is a scam, while others say it is the currency of the future. They all make sense, but there are still two words: be cautious. .

What is ICO? ICO=Financing

Let’s talk about financing first. For example: Jack Ma was very poor and had no money when he started his business. I invested 100,000 in him, accounting for 1% of his company’s shares. If the company makes profits, it can give me dividends. , then if until today, I invested 100,000 to buy shares of Jack Ma's company, the rounded value might be more than 100 million.

But I didn’t know that Jack Ma could succeed. If his company went bankrupt, my 100,000 would be wasted. So what does ICO mean?

Lao Wang next door is a technical geek, and then he wants to open a company to sell hats, so he said to the outside world: I am now opening a company, selling hats can earn at least 1 million a year, you invest in me, I will give you shares . But no one is willing to invest in Lao Wang. There are so many companies. How do you know that you will definitely make money? If you fail, what is the use of our shares?

So Lao Wang understood what Bitcoin is through research and study, and invented "Lao Wang Coin" based on the principle, and said to everyone:

If you invest in me, in return, , I will give you "Lao Wang Coin". This thing is very rare and more valuable than shares. Our company's hats sell for 100 yuan each. If you use 1 "Lao Wang Coin", you can exchange for 10 hats, but now the company is in In the early days of starting a business, you only need 10 yuan to exchange for 1 Lao Wang Coin. Then your investment at this time will be 100 times the benefit. When the company becomes profitable later, you can make a lot of money by selling the Lao Wang Coin, so next door Lao Wang successfully obtained financing by issuing "Lao Wang Coin", which is ICO.

Is ICO a scam?

People who are interested in finance may have read the taste. Isn’t it just a disguised issuance of stocks? Stocks have perfect laws and corresponding social systems and orders, but ICO is blank, and blank means chaos. Maybe some people really want to obtain financing through ICO, but due to the blank order and unregulated, There are a large number of people with ulterior motives who wantonly do illegal things, so now the country has banned ICO, but in essence, it is still a problem of human nature. Of course, I won’t discuss it too much here. It is still a matter of opinion.

You can invest in Bitcoin and learn blockchain technology, you can also boycott Bitcoin and don’t believe in virtual currencies, but don’t do it when you don’t understand what Bitcoin is and don’t understand these things (Bitcoin, area What is going on (blockchain, decentralization)? Just comment on the Internet arbitrarily: Bitcoin is the currency of the future, Bitcoin has prospects, or Bitcoin is a scam, don’t believe in virtual currencies, "When your talent is not enough When your ambition is supported, you should calm down and study."