What actually IS Bitcoin, you ask? Well, that’s what we want to know as well. We’ve been studying, learning, and experimenting. We think that Bitcoin, or some cryptocurrency, is here to stay. We think that the technology behind cryptocurrency – the Blockchain – will change our world every bit as much as the Internet and smartphones have done.
So, yes, we have set up the accounts and the wallets that enable us to accept Bitcoin. It does not integrate into our shopping cart system, so if you would like to pay for a membership or other service in Bitcoin, you need to first contact us. If you just want to send us an anonymous donation, here’s the address of our Bitcoin wallet.
The Internet revolutionized communication and transmission of data. Can you even remember a time before email? But when you send email, you’re actually sending a copy – so that doesn’t work for money. To send money over the Internet today, you need an intermediary to vouch for the fact that the money is not being copied!
In 2009, an anonymous person we call Satoshi Nakamoto came up with a distributed computer ledger process called Blockchain. This ledger can only be added to, it cannot be changed, giving it trustworthiness. It is also distributed among several computer systems that cross-check each others code and calculations, giving it accuracy. A “Bitcoin” is not a tangible thing, it is code in the blockchain. Since every transaction is tracked in the ledger, the Bitcoin can only exist once, thus solving the “Double Spend” problem. This is all done without the need for any government or financial institution, just like email eliminated the need for the postal service for sending letters.
This Blockchain technology opens up the Internet to all sorts of new transactions of value. No matter how much the world has changed due to technology in the last 20 years, there is even more to come. To learn more, see Episode 206 of our “What Does This Button Do?” show. Also read The Future is Faster than you think. Also read Blockchain Revolution, and watch the author’s TED talk, “How the blockchain is changing money and business.”
From 2003-2017 she traveled the country in an RV with her husband, Jim offering technology seminars at RV rallies, computer clubs, and senior centers. Now they travel the world and continue teaching on their website, GeeksOnTour.com, over Zoom, and on their YouTube channel. Specializing in the use of Google Photos, Chris teaches people how to get control of the thousands of photos and videos taken with both phones and cameras these days. She is designated by Google as a Diamond leve Product Expert for Google Photos.
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