Bitcoin Fundamentals and Developing Your Own Blockchain

Einleitung

There is a lot of hype about blockchain and cryptocurrencies, but do we know how they really work and why they are built in a certain way?

The first blockchain was born with Bitcoin and in this workshop we will learn about the building blocks and how all piecies get together to provide a secure and decentralized payment system.

You will have the chance to develop your own version of blockchain based on the bitcoin paradigm in order to get a deeper understanding of its data structures, p2p network, algorithms and security aspects.

This knwoledge is preparatory to developing for other blockchains as well, like Ethereum, etc.

Programm

Introduction to Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies

• Cryptographic Hash Functions
• Hash Pointers and Data Structures
• Digital Signatures
• Public Keys as Identities

Hands-on

• Create a coin
• Create transactions
• Check transactions validity

How Bitcoin Achieves Decentralization

• Centralization vs Decentralization
• Distributed Consensus
• Consensus without Identity
• Incentives and Proof of Work

Mechanics of Bitcoin

• Bitcoin Transactions
• Bitcoin Scripts
• Application of Bitcoin Scripts
• Bitcoin Blocks
• The Bitcoin Network
• Limitations and Improvements

Hands-On:

• Build simple Blockchain blocks
• Build complex Blockchain blocks

Kursziel

Blockchains are complex system that combine crypography, p2p networks, sophisticated data structures and algorithms.

The goal of the course is to get a deep understanding the operation of a blockchain and its building blocks, which sets the basis for working with blockchains and developing on them.

In order to keep focus the workshop will be oriented on Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies.

Adressaten

Software developers that are curious about the behind the scenes of cryptocurrencies and blockchain.

The workshop will be held in English, questions can be answered in German whenever necessary.

Voraussetzungen

Experience in software development, ideally in Java.

Infrastruktur

• Please bring your own laptop.
• For the hands-on lab we will use Java. Please make sure to have installed JVM and a Java IDE, i.e. Eclipse.