Accelerated Learning for Bitcoin
How I got up to speed on bitcoin in about a month.
(That’s a riddle)
Here is a brief narrative of how I got a basic grasp of bitcoin, how I heard about it, learned about it, and keep up on the current developments. Bitcoin is a currency, a protocol, an investment, and a system. For some, a way of life, for others, a religion. I guess for me, for the time being, it has become an obsession. I found it to be a vision of freedom and independence from the current monetary system. Bitcoin is not issued or controlled by a central government, it is decentralized and used world-wide. Bitcoin only requires the internet to survive.
Buy the Casascius coins here. These are a physical manifestation of bitcoin, that is, someone minted these and attached a bitcoin value to them. Consider them a novelty, a kind of bitcoin souvenir. (A picture of mining hardware or code would be a bit boring to look at.)
FINCEN has shut down Casascius coins and considers them “money transmission” so they can not be sold at the moment. Will update when things change.
How I got started with bitcoin
I live in a pretty small town on the west coast, no major industries and not a whole lot of tech savvy going on here. I was walking out of a coffee house and spotted a postcard on the counter with the other fliers, “Bitcoin Not Bombs.” I had become aware of bitcoin in the web-o-sphere, it was floating around in the collective unconscious I suppose. I took the card home and the first thing I did was post on Craigslist on the “missed connections” board looking for the person who placed the card, figuring that they would be enthusiastic to talk about bitcoin. I received no reply. I searched all of the local Craigslist, there was no mention of bitcoin to be found. (Not anymore! Everything I list for sale I accept cash or bitcoin as payment.)
that started it all
I asked a few of my computer buddies if they knew about bitcoin; yes they have heard of it, none of them were mining or owned any, one guy had a fairly decent grasp of it, the other guy went on and on about it being a Ponzi scheme, wire fraud, and that it had no value whatsoever. At the beginning of my investigation of bitcoin, the value was around $120-$140, a few weeks before the Silk Road bust.
Here is a brief document of what I did and where I found the information to learn about bitcoin. Don’t be a lazybrain is my motto. I love learning, and tend to get a little OCD when taking on a new topic.
You can do one or two of these practices or all of them, pick and choose what you are interested in. Bookmark this page, use it as a study guide, open new tabs for the links provided, then return here and continue.
If you follow all of them, you’ll be able to:
- speak knowledgeably about bitcoin
- buy bitcoin, use them in transactions, save them securely, track the current exchange value, sell bitcoin
- tell your friends, family, and businesses about bitcoin
- know the difference between fact and fiction about bitcoin
Steps for learning all about bitcoin
- I searched Gootube, “RT Bitcoin” RT being Russia Television, this is the first of many videos I have watched, and in my opinion, the first video anyone should watch on bitcoin.
Bitcoin Developer
'Bitcoin steals power from both banks & gangsters'
2. I recommend subscribing to the channels listed below, watch current videos and go back and watch earlier uploads to get a deeper understanding of the progress and evolution bitcoin is experiencing.
Let’s Talk Bitcoin (segments of the podcast uploaded)
“Why Bitcoin Terrifies Big Banks” interview with Andreas Antonopoulos @aantonop
3. Take this free course on Udemy.com “Bitcoin or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Crypto“ available as an app or on the web. This course is easy to follow yet comprehensive. I highly recommend it! It is facilitated by John Hoskinson and he is continually updating it with new content. I would watch a module or two every evening, cuddled up with the ipad. This course has many great resources too!
4. Join the Bitcoin Forum, make an account, read threads on these topics and anything you’re curious about: mining, exchanges, current news, economics, marketplace, trading discussion, etc. The upside is, there are a lot of knowledgeable people on this board and it is moderated, so there is a minimum of spam and other nonsense. There is a feedback/trust rating system, so scammers get negative ratings and flagged. Read and interact on this forum a little bit every day. Many times breaking news and inside information shows up here first. If you have a question about bitcoin, first search the forum using key words, if nothing turns up, ask in the appropriate forum and you will get an answer quickly. Reddit has a bitcoin forum also, r/bitcoin, there are other subforums for altcoins, trading, markets, etc. Breaking bitcoin news frequently shows up there first. Many discussions go downhill fast, NEXT!
5. Get on Twitter. I joined specifically to learn about and track current information and experts on bitcoin. Two ways to make the job easier: search #bitcoin and go from there. Another way is to find me @SPC_Bitcoin and dig through the bitcoin people and organizations I follow, I’m very picky! I only follow people who have expertise, innovative business enterprises, industry standards, and those who tweet real news about bitcoin. More and more added every day to Twitter. Bitcoin pages are on Facebook, but I don’t go there.
6. Subscribe to the podcast Let’s Talk Bitcoin (LTB) for a great education on bitcoin as well as current news. LTB features new and innovative businesses in the world of bitcoin. Listen to current episodes as they come out, and most certainly, listen to previous episodes, go all the way back to the beginning. There are some good articles on LTB as well. Follow on Twitter @LetsTalkBitcoin.
7. Study the bitcoin wiki to get more information on exchanges, where you can spend bitcoin, terminology and jargon, and all kinds of info on bitcoin.
8. Watch the Blockchain live, see charts, and make a wallet.
9. Watch the fiat currency convert to bitcoin globally, in real-time. Enjoy the show!
10. As an extra bonus for the hardcore, make a Google Alert for bitcoin, enter your email address and “bitcoin” for the search query. Get a email daily of all new posts about bitcoin.
Thank you for reading. If you found this helpful and would like to show your appreciation with bitcoin, here is my address: 17HT3jofFHn4sqAGBR14TUMbQqwxM2wjGo
Much appreciated!
