I decided to dedicate this space to the preparation of my book “Everything I Know About Bitcoin.” I have been working on it for quite some time, and I chose to share it online and completely free of charge, so that truly anyone interested in Bitcoin can access it. My goal is to contribute to raising awareness about Bitcoin and its significance – without barriers and without restrictions.

If you have ideas, questions, or feedback, I would be very grateful – it will help me shape the book into something as useful as possible for a wide audience.

If you like the project and would like to support its creation, you can also do so with a voluntary contribution in Bitcoin at this address:

:  bc1qj2x7c6vpsjvyw83fwjx07v0wcx5xf0774sfkvg

Introduction

Introduction “Bitcoin is a decentralized peer-to-peer virtual currency…” That was the very first sentence I ever read about Bitcoin, and honestly, it was enough to make me lose interest in the topic for a long time. This book does not aim to bring new, groundbreaking discoveries. I am not writing it for experts who study Bitcoin professionally. My intention was to put together everything I know about Bitcoin – summarizing knowledge gathered from several excellent books, podcasts, online articles, and various discussions. I tried to include the most essential insights (at least for me) in..

The History of Money

The History of Money Why am I writing about the history of money in a book about Bitcoin? In my view, Bitcoin is the next evolution of money – let’s call it Money 2.0. That’s why I consider it important to learn more about its predecessors, their advantages, but also their shortcomings, so that we don’t repeat the same mistakes of the past. It was only after I started following Bitcoin that I realized how little I actually knew about money. Where does it come from? How much of it is in circulation? Why does it lose value every year? How often is new money added or removed? Is its supply ..

The Problem of Money

The Problem of Money Inflation (people don’t change) One of the greatest problems of any money throughout history has been inflation — the gradual debasement of a currency that weakens its purchasing power. Although inflation is often discussed today in connection with printing unbacked paper money, the phenomenon is nothing new. It existed long before modern banks and central banks. Its roots run deep into history and it reappeared whenever rulers or politicians succumbed to the temptation to manipulate money to gain wealth or finance wars and state spending. While high taxes or outr..

Do We Really Control Our Money?

Do We Really Control Our Money? You might think the money in your bank account is truly yours. In practice, however, you don’t have absolute control over it. Don’t believe it? Try withdrawing a larger amount of cash and see what happens. How many forms will you fill out? What questions will the bank ask? And what if you try sending your own money to a friend in Iran or China? You’ll find your ability to dispose of your property is in fact quite limited. We live in a privileged part of the world with relatively broad freedom to handle money. That is not a given everywhere. In many countri..

Bitcoin – It All Started With a Crisis

Bitcoin – It All Started With a Crisis The economic crisis of 2008 was one of the biggest financial catastrophes of modern times. Unlike previous crises, which were often limited to a single country or region, this crisis struck the entire world with enormous force because the global financial system was more interconnected than ever before. The crisis had its roots in the American real estate market and in the irresponsible behavior of large banks, which provided mortgages even to people who could not afford to repay them. These risky mortgages were sold worldwide as safe investments. H..

Satoshi Nakamoto

Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? Who is Satoshi Nakamoto? Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t know whether it’s a man, a woman, a group of scientists, the CIA, a dog, or an alien. Satoshi Nakamoto could be any one of us (which he himself may have unintentionally caused with his mysterious disappearance and strong emphasis on privacy). The only thing I can say with certainty is that it is not Craig Wright (based on the ruling of the London court in March 2024). Many “hunters” have tried to find Satoshi Nakamoto, and I honestly think even government agencies. By managing to perfectly protect his identit..

Blockchain

Blockchain So, what exactly is this revolutionary blockchain? As I already mentioned, blockchain is a technology that allows us to easily verify the truthfulness of individual records without having to ask a central bank for confirmation. Let’s try to explain it with a simple example. Imagine a small group of friends who lend various things to each other. Ján lends flour to Klára. Marek lends honey to Mária. Mária lends a book to Ján. To avoid forgetting who lent what to whom, they decide to write all loans down on paper. But instead of one person keeping the list, every member..

Proof of work

Proof of Work and the Byzantine Generals Problem Even though I previously wrote about the breakthrough technology of the blockchain, it is Proof of Work that truly turned the world of money upside down and created a revolution by connecting abstract technology with the real world. Proof of Work (PoW) finally solved the mathematical concept known as the “Byzantine Generals Problem,” which was a fundamental challenge in decentralized communication. What is the Byzantine Generals Problem? Imagine a group of Byzantine generals preparing to attack a city. The generals are positioned around..

UTXO – Invisible Balances in Bitcoin

UTXO – Invisible Balances in Bitcoin How much bitcoin do I actually have? In a traditional bank, this is simple – you log in to online banking and immediately see your account balance, for example €720. This number is stored in the bank’s database and is clearly linked to your name or account. With Bitcoin, however, things work very differently. In the Bitcoin world, there is no central account and no user name. Nowhere is it written: “John Smith owns 0.075 BTC.” Instead, Bitcoin relies on an elegant system called UTXO – Unspent Transaction Outputs. At first glance, this term may s..