Aljif7's Blog
Monday 24 November, 2025
AREA: Learning–Education

I’m sharing these steps for anyone curious about exploring Web3, Bitcoin, and altcoins.
I prepared this overview in response to someone who asked me to explain Bitcoin and altcoins in about 30 minutes.

I often wonder how to distill something that took me years to learn—and that I’m still learning—into just half an hour. After all, the Web3 space evolves daily, and there’s always more to discover.

(Screenshot by author)

Still, I hope these steps—and the connections between the core concepts—offer a glimpse into the fascinating world of Web3, and more concretely, into the potential power (and risks) of Bitcoin and altcoins.

While many of us are familiar with Bitcoin (BTC) as the first and most well-known cryptocurrency, the true foundation of this entire technological ecosystem is blockchain.

So—what exactly is blockchain?

1. Blockchain

A secure, public, decentralized digital ledger that records transactions in blocks linked together in a tamper-proof way.
Why does it matter in the world of crypto-coins?
It’s the foundational technology behind most cryptocurrencies and modern decentralized applications.

It’s easy to understand how fundamentally important blockchain technology was for Bitcoin (BTC) to exist as a cryptocurrency or crypto-coin.

2. Bitcoin

The first and most well-known cryptocurrency, created in 2009. It allows peer-to-peer digital payments without banks or intermediaries.
Relationship to blockchain:
Bitcoin was the first successful real-world use of blockchain technology.

The evolution of cryptocurrencies accelerated with the emergence of altcoins—the most prominent being Ethereum (ETH). This breakthrough enabled the use of smart contracts, which, despite the name, are neither truly “intelligent” nor legal contracts in the traditional sense.

3. Altcoins

All cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin (e.g., Ethereum, Solana, Cardano). Many add new features like smart contracts or faster transactions.
Relationship to Bitcoin & blockchain:
They are alternatives to Bitcoin and typically run on their own blockchains—or build on existing ones.

4. DeFi (Decentralized Finance) And then we have DeFi, probably the new Banking system in some years ahead.

DeFi is a **financial system built on blockchains **(especially Ethereum) that offers services like lending, saving, and trading—without traditional banks.
Relationship to the above:
DeFi relies on altcoins and smart-contract-enabled blockchains to replace centralized financial institutions.

5. Web3

Web3 is a vision for the next generation of the internet, where users own and control their data, identity, and digital assets—powered by blockchain.
Relationship to everything else:
Web3 is the big-picture framework: it combines blockchains, cryptocurrencies (like Bitcoin and altcoins), and applications like DeFi to create a more open, user-owned internet.

I will appreciate any comments and questions in order to improve how to introduce this fascinating world of Web3.