drummyfish/less_retarded_wiki
5
1
Fork 0
Code Issues Pull requests Projects Releases Packages Wiki Activity

Update

Browse source
This commit is contained in:
Miloslav Ciz 2022-05-06 21:33:20 +02:00
parent af3e90bf66
commit 5db91153c8
13 changed files with 126 additions and 41 deletions
Download patch file Download diff file Expand all files Collapse all files

8
crypto.md
View file

@ -2,19 +2,19 @@
Cryptocurrency, or just *crypto*, is a digital, virtual (non-physical) currency used on the [Internet](internet.md) which uses [cryptographic](cryptography.md) methods (electronic signatures etc.) to implement a [decentralized](decentralized.md) system in which there is no authority to control the currency (unlike e.g. with traditional currencies that are controlled by the state or systems of digital payments controlled by the banks that run these systems). Cryptocurrencies use so called **[blockchain](blockchain.md)** as an underlying technology and are practically always implemented as [free and open-source software](foss.md). Example of cryptocurrencies are [Bitcoin](bitcoin.md), [Monero](monero.md) or [Dogecoin](dogecoin.md).
The word *crypto* in *crpytocurrency* **doesn't imply that the currency provides or protects privacy** -- it rather refers to the cryptographic algorithms used to make the currency work -- even though thanks to the decentralization, anonymity and openness cryptocurrencies actually are privacy friendly (up to the points of being considered the currency of criminals).
The word *crypto* in *crpytocurrency* **doesn't imply that the currency provides or protects privacy** -- it rather refers to the cryptographic algorithms used to make the currency work -- even though thanks to the decentralization, anonymity and openness cryptocurrencies actually are mostly privacy friendly (up to the points of being considered the currency of criminals).
[LRS](lrs.md) sees cryptocurrencies more or less as **unethical** because in our view money itself is unethical, plus the currencies based on proof of work waste not only human effort but also enormous amount of electricity and computing power that could be spent in a better way.
[LRS](lrs.md) sees cryptocurrencies more or less as **unethical** because in our view money itself is unethical, plus the currencies based on proof of work waste not only human effort but also enormous amount of electricity and computing power that could be spent in a better way. Crypto is just an immensely expensive game in which people try to fuck each other over money that have been stolen from the people.
# History
TODO
# How it Works
# How It Works
Cryptocurrency is build on top of so called [blockchain](blockchain.md) -- a kind structure that holds records of transactions (exchanges of money or "coins", as called in the crypto world). Blockchain is a [data structure](data-structure.md) serving as a [database](database.md) of the system. As its name suggests, it consists of **blocks**. Each block contains various data, most important of which are performed transactions (e.g. "A sent 1 coin to B"), and each block points to a previous one (forming a [linked list](linked_list.md)). As new transactions are made, new blocks are created and appended at the end of the blockchain.
But where is the blockchain stored? It is not on a single computer; many computers participating in the system have a their own copy of the blockchain and they share it together (similarly to how people share files via [torrents](torrent.md)).
But where is the blockchain stored? It is not on a single computer; many computers participating in the system have their own copy of the blockchain and they share it together (similarly to how people share files via [torrents](torrent.md)).
But how do we know which one is the "official" blockchain? Can't just people start forging information in the blockchain and then distribute the fake blockchains? Isn't there a chaos if there are so many copies? Well yes, it would be messy -- that's why we need a **consensus** of the participants on which blockchain is the *real* one. And there are a few algorithms to ensure the consensus. Basically people can't just spam add new blocks, a new block to be added needs to be validated via some process (which depends on the specific algorithm) in order to be accepted by others. Two main algorithms for this are: