7 ms·

A Guide to Crypto Currencies

195 points by frag 9y ago

RichardHeart 9y ago
This is missing byteball under the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed_acyclic_graph https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed_acyclic_graph (that iota branded as "tangle") non blockchain using cryptocurrencies.
- ringaroundthetx 9y ago
  I like byteball, more than IOTA, because of the supposedly private blackbyte state. Sleeper right there
jrimbault 9y ago
Reading the introduction one question came to me: do the Big Five (Google, Amazon etc) show interest in blockchain technology and/or cryptocurrencies ? Google has invested in at least 2 companies that I know of (?)
- guiomie 9y ago
  I was wondering the same thing ... I know Microsoft has sponsored some Ethereum events and that is it. Perhaps blockchainization of the majority of their core business would impact revenue negatively? Another thing that I am wondering is the lack of coverage on the blokchain technology on HN, I see articles every where except here?
  - willia4 9y ago
    Microsoft also added "Blockchain as a Service" to their Azure offerings. I'm not sure if that was because they think it's a good future technology or if they just think it's a technology that people will give them money for.
  - paulgb 9y ago
    > Another thing that I am wondering is the lack of coverage on the blokchain technology on HN, I see articles every where except here? Blockchain has become a word like AI, in that marketers have learned that inserting it allows them to capitalize on hype even if the use of the block chain is either overengineering or unnecessary.
  - 0xdeadbeefbabe 9y ago
    I presume you don't see much coverage on HN because lots of people who talk about blockchain tech are excited about their own money even more than the tech.
  - fapjacks 9y ago
    Microsoft was recently one of a group of big companies (including IBM) that were looking to hire a blockchain programmer.
  - ChrisClark 9y ago
    Microsoft was one of the big founding members of the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance [1]. But in general, the biggest companies in that alliance are financial companies, not tech companies. Like DTCC, MasterCard, J. P. Morgan. And a lot of banks. Though Cisco is also a member, and a local government of India. But in general it's really only financial companies and pure blockchain companies. [1] https://entethalliance.org/ https://entethalliance.org/
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- B4TMAN 9y ago
  What is the prerequisite?
- aboodman 9y ago
  Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have all made blockchain-related announcements. I'm not sure about fb and apple.
- vit05 9y ago
  Microsoft and Tierion(TNT) collaborate on attestations & Blockchain proofs https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/blockchain-identity-proofs/ https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/blockchain-identity-p... https://coinmarketcap.com/assets/tierion/ https://coinmarketcap.com/assets/tierion/
irln 9y ago
I recommend Perry G Mehrling [Columbia], (free) course on coursera [1] called Economics of Money and Banking. It provides a great context for how the current monetary system works. This context helps a bunch when comparing it to crypto. [1] https://www.coursera.org/learn/money-banking/home/welcome https://www.coursera.org/learn/money-banking/home/welcome
- doctorcroc 9y ago
  Thank you for sharing. Crypto is an interdisciplenary field, and we (folks on HN) view it through the lens of CS, at the exclusion of the other ways to approach the field. Any other courses / topics you recommend?
  - irln 9y ago
    [1] Federal Reserve Economic Data (charting) - Treasure trove of data. [2] Balance sheet of the fed [3] Access to all the flows of the US Money System [4] Monthly Treasury Statement (MTS) - The Bank money flows of all accounts of the US Government [1] https://fred.stlouisfed.org/ https://fred.stlouisfed.org/ [2] https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h41/ https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h41/ [3] https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/z1/current/ https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/z1/current/ [4] https://www.fiscal.treasury.gov/fsreports/rpt/mthTreasStmt/backissues.htm https://www.fiscal.treasury.gov/fsreports/rpt/mthTreasStmt/b...
- alimw 9y ago
  The course is great, but nothing I learned there about the nature of money seems to apply to cryptocurrencies (about which admittedly I know very little). Could that be your point? That bitcoin only looks like money if you don't understand what money is
kcdev 9y ago
Opinion request: What are the up-and-comers for popular adoption? Monero, Ripple, EOS, Ethereum?
- dustinls 9y ago
  I could see Ethereum overtaking bitcoin since it can be seen as a more functional alternative. I could also see it not if this pump and dump ICO trend grows to the point that if defines ethereum the way darknet markets did for bitcoin.
- lojack 9y ago
  This is of course an opinion, but I've been following Ripple pretty closely. It's taking a much different approach than BTC or Ethereum in the sense that its getting the banks involved, and operates using a "web of trust". This results in much quicker transactions. You can also convert between currencies, assuming you can trust the third party. This isn't that much of a stretch when you consider that we already do it in markets like Coinbase's exchange (GDAX). They market themselves as the "bridge currency" in the sense that you in addition to sending money, it can easily bridge between multiple currencies. USD sort of fits that niche at the current moment, when you look at forex markets, most currencies (with some exceptions) are compared against USD.
  - kcdev 9y ago
    Good points. The fact that they are giving the big players a good reason to get involved seems like it could dominate if those same big players decide to promote it.
hisabness 9y ago
Does anyone know a good way of determining global net savings held in depository institutions? So basically fiat held on deposit globally? And stated in USD?
sagitariusrex 9y ago
For a quick video intro I recommend this video from 3Blue1Brown ("youtube mathematician") https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBC-nXj3Ng4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBC-nXj3Ng4 IMHO the best intro to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general.
thinbeige 9y ago
Don't read guides. They won't help you. Try to use the stuff. Get some money on the exchanges, on MyEtherWallet, use the Ledger Nano, invest in some ICOs, use the Etherscan API, etc. I did the mistake reading too much about all this crypto stuff for too long actually doing nothing. Once you do something it clicks and you understand the whole picture much better and you read automatically stuff that matters and which gives you a deeper context. Edit: Why the downvotes?
- uoaei 9y ago
  Great advice for people with a disposable income. Some people just want to understand. Want to donate money to me so I can play around with it? Thanks!
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - thinbeige 9y ago
    Why so confrontative? You don't need a lot of money to start. And it's not about playing around. Once you invest $100 you are forced to understand and to learn what's going on. Much better than reading some guides without having any goal (the linked guide is still good).
    - uoaei 9y ago
      I have no income at the moment and I will likely remain in this state for the next two years. I am not sure that my savings will last me that long, so I am erring on the safe side while still being interested in learning about the current technologies. Not everyone reading HN has money to spare, or a job that allows them such luxuries. Not everyone who wants to study blockchain is interested in making money just because they can.
  - cableshaft 9y ago
    While it won't be as effective as actual skin in the game (investing real money), you could try virtual investing. Give yourself some imaginary money, 'buy' your currency, and see how it does, like with virtual stock markets. Or you can just buy $X a month, every month, and get whatever you can get out of it. Some places allow you to set up automatic purchases, so you could have it happen without you having to pay attention to it (I know Coinbase does). It accumulates over time.
sayurichick 9y ago
lot of biased (or to be blunt, incorrect) information from a quick glance. There is a lack of protocol depth understanding from the author. Most of the recommendations seem to serve as market "advice" if you want to call it that.

195 points by frag 9y ago

This is missing byteball under the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed_acyclic_graph https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed_acyclic_graph (that iota branded as "tangle") non blockchain using cryptocurrencies.

ringaroundthetx 9y ago
I like byteball, more than IOTA, because of the supposedly private blackbyte state. Sleeper right there

jrimbault 9y ago

Reading the introduction one question came to me: do the Big Five (Google, Amazon etc) show interest in blockchain technology and/or cryptocurrencies ? Google has invested in at least 2 companies that I know of (?)

guiomie 9y ago
I was wondering the same thing ... I know Microsoft has sponsored some Ethereum events and that is it. Perhaps blockchainization of the majority of their core business would impact revenue negatively? Another thing that I am wondering is the lack of coverage on the blokchain technology on HN, I see articles every where except here?
- willia4 9y ago
  Microsoft also added "Blockchain as a Service" to their Azure offerings. I'm not sure if that was because they think it's a good future technology or if they just think it's a technology that people will give them money for.
- paulgb 9y ago
  > Another thing that I am wondering is the lack of coverage on the blokchain technology on HN, I see articles every where except here? Blockchain has become a word like AI, in that marketers have learned that inserting it allows them to capitalize on hype even if the use of the block chain is either overengineering or unnecessary.
- 0xdeadbeefbabe 9y ago
  I presume you don't see much coverage on HN because lots of people who talk about blockchain tech are excited about their own money even more than the tech.
- fapjacks 9y ago
  Microsoft was recently one of a group of big companies (including IBM) that were looking to hire a blockchain programmer.
- ChrisClark 9y ago
  Microsoft was one of the big founding members of the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance [1]. But in general, the biggest companies in that alliance are financial companies, not tech companies. Like DTCC, MasterCard, J. P. Morgan. And a lot of banks. Though Cisco is also a member, and a local government of India. But in general it's really only financial companies and pure blockchain companies. [1] https://entethalliance.org/ https://entethalliance.org/
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
B4TMAN 9y ago
What is the prerequisite?
aboodman 9y ago
Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have all made blockchain-related announcements. I'm not sure about fb and apple.
vit05 9y ago
Microsoft and Tierion(TNT) collaborate on attestations & Blockchain proofs https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/blockchain-identity-proofs/ https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/blockchain-identity-p... https://coinmarketcap.com/assets/tierion/ https://coinmarketcap.com/assets/tierion/

irln 9y ago

I recommend Perry G Mehrling [Columbia], (free) course on coursera [1] called Economics of Money and Banking. It provides a great context for how the current monetary system works. This context helps a bunch when comparing it to crypto. [1] https://www.coursera.org/learn/money-banking/home/welcome https://www.coursera.org/learn/money-banking/home/welcome

doctorcroc 9y ago
Thank you for sharing. Crypto is an interdisciplenary field, and we (folks on HN) view it through the lens of CS, at the exclusion of the other ways to approach the field. Any other courses / topics you recommend?
- irln 9y ago
  [1] Federal Reserve Economic Data (charting) - Treasure trove of data. [2] Balance sheet of the fed [3] Access to all the flows of the US Money System [4] Monthly Treasury Statement (MTS) - The Bank money flows of all accounts of the US Government [1] https://fred.stlouisfed.org/ https://fred.stlouisfed.org/ [2] https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h41/ https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h41/ [3] https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/z1/current/ https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/z1/current/ [4] https://www.fiscal.treasury.gov/fsreports/rpt/mthTreasStmt/backissues.htm https://www.fiscal.treasury.gov/fsreports/rpt/mthTreasStmt/b...
alimw 9y ago
The course is great, but nothing I learned there about the nature of money seems to apply to cryptocurrencies (about which admittedly I know very little). Could that be your point? That bitcoin only looks like money if you don't understand what money is

kcdev 9y ago

Opinion request: What are the up-and-comers for popular adoption? Monero, Ripple, EOS, Ethereum?

dustinls 9y ago
I could see Ethereum overtaking bitcoin since it can be seen as a more functional alternative. I could also see it not if this pump and dump ICO trend grows to the point that if defines ethereum the way darknet markets did for bitcoin.
lojack 9y ago
This is of course an opinion, but I've been following Ripple pretty closely. It's taking a much different approach than BTC or Ethereum in the sense that its getting the banks involved, and operates using a "web of trust". This results in much quicker transactions. You can also convert between currencies, assuming you can trust the third party. This isn't that much of a stretch when you consider that we already do it in markets like Coinbase's exchange (GDAX). They market themselves as the "bridge currency" in the sense that you in addition to sending money, it can easily bridge between multiple currencies. USD sort of fits that niche at the current moment, when you look at forex markets, most currencies (with some exceptions) are compared against USD.
- kcdev 9y ago
  Good points. The fact that they are giving the big players a good reason to get involved seems like it could dominate if those same big players decide to promote it.

hisabness 9y ago

Does anyone know a good way of determining global net savings held in depository institutions? So basically fiat held on deposit globally? And stated in USD?

sagitariusrex 9y ago

For a quick video intro I recommend this video from 3Blue1Brown ("youtube mathematician") https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBC-nXj3Ng4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBC-nXj3Ng4 IMHO the best intro to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general.

thinbeige 9y ago

Don't read guides. They won't help you. Try to use the stuff. Get some money on the exchanges, on MyEtherWallet, use the Ledger Nano, invest in some ICOs, use the Etherscan API, etc. I did the mistake reading too much about all this crypto stuff for too long actually doing nothing. Once you do something it clicks and you understand the whole picture much better and you read automatically stuff that matters and which gives you a deeper context. Edit: Why the downvotes?

uoaei 9y ago
Great advice for people with a disposable income. Some people just want to understand. Want to donate money to me so I can play around with it? Thanks!
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- thinbeige 9y ago
  Why so confrontative? You don't need a lot of money to start. And it's not about playing around. Once you invest $100 you are forced to understand and to learn what's going on. Much better than reading some guides without having any goal (the linked guide is still good).
  - uoaei 9y ago
    I have no income at the moment and I will likely remain in this state for the next two years. I am not sure that my savings will last me that long, so I am erring on the safe side while still being interested in learning about the current technologies. Not everyone reading HN has money to spare, or a job that allows them such luxuries. Not everyone who wants to study blockchain is interested in making money just because they can.
- cableshaft 9y ago
  While it won't be as effective as actual skin in the game (investing real money), you could try virtual investing. Give yourself some imaginary money, 'buy' your currency, and see how it does, like with virtual stock markets. Or you can just buy $X a month, every month, and get whatever you can get out of it. Some places allow you to set up automatic purchases, so you could have it happen without you having to pay attention to it (I know Coinbase does). It accumulates over time.

sayurichick 9y ago

lot of biased (or to be blunt, incorrect) information from a quick glance. There is a lack of protocol depth understanding from the author. Most of the recommendations seem to serve as market "advice" if you want to call it that.