To begin our adventures in programming with Bitcoin, we're going to install and work with a set of development tools:
NodeJS: This is a platform built on the open sourced Javascript engine from Google. It will allow us to write and execute the scripts quickly and easily. These scripts can be written to run in a Web browser or on a server.
BitcoinJS: This is a Javascript library for working with Bitcoin and its cryptographic functions. We'll use BitcoinJS to generate private keys and addresses.
Blockchain.info: This is a public API that will allow us to query the blockchain for balances, and to broadcast the transactions to the network. While we can implement our own Bitcoin node, as described in Chapter 5, Installing a Bitcoin Node, using Blockchain.info as the alternative allows us to get up and running quickly and easily.