Helium mining in general
Short and on point
First, let's discuss what helium is. Helium is a blockchain-based cryptocurrency officially launched on July 29, 2019, to decentralize wireless infrastructure around the world. Still a bit blurry?! Let me explain.
When mining Helium, you provide connectivity for a class of Internet of Things (IoT) devices by simply building wireless coverage thanks to the LongFi technology, in return for which you are rewarded with the $HNT cryptocurrency. This is achieved by using special devices that support the mentioned technology, devices that are placed wherever the user thinks it is the best for creating an ideal coverage. The amount of currency received is calculated based on the Proof of Coverage algorithm. For mining efficiently, and adding value to the community I suggest reading through the documentation of the mechanism.
The code behind helium is almost entirely open-source, which means that anyone has access and can contribute to the project.
The Helium Network is built almost entirely on open source code. And we actively encourage the community to develop and contribute to all parts of the Network.
Further reading of the open source project: https://docs.helium.com/open-source/open-source
One would ask who benefits from the coverage provided by people mining this currency, and how this coverage affects their day-to-day lives and businesses around the area they live. The network coverage that we are talking about is not the well-known wifi network used in your home or office, this is more of a lower tier of the internet in the form of radio signals used for devices that need a low amount of connectivity. Devices such as tracking systems in vehicles, smart gadgets, sensors, or IoT devices do not need constant network connectivity and use a minimal amount of internet.
The world is evolving rapidly towards a state where smarter gadgets and IoT devices are used more often, so by contributing to the project you are part of the solution for the future of technology.
For further information you can read more on the official helium site at the following link:
Mining helium
The terminology used for helium miners is HNT Hotspot miners. There are numerous types of miners out in the world. Some commonly known are Bobcat miner 3000, RAK Hotspot miner, HNT indoor and outdoor miner. You need to preorder them, which usually takes up time, so keep that in the calculation. Another way to get into mining is by connecting with a company that offers you their miner in return for a given percentage of the helium earn. Companies like Emrit make mining helium easy to get into. All you need to do is sign up for free delivery from them, and wait for it to arrive at your doorstep equipping you with the tools needed to mine.
The reward process
The Helium Blockchain is based on an algorithm called Proof of Coverage which rewards the miners with the official helium currency $HNT. The Helium Network Explorer is one resource for viewing POC-related data. There is a new beta version in development, I will paste the link here: https://explorer-beta.helium.com/.
You can read more about how the Hex density-based reward scaling works, which suggests a change to POC rewarding to better rewards areas of coverage in the following document: https://engineering.helium.com/2020/12/09/blockchain-release-hip-17.html
For topics not covered in this article I recommend the FAQ page from the official helium site:
