Posted by MarkB_MI on December 12, 2017 at 17:10:40 from (174.230.7.228):
In Reply to: Bitcoin questions posted by jocco on December 12, 2017 at 12:16:22:
Bitcoin is digital currency. It has value because people believe it has value, which is no different, really, than the US dollar or a gold coin. You can use anything for money, just as long as you can find someone else who is willing to exchange something else of value for it.
Bitcoins are basically an electronic signature. They are manufactured, or "mined" by people using very powerful computers and access to cheap electricity. In the early days, it was fairly cheap and easy to make a Bitcoin; you just run a computer algorithm that solves a problem and spits out the solution in the form of a Bitcoin. The catch is that the more Bitcoins are in circulation, the more difficult it is to solve the algorithm. This is intentional to ensure a certain scarcity after enough coins are in circulation. It now costs hundreds of dollars, maybe a grand or more, to mine a single Bitcoin.
The underlying technology behind Bitcoin is called "blockchain", which I don't claim to understand. But in a nutshell, the blockchain records all transactions in such a way that it is fundamentally impossible to forge a transaction. The owner of a Bitcoin (or fraction of one) has a private cryptographic key allowing him to spend it. You keep your Bitcoins in a password-protected "wallet" on your personal computer. Recipients of a Bitcoin transaction are able to verify the Bitcoin using a public cryptographic key.
As far as spending or cashing in Bitcoins, you can exchange them for US or other currency at the same exchanges where you buy them. There are a number of retail companies and individuals who accept Bitcoin payment, but it's likely many will stop accepting them due to the current volatility.
As far as buying Bitcoins as an investment, this is certainly risky. A few people own a lot of Bitcoins, and could easily dump a bunch any time they choose to do so.
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