The Blockchain Is Confusing...That's Why I Share Post Like This
I came across a post from this past June in the NYT's about the blockchain. I still have confusion about all the different types of blockchains, there's just so darn many!! All are based off of the one which bitcoin was given life from, but not all perform the same way. Some are used only for financial purposes while some are used for storing data that you would store on a fixed server.
The BlockChain Is Just A Ledger and Is Digital In Nature
The blockchain is nothing more than a ledger most are public like the one used for bitcoin. There are also private blockchain's like J.P. Morgans, which uses a token called "Quorum".
For those of you whom do not know what a ledger is or is used for this may not make any sense to you.
A ledger is just a way that banks and other businesses use to record their transactions and inventories. Consider it like a diary/journal the concept is the same. Just as you would write down your thoughts in a book, or your financial budget in a private diary that you keep hidden away and secure, the purpose of a ledger is the same.
So now that I have given you a reference that I hope you can understand and relate to, let me explain how I view the "blockchain".
The blockchain's creation actually took place over several decades. It was Satoshi Nakomoto that finally used the blockchain in way that produced us a new form of currency...Bitcoin.
That creation of a new currency only distracted us from what really took place, the creation of a more secure and guaranteed way of protecting stored data.
Bascally I think of it like so:
- A birth of the realization that we could use the computing power of several computers networked together all with the purpose of verifying that the data stored is up-to-date.
- Even if one computer is hacked or fails the others will make sure all is legit and transparent to each other. Thus keeping the data safe and secure.
- But then all the computers plugged into this network which are running the blockchain program, also eliminate the need for a centrally located server (computer).
- This is because in reality the blockchain is simply a program that is run on each individual computer and communicating via the Internet with other running the same program.
- All of which are continually doing one thing updating each other, in essence this network is acting as a physically located server would. Confusing HUH? Well not to me.. this is they way I think of it.
Some Are Private, Some Are Public
Some are private and some are public blockchains, it comes down to which exactly blockchain program you have plugged your computer into.The Ethereum Blockchain's job is to not only the same as Bitcoin's but it has the added job of actually running programs once certain conditions have been meet. These Programs are called "smart contracts".
The site that this post will also be shared to is a blockchain network (Steemit) that's main purpose is not financial in nature, but rather to make sure that content posted with-in it's community is reward for it's value to the community. It is done by voting up or down content much like you would on FaceBook. It also was created to give the social network back to the users, giving the members the power to decide what is important/relevant or just crap.
At the end of it all I try to think of the blockchain as the elimination for the need of centralized banking, or a centralized data centers and I see the opportunity for this technology to also make our voting more secure and transparent. The blockchain itself is extremely secure, it's us the users that are still the biggest threat to security, because we are fallible and will most assuredly give someone access to our private key for our account.
Enjoy the post below and let me know what yas think!!
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Confused About Blockchains? Here’s What You Need to Know
Even asking the people who work with blockchains to define the technology, you are likely to get a stuttering response.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : http://bipolarmarketing.co.business/index.php/2018/10/19/confused-about-blockchains-here-is-what-you-need-to-know/