Kulkarni - Learn Bitcoin and Blockchain: understanding Blockchain and Bitcoin architecture to build decentralized applications

Copyright 2018 Packt Publishing

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Commissioning Editor: Sunith Shetty
Acquisition Editor: Divya Poojari
Content Development Editor: Nathanya Dias
Technical Editor: Vibhuti Gawde
Copy Editor: Safis Editing
Project Coordinator: Kirti Pisat
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Indexer: Tejal Daruwale Soni
Graphics: Jisha Chirayil
Production Coordinator: Deepika Naik

First published: August 2018

Production reference: 1280818

Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.
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Birmingham
B3 2PB, UK.

ISBN 978-1-78953-613-3

www.packtpub.com

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Kirankalyan Kulkarni is a determined and highly influential author. He has more than 17 years of experience in various technologies and has more than 9 years experience in hands-on programs, delivery, and account management. He has managed teams of around 125 professionals across global locations, including entry-level developers, project managers, and architects. He researches blockchain and its underlying architecture with Hyperledger and Ethereum variants.

If you're interested in becoming an author for Packt, please visit authors.packtpub.com and apply today. We have worked with thousands of developers and tech professionals, just like you, to help them share their insight with the global tech community. You can make a general application, apply for a specific hot topic that we are recruiting an author for, or submit your own idea.

Blockchain is a distributed database that enables permanent, transparent, and secure storage of data. The blockchain technology uses cryptography to keep data secure. This book is the perfect entry point to the world of decentralized databases.
The book will take you on a journey through the blockchain database, followed by advanced implementations of the concept of blockchain. You will learn about the basics of Bitcoin and their technical operations. As you make your way through the book, you will gain insight into this leading technology and its implementation in the real world. You will also cover the technical foundations of blockchain, learn about the fundamentals of cryptography, and see how it keeps data secure. In the concluding chapters, you'll get to grips with the mechanisms behind cryptocurrencies.
By the end of this book, you will have learned about decentralized digital money, advanced blockchain concepts, and Bitcoin and blockchain security.

This book is for anyone who wants to quickly understand and expand their knowledge of how blockchain and Bitcoin work and how they are applied commercially. No prior knowledge of blockchain and Bitcoin is required.

, Introduction to Blockchain and Bitcoin, will give us a step-by-step introduction to the essentials of Bitcoin and
blockchain. It will cover the basics of this unique technology, which is developing greatly. We will cover the fundamentals of cryptography and cryptocurrency, an introduction and history of Bitcoin and blockchain, its structure, the various types of blockchain, and more. This chapter will also provide the bigger picture of what makes Bitcoin and blockchain the next great innovation after the internet.

, Fundamentals of Decentralization, will enable us to understand the various situations in which we can use decentralization and blockchain for the benefit of society and individuals. Since this technology is completely new and undergoing changes, we hope to see a better world tomorrow that includes security and transparency while eliminating all the downsides of the technology. Towards the end of the fundamentals of decentralization, we will see how decentralization is going to impact the present and future world in a better way.

, Advanced Blockchain Concepts, will cover some of the advanced concepts used in blockchain and various consensus protocols used in various blockchain implementations. We will look at some of the key challenges in privacy on blockchains and how solutions such as ZKP can help safeguard privacy. Then we will discuss smart contracts, which is one of the core building blocks of blockchain: how they are written, what they are, and how they are executed.

, Bitcoin and Blockchain Security, will start with an introduction to the fundamentals of cryptography, and it is using cryptocurrency. We will look into the history of Bitcoin, the structure of a blockchain, and the various types of blockchain. We will get familiar with the decentralization that sits at the core of blockchain. We will get insight on how decentralization works, its pros and cons, what all can be decentralized, and how it is impacting the world today. We will also get a deeper understanding of the advanced concepts of blockchain, such as its structure, architecture, and the protocols used. Finally, this chapter will enable us to understand the features and safety provided by the various crypto wallets. We will look at how hardware wallets work, some types of physical coin, the chances of survival of the various cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin and Altcoin, and we will try to understand how to balance and diversify risks related to investing in crypto tokens.