basiccoin

The simplest currency that I can make. I wrote about each file at the top.

INSTALL (for ubuntu)

sudo apt-get install git
sudo apt-get install python-leveldb
git clone https://github.com/zack-bitcoin/basiccoin.git
cd basiccoin/

To run 1 node

python threads.py

To quickly run 5 nodes (linux/mac only)

./go.sh

Then send your browser to

http://localhost:8701
http://localhost:8702
http://localhost:8703
http://localhost:8704
http://localhost:8705

At the time of writing this there exist over 80 cryptocurrencies with market caps of over $100,000. According to Andreas Antonopolous, we will soon live in a world with millions of altcoins. It is incredibly risky to try to add new features to an old crypto. There is a high probability that you will introduce a bug. To combat this, each currency will have only one purpose. Bitcoin currently has 40445 lines of C++ and assembly, not including gui or tests. Very few people are able to read bitcoin. It is incredibly difficulty to adapt without breaking everything. Because of how hard it is to adapt bitcoin, all the altcoins have been very simplistic. They change magic numbers, and the name, and little else.

When things get complicated, it is good to return to the basics. The purpose of basiccoin is to be the smallest secure currency possible. Currently about 550 lines of python, and getting smaller. Because it is so small, it is very hard for bugs to hide in the code. Basiccoin is designed to be easily modified to create new alts.