Bitcoin Tech #2 - Nodes (Part 1) with Shinobi

 
 
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“The bank has the database that says who has all the money and how much money. The special thing about Bitcoin is that everybody can run and verify that database themselves.”
— Shinobi

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Location: Remotely
Date: Tuesday 23rd Feb
Company: Block Digest
Role: Host

The core fundamental aspect of Bitcoin is its censorship-resistant nature; this is only possible because the network is meaningfully decentralized. 

Decentralization is achieved by bitcoiners worldwide running nodes (a computer connected to the bitcoin network, e.g. Bitcoin Core). 

These nodes maintain the network rules, known as consensus, and ensure all transactions and blocks are valid by keeping a copy of the entire history of the blockchain. 

Aside from supporting the network, running a node helps improve your privacy and allows you to validate your transactions without requiring a 3rd party. If you are not running a full node, you cannot use the bitcoin network in a trustless way. 

It is hard to know the exact number of nodes connected to the bitcoin network. However, Luke Dashjr estimates the number to be somewhere around 80,000.

In this interview, I talk to Shinobi, the host of Block Digest. We discuss what a node is, why running a node is crucial for the network, which hardware & software to use, and the impact on privacy.

TIMESTAMPS

00:05:57: Introductions
00:07:17: A Bitcoin education
00:10:50: A background to nodes
00:13:14: What is a node?
00:14:20: Verifying transactions
00:15:22: How you can be scammed if you don't run a node
00:18:43: Why do you need a node
00:22:34: What does a node actually do
00:26:40: Consensus rules for moving money
00:29:52: Privacy strength
00:35:45: What happened with UASF
00:40:01: Taproot and miner signalling
00:45:21: Nodes in numbers
00:46:55: Who should run nodes
00:48:00: Risks of running a node
00:49:07: How to start creating a node
00:51:21: Spectre wallet
00:57:41: Problems with Umbrel
00:58:57: Peter's homework
01:00:00: The Tor Network
01:03:12: Final comments

 

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SHOW NOTES

PodcastPeter McCormack