Summary
In this chapter, we introduced you to the overall cryptocurrency landscape. We discussed several altcoins in detail, especially Zcash and Namecoin. Cryptocurrencies are a very active area for research. Topics such as scalability, privacy, and security are the main focus of many researchers. Further research needs to be carried out in the areas of the privacy and scalability of blockchain. Some research has also been conducted to invent new difficulty retargeting algorithms to thwart the threat of centralization in cryptocurrencies. Altcoins or cryptocurrencies in general are a fascinating field of research, and they open many possibilities for a decentralized future.
We also discussed a few practical aspects, such as mining and starting a new currency project, which will give you a strong foundation, enabling you to explore these areas further. Now, you should be able to appreciate the subject of altcoins and understand the various motivations behind them.
In the next...