What is the distinction between bitcoin and blockchain technology?

Is Bitcoin and blockchain technology the same thing? They aren't, no. However, they are inextricably related. Bitcoin was bundled with blockchain as part of the same approach since it was released as an open-source code. People often confuse the terms "Bitcoin" and "blockchain" because Bitcoin was the first implementation of blockchain technology. This is where the misunderstanding started. Although blockchain technology has since been applied to other industries, and there are now a slew of accredited bitcoin experts on the market, there is still some uncertainty.

What is the distinction between Bitcoin and blockchain technology?

Bitcoin is an unregulated digital currency created by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008. It was designed to get around government currency controls and to make online transactions easier by removing the need for third-party payment services. It's called a "cryptocurrency" as well. Of course, more than money was needed to do this. It had to be possible to execute cryptocurrency transactions in a secure manner.

Bitcoin transfers are stored and shared using a public ledger on a peer-to-peer network that is secure, open, and confidential. The system is still kept streamlined by certified bitcoin expert. Blockchain is the underpinning infrastructure that holds the Bitcoin transaction database current.

What is the Bitcoin blockchain and how does it work?

The Bitcoin blockchain is a database or ledger that stores Bitcoin transaction records in the most simple nature. Since this database is distributed by a peer-to-peer network with no central authority, network users must agree on the legitimacy of transactions before they can be recorded. A process known as "mining" is used to arrive at this "consensus" decision.

Miners use complex, resource-intensive computational calculations to verify the validity of a contract after someone uses Bitcoins. Mining creates "proof of work" that meets those requirements. The proof of work is a costly and time-consuming piece of documentation that can be easily checked by everyone. To be considered a legal transaction on the blockchain network, an individual paper must have evidence of work to show the consensus was achieved. Because of this, transaction records can't be tampered with or changed after they've been added to the blockchain.

A quick overview of the main differences

To summarize, blockchain and Bitcoin are two very separate things:

• Blockchain is a decentralized ledger, while Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency;

• Bitcoin is based on blockchain technologies, while Blockchain has a broad variety of implementations.

• Bitcoin promotes anonymity, while blockchain promotes transparency. In order to be used in certain sectors, blockchain technology must adhere to strict Know Your Customer laws (particularly banking).

• While Bitcoin is used to transfer money between users, blockchain can be used to transfer anything from personal information to land ownership rights.

Bringing it to a close

If you've been using the terms interchangeably, you're not alone; many people have done so because of the close association between blockchain and Bitcoin. Blockchain is the infrastructure that supports Bitcoin and was designed specifically for it. Bitcoin was the first use of blockchain, and it does not run without it. As a result, the two words are sometimes used interchangeably.

It is now your responsibility to read more about Blockchain technologies and obtain bitcoin certification. The Blockchain Council's accredited Blockchain certification courses focus on the knowledge and experience you'll need to get a job, and all is packaged into a lightweight learning module that fits into your schedule.