Book Image

Bitcoin Essentials

By : Albert Szmigielski
Book Image

Bitcoin Essentials

By: Albert Szmigielski

Overview of this book

Blockchain is being billed as the technology of the future. Bitcoin is the first application of that technology. Mining is what makes it all possible. Exploring mining from a practical perspective will help you make informed decisions about your mining setup. Understanding what the future may hold for blockchains, and therefore for mining, will help you position yourself to take advantage of the impending changes. This practical guide starts with an introduction to Bitcoin wallets, as well as mining hardware and software. You will move on to learn about different mining techniques using the CPU, GPU, FPGA, and ultimately the ASIC as an example. After this, you will gain an insight into solo mining and pool mining, and see the differences between the two. The book will then walk you through large-scale mining and the challenges faced during such operations. Finally, you will take a look into the future to see a world where blockchain-based applications are commonplace and mining is ubiquitous.
Table of Contents (15 chapters)
Bitcoin Essentials
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Summary


In this chapter, we have looked at CPU mining. We looked at the easiest way to start mining—the built-in setgenerate function in the Bitcoin Core wallet. We delved into the most popular CPU mining software—CPUMiner. We showed you how to set it up and run it so that you can start mining.

We also touched upon the advantages and disadvantages of CPU mining. Consider those when deciding to mine. We also presented a set of good practices to keep in mind while running your mining process. They are common sense to most, but sometimes the most obvious things are forgotten. If you adhere to these practices, you should not encounter any problems while mining.

We also examined the profitability of CPU mining. We showed you a simple way of calculating, on average, your expected earnings. Even though CPU mining is no longer profitable, it is nevertheless a good educational experience.

In the next chapter, we will look at mining with your graphics card, commonly referred to as a Graphics Processing...