Blockchain Explained: for Non-Coders
What is Blockchain and why should I care?
You’re not a techie but you want to keep up on the latest tech disruptors because you figure it will impact you or your industry soon, so you should know what these things are. You’ve heard that “Blockchain will take over everything” and “Blockchain now is like the Internet back in the 90’s”. You don’t have any dreams of “get rich quick” schemes, but you are slightly curious how cryptocoins may someday disrupt your life. You are completely overwhelmed, and convinced that Blockchain will take way too long to wrap your head around it. So, you’ll just figure it out later when you have more time.
Don’t wait.
Take a few minutes a day/week and hear some stories from me about Blockchain. You’ll get it. I promise. It’ll be easy.
SIDEBAR: Two thoughts about Blockchain = Internet of the 90’s.
1) Blockchain now isn’t like the Internet of the 90’s. It’s more like the era before there was a Windows interface, and in order to get a word document formatted, you had to quasi-code in DOS on a black screen with green glowing letters (like Matthew Broderick in “War Games” or Sandra Bullock in “The Net”).
2) When the Internet was a new concept, people kept asking “how does it work”? No one asks how the Internet works anymore. It’s assumed. You’re at work, you’re chatting on the phone with a client, and you send them an email — you expect them to get it within a few seconds. You have a vague idea of how it works, but you no longer ask: “How did the email get through the Internet?” It doesn’t really matter because it got there. You only care if it DIDN’T get there. ONE day, the Blockchain or some evolutionary form of it, will be like that too. You will just assume it works. You’ll just use it. Today is not that day. Today you still need to be at least a quasi-coder to have any idea what the Blockchain is. BUT, at least now we have the internet to look up stuff and click on links when we need more info/ context.
So, come along with me as I learn and explore Blockchain. What is it? Why should we care?
I’m not a “techie” but as a Product Manager, I’ve been translating tech between customers and the Dev Team for a long time. I learn enough tech to figure out what’s important to tell in the story. I think in terms of stories because once a long while ago I wrote plays and short stories — nothing that you’ve heard of, just some background about me so you’ll understand that when you ask me a question, I’m going to give you a story in response.
If you think in terms of stories, or if you don’t want to learn how to code to understand why and how Blockchain might impact you / your world, then come along on the journey with me. I’ll be sure to give you the links to my resources in case you want to go down the rabbit hole a bit.
Why am I doing this? Two reasons.
- Most of the resources I’m reading or listening to either assume you are a coder or that you already understand Blockchain. Or — it provides the same basic intro to Blockchain and then stops — no explanation of anything beyond.
- I came across a blog by Haseeb Qureshi, The Hard Thing About Learning Hard Things — he advocates learning hard things by teaching it to others as you learn, and I said YES. I will teach as I learn. I will offer up what I learn from the rabbit hole depths below in small digestible pieces with a story attached so you can understand it. If I need to learn some code or some math or find some resources to explain the code or the math, I will offer it up to you with a story attached so you won’t have to search all around as I have.
- Ok, three reasons. The third is, the blog will help me too. It will keep me accountable. It will require me to be organized in my thoughts because I will have to be organized in my presentation. And without that, the rabbit hole is a crazy spiral of information that takes you deeper and darker, and I’d like to come up for air and see the light every once in a while.
My intention is to write about Blockchain in really easy to understand stories. As far as I can tell, this doesn’t exist yet. If I’ve written something that doesn’t break it down well enough, or if I simplify it too much, let me know. I’m always on the search for simple Blockchain explanations — if you run across an easy Blockchain explanation that you like, please let me know!
