I recommend to anyone be interested in reading a non-technical introduction to Bitcoin and block chain up to know more about mining cryptocurrencies.
The first exchanges where people could buy Bitcoin started without sufficient organizational structure. Many of their early customers were buying drugs, a situation that was difficult for nascent exchanges. Disorganization in financial organizations tends to lead to losses. This formative period certainly makes for a colourful story.
At the same time the dominant payment industry carries substantial security weaknesses. Many security breaches have compromised customer data that would not be vulnerable with bitcoin transactions. The gatekeepers to the financial industry also add substantial costs to many transactions, particularly small ones. Across the world, as more people find out about Bitcoin, the community grows despite the challenges.
The discussion of mining, focuses not on the technical aspects but the business and it's implications.
Many business are starting now, often with the support of venture capitalists and business incubators, particularly in the silicon valley. The culture and energy of the many entrepreneurs there are likely to drive many future innovations. These innovations in turn build the community and technology that will push Bitcoin forward in the next phase of the growth.
From the very opening of the book the authors show great interest in the unbanked. People who are not served by the
financial system as they are considered too poor to substantially drive the profitability of major financial institutions. Some people are also isolated by their culture or government. Since many poor countries around the world have largely adopted cell phones, there is a great opportunity for digital currencies to support development of financial services for people who previously had no access to them. The example from Afghanistan is quite inspiring.
Satoshi Dice is described as a second generation bitcoin application that makes a novel use to the blockchain to create a gambling system that is provably fair. The gambler is less at the mercy of the casino. It may not be as inspiring, but it is a great technical example of an application where a clearly superior service is enabled by digital currency.
Clearly many more creative applications are coming. It is impossible to predict what they will be. But this discussion with concrete examples give a good foundation for understanding what is becoming possible.
