A message in the execution environment of Ethereum
just like bitcoin, Ethereum is neither controlled nor owned by anyone - it is an open source project created by many people around the world. Different from bitcoin protocol, Ethereum's design is very flexible and adaptable. It is very easy to create new applications on the Ethereum platform. With the release of homestead, anyone can use the applications on this platform safely
Ethereum is a programmable blockchain. It does not give users a series of preset operations, but allows users to create complex operations according to their own wishes. In this way, it can be used as a platform for many types of decentralized blockchain applications
in a narrow sense, Ethereum refers to a series of protocols that define a decentralized application platform. The core of Ethereum is Ethereum virtual machine (EVM), which can encode any complex algorithm. In computer science terminology, Ethereum is "Turing complete.". Developers can use the existing JavaScript and python as the model of other friendly programming languages to create applications running on the Ethereum simulator.
warm tips: the above explanations are for reference only, without any suggestions. There are risks in entering the market, so investment should be cautious. Before making any investment, you should make sure that you fully understand the nature of the investment and the risks involved in the proct. After a detailed understanding and careful evaluation of the proct, you can judge whether to participate in the transaction
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Blockchain includes public blockchain, joint (instry) blockchain and private blockchain. Public chain point-to-point e-cash system: bitcoin, smart contract and decentralized application platform: Ethereum
blockchain is a new application mode of distributed data storage, point-to-point transmission, consensus mechanism, encryption algorithm and other computer technologies
blockchain is an important concept of bitcoin. In essence, it is a decentralized database. At the same time, as the underlying technology of bitcoin, it is a series of data blocks generated by using cryptographic methods. Each data block contains a batch of bitcoin network transaction information, Used to verify the validity of its information (anti-counterfeiting) and generate the next block
extended data
according to the different degree of blockchain network centralization, three kinds of blockchains under different application scenarios are differentiated:
1. The blockchain with the whole network open and without user authorization mechanism is called public chain
2. The authorized nodes are allowed to join the network, and the information can be viewed according to the authority. It is often used in the inter agency blockchain, which is called alliance chain or instry chain
3. All the nodes in the network are in the hands of one organization, which is called private chain
alliance chain and private chain are also called licensing chain, and public chain is called non licensing chain
blockchain features
1, decentralization. Blockchain technology does not rely on additional third-party management institutions or hardware facilities, and there is no central control. In addition to the self-contained blockchain itself, each node realizes information self verification, transmission and management through distributed accounting and storage. Decentralization is the most prominent and essential feature of blockchain
2. Openness. Blockchain technology is based on open source. In addition to the private information of all parties involved in the transaction is encrypted, the data of blockchain is open to everyone. Anyone can query blockchain data and develop related applications through the open interface, so the information of the whole system is highly transparent
3. Independence. Based on consensus specifications and Protocols (similar to various mathematical algorithms such as hash algorithm used by bitcoin), the whole blockchain system does not rely on other third parties, and all nodes can automatically and safely verify and exchange data in the system without any human intervention
4. Safety. As long as 51% of all data nodes cannot be controlled, the network data cannot be arbitrarily manipulated and modified, which makes the blockchain itself relatively safe and avoids subjective and artificial data changes
5. Anonymity. Unless there are legal requirements, technically speaking, the identity information of each block node does not need to be disclosed or verified, and the information can be transferred anonymously
what is Ethereum:
Ethereum is an innovation based on the application of technologies and concepts in bitcoin to computers. Ethereum itself imitates a lot of bitcoin technology to maintain the computer platform. Blockchain technology is one of them
Ethereum platform can safely run any program users want
advantages of Ethereum over other competitive currencies before Ethereum appeared, some digital currencies imitated bitcoin. However, these projects have their own shortcomings, they can only support one or several specific applications at the same time< However, the reason why Ethereum can surpass the limitations of these projects in the past is because of the core idea of Ethereum
what Ethereum wants to implement is a blockchain protocol with built-in programming language. Since it supports programming language, in theory, any blockchain application can be defined with this language, and then run on Ethereum's blockchain protocol as an application
The design of Ethereum is very flexible and adaptable
Ethereum target sets the advantages of blockchain technology, in order to add the advantages of blockchain, such as decentralization, openness and security, to almost all computing fields
blockchain applications of Ethereum
Ethereum has many blockchain applications, such as digital applications of gold and stocks, financial derivatives applications, DNS and digital authentication, etc
Ethereum has achieved more than 100 blockchain applications by many start-ups
Ethereum has also been closely watched by some financial institutions, banking consortia (such as R3), as well as large companies like Samsung, Deloitte, RWE and IBM. As a result, a number of blockchain applications such as simplified and automated financial transactions, merchant loyalty index tracking, and gift cards designed to achieve decentralization of electronic transactions have emerged
the relationship between Ethereum and blockchain:
Ethereum is a programmable blockchain
Ethereum does not give users a series of preset operations (such as bitcoin transaction), but allows users to create complex operations according to their own wishes
in this way, Ethereum can be used as a platform for various types of decentralized blockchain applications, including but not limited to cryptocurrency
like other blockchains, Ethereum also has a peer-to-peer network protocol. Ethereum blockchain database is maintained and updated by many nodes connected to the network. Each network node runs the Ethereum simulator and executes the same instructions. Therefore, people sometimes call Ethereum "world computer"
& quot; A smart contract is a set of promises defined in digital form, including the agreements on which the contract participants can execute these promises& quot;
let's explore the meaning of his definition in more detail
commitment
a set of commitments refers to the (often mutual) rights and obligations agreed by contract participants. These commitments define the nature and purpose of the contract. Take a sales contract as a typical example. The seller promises to deliver the goods and the buyer promises to pay a reasonable price
digital form
digital form means that contracts have to be written into computer-readable code. This is necessary, because as long as the participants reach an agreement, the rights and obligations of smart contract establishment are executed by a computer or computer network
to further explain:
(1) when will the parties to the smart contract reach an agreement? The answer depends on the specific smart contract implementation. Generally speaking, the contract is discovered when the parties are committed to the execution of the contract by installing the contract on the contract host platform< (2) contract execution
& quot; Execute & quot; And the real meaning of it also depends on implementation. Generally speaking, implementation means active implementation through technical means
(3) computer readable code
in addition, the contract needs specific & quot; Digital form & quot; Very much depends on the agreement that the parties agree to use
protocol
protocol is technical implementation, on this basis, the contract commitment is realized, or the contract commitment is recorded. Which agreement to choose depends on many factors, the most important of which is the nature of the assets being traded ring the performance of the contract
take the sales contract as an example. Suppose that the participants agree to pay in bitcoin. The chosen protocol will obviously be bitcoin protocol, on which the smart contract will be implemented. Therefore, the contract must use & quot; Digital form & quot; It's bitcoin scripting language. Bitcoin scripting language is a non Turing complete, imperative, stack based programming language, similar to forth.
Ethereum is an implementation of blockchain. In Ethereum network, many nodes are connected with each other to form Ethereum network:
Ethereum node software provides two core functions: data storage and contract code execution
in each Ethereum node, complete blockchain data is stored. Ethereum not only saves the transaction data on the chain, but also saves the compiled contract code on the chain
At the same time, a virtual machine is provided to execute the contract code Ethereum virtual machine
Ethereum blockchain not only stores data and code, but also contains a virtual machine (EVM) in each node to execute contract code - it sounds like a computer operating system
in fact, this is the core difference between Ethereum and bitcoin: the existence of virtual machine has brought blockchain into the era of 2.0 and made blockchain a friendly platform for application developers for the first time
the above content comes from the introction course of Ethereum DAPP development
after Ethereum is upgraded to version 2.0 POS mechanism, miners may switch mining machines to other networks
as Ethereum is finally ready to start its Ethereum 2.0 upgrade later this year, thus eliminating the long-term delay, the network will start to move towards the proof of rights model
therefore, the network will give up the workload proof consensus algorithm, so that eth miners have little choice. As their equipment will become obsolete, they will be forced to start mining counterfeit coins or re qualify as eth mortgagors. So, what is the current situation of Ethereum mining? With the coming transition, what will happen to the whole instry< At present, Ethereum consensus is based on POW system, which is similar to bitcoin (BTC). As a result, Ethereum's mining process is almost the same, as miners use their computing resources to earn rewards for each block they try to complete< However, there are still major differences between these processes. Although bitcoin mining has relied almost entirely on ASIC (large, loud machines designed specifically for cryptocurrency mining, most of which are concentrated in areas with low electricity prices), Ethereum's pow hash algorithm ethash is designed to support global chip manufacturers (such as NVIDIA and AMD). As Thomas Heller, global business director of cryptocurrency mining pool f2pool, explained in a conversation with cointegraph, GPU is much cheaper and easier to access than ASIC
"as ASIC is a very professional machine, when a new generation of procts is released, it is usually a huge technological leap. As a result, they have a much higher hash rate and are more energy efficient than the previous generation. This means that those manufacturers have spent a lot of money to research and develop it. Their machines are usually very expensive, and GPUs are much cheaper. "
Heller added that those who use GPU miners "have more flexibility to mine." For example, the popular NVIDIA geforce GTX 1080 Ti card can mine more than 15 different currencies, while ASIC units usually support only one currency
nevertheless, Ethereum is not completely immune to ASIC miners - at least in its current state. In April 2018, bitcontinent released antminer E3, an ASIC specially proced for mining Ethereum. Although widely praised for its hash rate of 180 megahashes per second and power consumption of 800 watts, it has received different responses from the Ethereum community. After the ASIC is inserted, a considerable number of GPU rig owners seem to suffer from loss of profits, and some are even forced to switch to other networks
"in the white paper, ETH must have ASIC resistance. I would like to say that the white paper stands for something "is one of the highest comments on the AR / ethermining topic about the topic discussed when antminer E3 was announced. Another reddit user argued that "the $800 only applies to 180mh."“ Split or die of a nation. "
some Ethereum users continue to suggest that bitmain's mining devices can lead to greater concentration, thus increasing the possibility of attack by 51%. Soon, a group of developers put forward "programmed workload proof" or progpow, which is an extension of the current Ethereum algorithm ethash, aiming to make GPU more competitive and promote decentralization
according to a paper published in March by Kristy Leigh Minehan, co-founder of progpow, about 40% of the hash rate of Ethereum is generated by bitmain ASIC. Alejandro de la Torre, the vice president of poolin, is the sixth largest pool of eth. He confirmed to cointegration that "GPU mining is still dominant" in Ethereum network, and added:
"at present, the profit of eth mining is not high, and the management threshold and cost of GPU equipment are higher than ASIC equipment. Compared with ASIC devices, GPU devices are more flexible, and you can use other algorithms to switch to other coins. "
progpow has not been integrated into Ethereum, and it is not clear when it will be finally implemented - in March, Ethereum core developers were debating whether progpow will really benefit the network in nearly two hours, and failed to reach a consensus. It is worth noting that a bitmain representative has previously told cointegraph that the mining hardware giant does not intend to extend the service life of antminer E3 to start operation after October 2020: "as far as we know, mining will end in October or some time after that."
a safe but uncertain future
indeed, Ethereum will stay away from mining in the future. Ethereum 2.0, which is planned to be launched later in 2020, is a major network upgrade on the blockchain, aiming to transfer its current POW consensus algorithm to a virtual POS (known as "block verifier")
more specifically, users are randomly selected considering their wealth in the network or their "interests". In other words, the more coins a POS verifier chooses to put in, the more coins accumulated as a reward
according to vitalik buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, e to the transition, the network will be more secure and the attack cost will be higher than the network of bitcoin, although the debate about the better consensus algorithm in the encryption community has lasted for many years. However, it is not clear when to start Ethereum 2.0, as many errors and management issues are reported to be delaying the process
another hypothetical benefit of POS system is that it has higher energy efficiency than pow blockchain. According to digiconomist, the cryptocurrency's total annual footprint is 59.31 terawatts per hour, which is comparable to the electricity consumption of Greece as a whole. However, since a report in July 2019 estimated that 74% of the exploitation of bitcoin was done using renewable energy, the environmental impact of bitcoin does not seem to be so serious
what will happen to the actual Ethereum miner? According to the documentation of Casper upgrade as part of Ethereum 2.0 roadmap, the network will initially support a hybrid model including both POW and POS, thus providing some space for block verifiers and GPU / ASIC miners. Jack O & 39, CEO of skale network; "There will definitely be a transition period when two networks are running at the same time," Holleran told cointegration The CEO of scale network (based on Ethereum's blockchain platform) gave a detailed description of this process:
"the transition from eth1 to eth2 takes time of course - it may be years rather than months. The good news about this slow transition is that dapps and defi platforms will be able to roam around based on survivability, security and real-world evidence of adoption. This is a positive impact on the Ethereum ecosystem. "
dig or not
once Ethereum is fully in the POS orbit, miners will have two options. One is to sell the equipment and use the money to accumulate more Eth and start mortgage. The other is the choice for GPU miners, which is simply switching to other ethash networks and mining counterfeit money. Nick foster, a representative of kabombacks, a US mining equipment dealer, told cointegration that most eth miners would choose the latter:
"what I want to say is that most of the miners have not really entered Ethereum or the mining of specific tokens. Yes, there is a certain amount of mineral deposits and holds, but I oppose the view that a large number of Shanzhai coin miners hold their coins at any time. "<
foster then described how he used 3gb GPU units to mine ethash's point-to-point blockchain asset ravencoin (RVN). Once it was unable to mine eth, he said, "this is the reason for mining crows. I immediately sold stability to BTC, and then sold it to US dollars to pay for my rights. I would say that a lot of people are adopting this strategy. "
as foster concludes, he wants eth miners to jump out of the network, and new players - those who don't invest in power infrastructure or drilling rigs - will take a stake in eth. He described the following:
"I can't imagine if I found a five-year lease with $0.04 of electricity and I was mining eth, I decided to sell everything and then continue to pay the rent so that I could hold eth as a share. Substitute. "
Marc fresa, founder of asic.to, a mining firmware company, agreed in a conversation with cointegraph: "if you invest in mining, you won't bet because you have enough room to grow."
one of the main counterfeit coins that may benefit from POW miners leaving Ethereum is Ethereum classic (etc), which is a more conservative version of the blockchain. It is reported that there is no POS related plan. As it also runs on the ethash algorithm, the startup of Ethereum 2.0 may lead to the migration of miners, so its hash rate may have a significant peak
eth's larger pools have similar options. When asked about the company's plans for Ethereum after pow, Heller told cointegraph that after the announcement of Ethereum's POS upgrade, f2pool launched a sister company called story.fish in early 2018. Story.fish has started to provide mortgage services for other POS and delegated POS projects, such as tezos (xtz), Cosmos (atom) and Cardano (ADA), e to numerous handover delays. For prin, e to the transition to POS, it "may temporarily give up supporting eth mining," de la Torre told cointegraph
other top eth pools, namely nanopool, ethermine, pool center, sparkpool and spiderpool, did not respond to requests for comment from cointegraph.
what is Ethereum
Ethereum is often compared with bitcoin, but the situation is different. Bitcoin is a kind of cryptocurrency and distributed payment network, which allows bitcoin to be transferred between users
related: what is bitcoin? How does it work
Ethereum has a bigger goal. As Ethereum says, "Ethereum is a distributed platform running smart contracts.". These smart contracts run on "Ethereum virtual machine", a distributed computing network composed of all devices running Ethernet nodes
"distributed platform" means that anyone can set up and run an Ethereum node just as anyone can run a bitcoin node. Anyone who wants to run "smart contracts" on nodes must pay the operators of these nodes in ether, which is a cryptocurrency related to Ethereum. Therefore, the person running the Ethernet node provides computing power and gets paid in the Ethernet, which is similar to the way that the person running the bitcoin node provides hash power and pays in bitcoin
in other words, although bitcoin is only a blockchain and payment network, Ethereum is a distributed computing network, and its blockchain can be used for many other things. Details are provided in the Ethereum white paper
what is ether
Ethernet is a digital token (or cryptocurrency) related to Ethereum blockchain. In other words, Ethereum is the token and Ethereum is the platform. But now people often use these terms alternately. For example, coinbase allows you to buy Ethereum, which stands for Ethereum
this is technically "altcoin", which actually means a non bitcoin cryptocurrency. Like bitcoin, ether is supported by distributed blockchain - in this case, Ethereum blockchain
developers who want to create applications or Ethereum smart contracts on Ethereum blockchain need Ethernet token to pay for nodes to host it, while users of Ethereum based applications may need Ethernet to pay for services in these applications. People can also sell services outside the Ethereum network and accept Ethernet payments, or they can sell Ethernet tokens in cash - just like bitcoin