The Bitcoin white paper is nine pages long and includes 12 sections as well as an abstract. It details the new digital currency and online payment system. Bitcoin was not the first cryptocurrency. It was just an idea that an author, Satoshi Nakamoto, had outlined in a whitepaper. Nakamoto had a vision of a digital currency decentralized that would solve the problems of electronic payment systems at that time. This vision was realized in 2008.
White papers can be a great way to start investing in cryptocurrencies. According to All Crypto Whitepapers, there have been more than 3,000 whitepapers about different cryptocurrencies since Nakamoto's Bitcoin whitepaper. These papers include papers about Ethereum, Litecoin and Cardano as well as many other less-popular altcoins.
Let's look at the whitepaper that got it started: "Bitcoin" by Satoshi Nagamoto.
What is the Bitcoin White Paper?
The Bitcoin whitepaper is nine pages long and includes 12 sections as well as an abstract. It details the new digital currency and online payment system. Bitcoin was not yet a reality at the time that the paper was written. Bitcoin was launched by the anonymous author of the paper a year later. Bitcoin's launch price of $0 had increased to $9 cents by July 2010. It broke $1 in April 2011.
NextAdvisor was told by Robert Konsdorf (CEO of NFT management platform Facings) that the unit of value (BTC), wouldn't be possible without blockchain technology. However, there has never been a bitcoin blockchain without currency."
This quote is what explains Nakamoto's whitepaper. Bitcoin wouldn't exist without the whitepaper that described how blockchain technology could create a new type of technology.
Why Was Satoshi Nakamoto’s White Paper So Important?
Nakamoto's whitepaper was the first step in a new type of technology. The whitepaper described the potential benefits of bitcoin and highlighted the shortcomings in electronic payment systems.
Today, almost all cryptocurrencies launch with white papers that are written to show investors the cryptocurrency's worth. Altcoins may launch with an explanation video, but this video serves the same purpose that Nakamoto's whitepaper years ago: to explain the technology, purpose, and value of the cryptocurrency.
What Happened to The Bitcoin White Paper?
The 2008 Bitcoin white paper was published by MIT under a public license. It should be available for all to read and access. You can access the original paper online through this licensing agreement at Bitcoin.org. There are also PDFs that have been published by several organizations such as CoinDesk or USSC.gov. This is the United States Sentencing Commission's website.
You can find more than 3,000 whitepapers on crypto whitepapers if you are interested in learning more about other cryptocurrencies. If you are interested in investing in cryptocurrency, there will be tips on how to find a whitepaper.
How Long is Bitcoin’s White Paper?
The Bitcoin white paper is not very long for such an important document. It only contains nine pages. It contains an abstract as well as 12 parts.
Let's take a look at the components of Bitcoin so that you understand it better.
Abstract
As with many scientific and college papers, Nakamoto's whitepaper began with an abstract that explains the concepts of Bitcoin, and blockchain.
Blockchain technology is described in the abstract. This is where network timestamp transactions create an ever-growing chain of proof-of-work. This creates security for the network and prevents the record from being altered without redoing the proof of work.
1. Introduction
Next, Nakamoto's paper discusses the issues with peer-to-peer payment services such as PayPal. This required third-party validation. These systems can lead to disputes, and financial institutions need to mediate them.
Nakamoto stated that "completely non-reversible transactions" are not possible. Financial institutions are required to act as intermediaries. This means that there must be additional transaction costs for anyone using these services. These payment systems are built on trust and not on blockchain technology.
The remainder of this paper will describe blockchain technology step-by-step, with some code and calculations. Continue reading to learn about these sections and their significance in the most simple terms.
2. Transactions
The second section of this paper describes the process for executing transactions. Transactions are executed using digital signatures, just like other P2P payment methods. In the case of PayPal or other digital transactions, however, a third-party payee must verify signatures to make sure that the owner hasn't double-spend the coin.
All transactions can be publicly disclosed on the blockchain network by using blockchain technology. Only the earliest transaction counts and all nodes must agree that it was the first.
3. Timestamp Server
The timestamp server is used to verify the transaction time. This process is described in the third part of the Bitcoin whitepaper. The timestamp server generates a hash from a block of items and publishes it. This proves that the data was available at the time. Each timestamp builds on the one before it, creating a chain.
4. Proof-of-Work
Part four of the paper introduces Nakamoto's crucial proof-of-work consensus mechanism. Nakamoto stated that publishing transactions in newspapers or Usenet would not work. The blockchain would instead draw from technology similar to Adam Back’s Hashcash (footnoted within the white paper). Back introduced Hashcash in 2002. It is used to counter denial-of-service attacks.
The proof-of-work consensus mechanism, although it is not mentioned in the whitepaper, is where Bitcoin miners are. The block cannot be altered after a CPU has used the energy required to meet the proof-of-work requirement. The longest chain will represent the majority decision.
It will be nearly impossible for an attacker, as long as the majority of CPU power is managed by honest nodes and not attackers, to redo the previous proof-of-work in the chain and catch up with the honest nodes. This is where blockchain technology brings you enhanced security.
5. Network
Next, Nakamoto explains what it takes to manage the blockchain network. Nakamoto describes in this section what happens if a fork in the chain is created -- something that has occurred in Bitcoin's history.
The longest chain will always be considered the correct one by nodes. If two nodes broadcast at the same time, which is possible, a fork may be created. The fork will usually be fixed as soon as another miner adds another node. The correct chain will be the longer one. These forks are often created on blockchains without much notice.
Sometimes, a second fork is created. Miners add nodes to both chain chains every so often. A second blockchain is created when this happens. This was the time Bitcoin Cash became available. This is the most well-known Bitcoin hard fork. It creates a completely new cryptocurrency.
6. Incentive
Next, Nakamoto describes how to earn coins by mining. Nakamoto uses an analogy of gold mining. This section describes the incentives for creating new blocks. For creating a new block, the first transaction in the block unlocks a coin. This is the reward for the node and the miner who operates the node.
These incentives discourage bad actors. These incentives discourage bad actors. Nakamoto stated that it was more profitable for him to follow the rules, which favor him with more coins than anyone else, rather than to undermine the system or the validity of his wealth.
7. Reclaiming Disk Space
Part seven of this paper explains how to delete old blocks without affecting the block's hash. To save space, this is done using a Merkle Tree. This stores only the root of each block.
8. Simplified Payment Verification
This section explains how payments can be verified without the need to use a full network node. The Merkle branch can be used to verify that a transaction is part of the longest chain. Verification can only be trusted if the network is controlled by honest nodes. As long as attackers can be overpowered by honest nodes, verification should be reliable.
Businesses that receive regular payments should have the option of setting up their verification nodes.
9. Splitting and Combining Value
Transactions can include multiple inputs and outputs. This is in contrast to creating separate transactions for each coin. This simplifies operations. Multiple inputs can be combined to make smaller transactions. According to Nakamoto, typically there will be only two outputs: one to pay the sender and one to return any changes.
10. Privacy
Privacy is a major concern in any P2P payments system. Third-party payment processors such as PayPal verify transactions. The payee, payer, and third parties will all be notified about the transaction. By restricting access to the information, the bank or processor protects your privacy.
Transactions made using Bitcoin for payment must be publicly announced to ensure that the blockchain can verify them. Public keys are anonymous, however. Transactions cannot be linked to an individual. This protects your privacy as only the payer and payee -- and not any third parties or persons verifying transactions -- know who sent or received the coins.
To maintain privacy, each transaction should have a unique key pair to prevent a series of transactions from being linked together.
11. Calculations
Section 11 of this white paper explains the basics of Bitcoin and blockchain technology. It also contains the calculations that demonstrate the security of the blockchain. The probability of an attacker catching up to the chain with the truthful chain is lower than 0.001%, even if he can generate it faster than miners.
12. Conclusion
The paper concludes with a statement that reiterates the importance and value of electronic transactions that don't require intermediaries or rely upon a trust system.
According to the whitepaper, Bitcoin's proof of work consensus mechanism records transactions that are "computationally impossible for an attacker to alter.
The proof-of-work consensus mechanism has its flaws, such as the high energy consumption required to run and maintain the blockchain. The proof-of-stake consensus system was later introduced by other cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum. Bitcoin is still the currency that created it all. The white paper, which details the history and technical details of this currency, is an important document.
Bottom line
The book "Bitcoin" is available online. This article provides insight into the workings of Bitcoin and other proof of-work cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and can be useful to investors, miners, and anyone else who is interested in cryptocurrency investment or online payments.
Remember that blockchain's fundamentals gave rise to a whole decentralized financial industry today, which includes Bitcoin, altcoins, and NFTs. Understanding blockchain technology will help you understand investments and their potential future. It is important to remember that crypto investments can be highly risky.