Son: Dad,
Dad: Son?
Son: On your Mac, open `Terminal` and then type the following command: "open /System/Library/Image\ Capture/Devices/VirtualScanner.app/Contents/Resources/simpledoc.pdf" What do you see? :-)
Dad: How did you get the Bitcoin whitepaper onto my Mac?
Son: I wasn't. It was always there.
Dad: Okay, ... Now I am speechless.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, how are you investing in Bitcoin?
Son: Hi Dad,
There are many ways to invest in Bitcoin.
One of them is to save in bitcoin.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what keeps two people from generating the same seed words?
Son: Nothing, Dad, except gigantic numbers.
This number is so large the human mind cannot comprehend its vast space. Think of every atom in the universe, it's almost that big.
If nearly everyone on Earth started generating 1 million keys per second for 100 years, the chance to encounter a collision is still pretty much zero.
Dad: Can one rest assured that as long as seed words are randomly generated, no two parties should ever generate a colliding key?
Son: Yes, Dad. Vires in Numeris.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, when am I going to understand Bitcoin fully?
Son: Hi Dad,
No one fully understands Bitcoin, not even Satoshi.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what is a "PSBT"?
Son: Hi Dad,
"PSBT" stands for "Partially Signed Bitcoin Transactions".
It's a data format that allows wallets and other tools to exchange information about a Bitcoin transaction and the signatures necessary to complete it.
Dad: Ok, that is basically what makes air-gapped Bitcoin possible?
Son: Using a PSBT makes it possible to do this in a standardized way. The first version of PSBT (version 0) is described in BIP174 and PSBTv2 is described in BIP370. Nowadays, I wouldn't recommend a wallet not supporting PSBTs.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, many people I know have cryptophobia.
Son: Hi Dad,
I'm not surprised.
Bitcoin is like early electricity.
Raw, dangerous, very volatile and hard to use.
With time, Bitcoin will feel much safer, easier to use, and simply normal.
Dad: I also believe that Bitcoin is here to stay.
Son: Like electricity, it will inspire and power new unimaginable industries. And one day we will wonder how we could live without Bitcoin.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what is the best application for lightning?
Son: Hi Dad,
Bitcoin payments and killing shitcoins.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what is "Cold Storage" exactly?
Son: Hi Dad,
"Cold storage" is a general term for different ways of securing bitcoins offline. Your signing keys are disconnected from the internet.
Dad: So "BlueWallet" must be a hot wallet?
Son: Yes. It's connected to the internet. This is perfectly fine for daily transactions and smaller amounts.
For storing funds long term, use a dedicated hardware wallet like the "Coldcard" or the "Passport". However, multisig – a "signing combination" of various wallet – would be the best solution.
#Bitcoin
Son: Dad, Bitcoin fixes this!
Dad: Son, what? Bitcoin fixes what?
Son: Everything. Fix the Money, fix the World!
#Bitcoin
Son: Dad, don't trust everything you see.
Even salt looks like sugar.
Dad: Son, what do you want to tell me?
Son: Use your Umbrel node to verify if your bitcoin is real bitcoin – or you will be salty in the end.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, so, Bitcoin is open-source? What does this mean exactly?
Son: Hi Dad,
The term open source refers to something anyone can independently review, modify and share because its design is publicly accessible.
Dad: So, everything is public and there are no secrets, except your own?
Son: Your private keys are private, of course.
Everything else is public and auditable. In this beautiful asymmetry lies the true power of Bitcoin.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what about "paper wallets"?
Son: Hi Dad,
Don't use them nowadays. These paper wallets are considered unsafe for various reasons.
Dad: What should I use instead? Any suggestions?
Son: "Opendimes" are today's paper wallets.
This is a very safe and effective way to generate a uncompromised private key.
Dad: And then I load the private key into BlueWallet?
Son: If you want to move your funds, then yes.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, why should I invest in Bitcoin?
I do not understand it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Son: Hi Dad,
Nobody understands Bitcoin when they start.
Dad: Truth.
Son: Two other things are true:
1. Nobody has enough Bitcoin.
2. Nobody understands Bitcoin completely.
So, you are in good company. ;-)
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, where do you store your Bitcoin?
Son: Hi Dad,
I store my bitcoin on the blockchain.
Everyone running a node takes care of it.
I use my hardware wallet to control it.
If I want to move it, I broadcast a signed transaction, pay the fee, and a miner packs it into a block for redistribution.
Then, either I as the remaining owner or the new owner, can control the newly created bitcoin output onward.
Dad: If they don't lose their keys.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, who created Bitcoin?
Son: Dad, no one actually knows...
Dad: What? No one knows who created Bitcoin?!
Son: I doubt anyone knows who created Bitcoin. It seems to be one of the best kept secrets of modern times. But we do have a name: "Satoshi Nakamoto". This may be a person or a group of persons.
Dad: But Bitcoin has to come from somewhere, right?
Son: Yes, Bitcoin did have a prehistory. There are eight references listed at the end of the Bitcoin white paper. Would you like to take a look?
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what does "BITCOIN" mean?
Son: Hi Dad,
It's a name.
Dad: No, son, it is an acronym.
BITCOIN - Brilliant Innovative Technology Creates Opportunities Involving Numbers
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what is the difference between altcoins and Bitcoin?
Son: Hi Dad,
Bitcoin would be here without shitcoins. in contrast, shitcoins wouldn't be here without Bitcoin.
Dad: And further, maybe more technical or long-term?
Son: Bitcoin is relevant, the rest isn't.
Dad: Son, so you do not see any investment opportunities in altcoins?
Son: No, not at all. Dad, don't waste your money and time on irrelevant thing. There is just Bitcoin.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what does m/44'|48'|84'/0'/0' mean?
Son: Hi Dad,
It's a "derivation path" and it describes how your Hierarchical Deterministic (HD) wallet derive a specific key within a tree of keys.
For example, if you want to get the next address from a wallet, it just increases the last number by one.
Dad: So this means that all receiving addresses are already known when the wallet is created?
Son: All receiving addresses, all change addresses, all accounts and much more are known from the beginning. Everything is derived from your 12 or 24 seed words using a derivation path.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, meanwhile, I have more trust in Bitcoin than in my bank.
Son: Hi Dad,
You are not the only one. With Bitcoin, you no longer need to trust any centralized entity or any counterparty.
Bitcoin is a trustless system.
Dad: Ironically, the vast majority of people still do not trust mathematics, cryptography and the protocols.
Son: Few understand this.
#Bitcoin
Dad: Son, what is the difference between blockchain and Bitcoin? Is there even a difference?
Son: Hi Dad,
"Blockchain" is the technology that underpins Bitcoin, and transactions are stored in blocks.
Think of it as a decentralized database or a decentralized ledger.
"Bitcoin" – the coins or the "value" – are the unspent transaction outputs that are stored on the blockchain.
Dad: Where on the blockchain?
Son: If the blockchain were a material flow or Sankey diagram, you would find the stored value at the ends of the diagram.
#Bitcoin