Tag: crypto mining

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Crypto Daily Topic Cryptocurrencies

How to Mine Litecoin: No One Will Ever Tell You This

Litecoin is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies today. The currency is a clone of Bitcoin and appears to ride on the popularity of the pioneer cryptocurrency. However, the crypto has its own merits – like being a ‘lighter’ version of Bitcoin and thus being used in day-to-day transactions. Litecoin is faster than Bitcoin – having a block time of 2.5 minutes compared to Bitcoin’s 10 minutes, meaning it’s quicker and easier for Litecoin miners to make money. 

Litecoin is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies today. The currency is a clone of Bitcoin and appears to ride on the popularity of the pioneer cryptocurrency. However, the crypto has its own merits – like being a ‘lighter’ version of Bitcoin and thus being used in day-to-day transactions. Litecoin is faster than Bitcoin – having a block time of 2.5 minutes compared to Bitcoin’s 10 minutes, meaning it’s quicker and easier for Litecoin miners to make money. 

Litecoin is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies today. The currency is a clone of Bitcoin and appears to ride on the popularity of the pioneer cryptocurrency. However, the crypto has its own merits – like being a ‘lighter’ version of Bitcoin and thus being used in day-to-day transactions. Litecoin is faster than Bitcoin – having a block time of 2.5 minutes compared to Bitcoin’s 10 minutes, meaning it’s quicker and easier for Litecoin miners to make money. 

Litecoin was created in 2011 by Charlie Lee, a former Google engineer. He modeled it after Bitcoin but with certain modifications intended to help it scale compared to Bitcoin. At the time of writing, the currency has a per-token value of $69.54 and a market rank of #7 with a market capitalization of 4.59 billion. 

In this piece, we’ll take a look into the nitty gritties of mining Litecoin.  

#1. Mining equipment

In the early days of Litecoin, the cryptocurrency could be mined using CPUs and GPUs. Litecoin uses the Scrypt hashing protocol – the first successful cryptocurrency to use it. Lee opted for Scrypt instead of Bitcoin’s SHA-256 due to the former being lighter and also because”using Scrypt allows one to mine Litecoin while also mining Bitcoin.” 

However, it’s no longer possible to turn a profit when mining Litecoin with CPUs and GPUs. This is because as competition has ramped up for the currency, mining difficulty has increased, requiring miners to use application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) developed specifically for the currency. One of the most popular ASICs for Litecoin include Bitmain’s Antminer and LTCMaster. ASICs tend to go for around $1,000 for older models and around $2,000 for newer models. It’s best to go for the newer models, which are more effective. 

 #2. Should you join a mining pool? 

Once you’ve identified which hardware to use, the next decision will be to mine solo or join a mining pool. A mining pool is a group of miners who share computing power to multiply the chances of finding a block and earn mining rewards. Mining alone means you will get to keep all the mining rewards plus a fraction of the transaction fees. (The current mining rewards are 12.5 LTC per block. This will be halved in the next Litecoin halving, which will happen in 2023). And even then, this will require that you have massive hash power (multiple ASIC machines). Mining with a single ASIC is almost guaranteed never to turn a profit. 

By contrast, concentrated computing power in pool mining makes it many times easier for the pool to discover new blocks and attain a reward. The reward is then distributed according to the contribution of each miner. Bear in mind pool mining itself is not guaranteed to turn a profit since it depends on chance, but earnings via a pool are more steady than solo mining. 

Before you join a mining pool, make sure to investigate it thoroughly. Some pools out there are outright scams, while others are just plain shady. Also, it’s not uncommon for a mining pool to fall victim to hacks. So always check a pool’s security history and how they handled any breaches, reputation, member reviews, and management team. Also, try not to keep large amounts of your proceeds with the pool. It’s good practice to transfer proceeds to your wallet as soon as possible. 

Some of the most trusted and popular Litecoin pools out there include F2Pool, LitecoinPool.org, ViaBTC, and ProHashing.

Litecoin: Cloud Mining 

ASICs and pools are not for everyone. Maybe you want to mine Litecoin and don’t have the means or desire to splurge on expensive hardware. Well, you’re in luck because there’s an option of cloud mining that allows you to pay a remote data center to do the mining for you.

With this option, you will be required to put up a certain amount of money – but not nearly as much as you would for an ASIC – to get access to the cloud mining platform. The more you invest, the more you stand to gain from the platform. 

We can’t stress this enough – cloud mining is even more susceptible to scams than mining pools. There are individuals out there who are happy enough to take strangers’ money without an actual mining operation going on on their side. This behooves you to do serious research before getting entangled with any cloud miner. One of the most reputable cloud mining sites is Scotland-based Hashflare, which also has data centers in Estonia and Iceland. Hashflare has been around since 2014 – demonstrating its credibility and staying power. 

Wallets 

The last thing you need to consider is where to store your Litecoin. You have a variety of options starting with the Litecoin Core Client. This is a wallet by the Litecoin Foundation and is open-source, feature-packed, and updated regularly to make it more robust and easier to use. With the Litecoin Core Client, you can store, send, and receive Litecoin as well as view the transaction history of the blockchain. To use this wallet, you have to download the full blockchain on your computer. Of course, it will take up a lot of space, but it pays a lot of security dividends in the long run. The wallet supports Windows, MacOS, and Linux. By using Litecoin Core, you also contribute to the network’s security and decentralization since you’re running a ‘full node.’ 

You also have the option of a cold storage wallet. A cold wallet is one that’s not connected to the internet. This means it is unhackable, and hence very safe. If you have a large sum of Litecoin, a cold storage wallet is your best go-to option. There are also paper wallets that constitute a physical paper in the form of a QR code or a string of alphanumerics. A paper wallet is safer than an online wallet, but it’s vulnerable to theft and damage through fire, water, and wear and tear. You can increase your paper wallet security by laminating it and putting it in a safe place that only you know about. These days, people even strongly advocate for ‘brain wallets,’ which constitute memorizing a seed phrase that you can use to recreate your private key. Obviously, a brain wallet is the most secure of all these options.

Other people choose to keep their crypto funds on exchanges. Exchanges have the advantage of quickly swapping your crypto for fiat. However, this option is not recommended. That’s because exchanges are famously the target of hacking, and you can lose your money in the case of a security breach. Also, you have limited control over your Litecoin in such a wallet. 

Final Thoughts 

Litecoin is one of the most relevant cryptocurrencies, and investing in it through mining is a savvy move. Of course, there are risks to every profitable endeavor, so make sure to do your due diligence before you go all in. 

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Crypto Daily Topic

8 Great Tricks to Maximize Your Mining Profits: Number 7 will Amaze you!

Cryptocurrency has opened up so many opportunities to make money. Whether it’s HODLing, staking, or mining, there’s always an opportunity to make money with crypto. Now, some of these are pretty straightforward. You deposit your crypto and sit and watch your money grow. Or you HODL and move in one day when the market is particularly bullish. But other ways, such as mining, are not as straightforward. 

Cryptocurrency has opened up so many opportunities to make money. Whether it’s HODLing, staking, or mining, there’s always an opportunity to make money with crypto. Now, some of these are pretty straightforward. You deposit your crypto and sit and watch your money grow. Or you HODL and move in one day when the market is particularly bullish. But other ways, such as mining, are not as straightforward. 

Cryptocurrency has opened up so many opportunities to make money. Whether it’s HODLing, staking, or mining, there’s always an opportunity to make money with crypto. Now, some of these are pretty straightforward. You deposit your crypto and sit and watch your money grow. Or you HODL and move in one day when the market is particularly bullish. But other ways, such as mining, are not as straightforward. 

Making money via crypto mining takes more than buying hardware and starting to mine right away. You want your investment in hardware, electricity, and time to count. These 8 tricks will show you how to maximize your crypto mining profit to get the best returns on investment. 

#1. Do your homework

Doing background research is one of the first things you should do before you engage with crypto mining in any capacity. Crypto mining is already complicated, and the same way you can gain lucratively is the same way you can lose.

Start with mining equipment. Check whether the type of equipment you intend to acquire and deploy is outdated. Study whether the market is currently favorable – you may find that it’s more profitable to buy the crypto rather than invest to mine it.

#2. Check whether it’s a good time to enter 

Just like with everything, there are good and bad times to jump into crypto mining. For instance, during the crypto market’s incredible bull run in 2017, crypto mining hardware from manufacturers was pretty much sold out. Most of the profitable equipment could only be found in second-hand marketplaces selling it at exorbitant prices. These hiked prices virtually made any projected profits not worth it. 

This time may have seemed a good time to start mining, but with hardware speculators milking the market as much as possible, the conditions were not the most favorable. 

On the other hand, when cryptos are trading at a much-reduced rate, you may get mining hardware at much better prices both from the manufacturer and second-hand marketplaces. This way, you stand actually to profit from the equipment rebounds. 

#3. Switch to low hash rate cryptocurrencies

This is one of the best-kept secrets of the crypto mining world. Unlike popular belief, it’s possible to find a smaller cryptocurrency with a higher return on investment than a ‘mainstream’ cryptocurrency. Smaller currencies also usually have a lower hash rate, meaning you can contribute a larger hash rate and reap a bigger mining reward. 

This means keeping an eye out on all the other markets, not just the ones you’re currently mining. If you’re using a GPU, you have even better chances. GPUs, unlike ASICs, have the flexibility of being able to mine different cryptocurrencies. 

#4. Mine brand new cryptocurrencies

Mining a new cryptocurrency can be very profitable – sometimes. When a new crypto enters the market, there’s a phase of euphoria as the creators crank up the hype, creating interest in the currency. As a result, the currency in question might have considerable value in the first few days, weeks, or even months. 

What you need to do is be there at the very start. Depending on the currency, you can mine with GPUs, as ASIC manufacturers have not yet had time to develop an algorithm for the particular currency. Due to the unpredictable nature of cryptocurrencies and especially brand new ones, you want to quickly exchange the earnings for more reliant cryptos or Fiat. 

#5. Start small

This is universal wisdom for getting into any kind of business endeavor. It’s much truer for a market as volatile as cryptocurrency, isn’t it? When you’re new in the space, there’s so much you need to learn, and any rushed moves are highly discouraged. 

When you start small, any losses are also less painful. You also build the right skill set as you learn what works and what doesn’t. After you’ve figured out how crypto mining works, you can scale up. 

#6. Explore various scaling choices 

There are so many ways you can scale your crypto mining operation. This can be replacing aging equipment – which will lead to an increased heart rate while maintaining low expenditures and increasing your return on investment (ROI). 

You can also scale by buying mining capability from hash rate marketplaces. There’s also the option of cloud mining, where you purchase high amounts of hash rate for your favorite crypto or algorithm from companies that specialize in such. Whichever scaling method you choose, be sure to avoid third-party risk by doing appropriate research beforehand. 

#7. Find cheap energy

We can’t overemphasize the importance of inexpensive energy when it comes to crypto mining. Electricity is usually the largest expenditure involved in crypto mining. So when you save on energy costs, that’s more money for your bottom line. 

Also, depending on the region and electricity cost, your equipment may be profitable or not. In some parts of the world, energy prices tend to fluctuate instead of being constant. Some professional miners actually migrate in pursuit of cheap energy. 

The point is, you can increase your ROI if you find cheaper energy. You can even talk to your utility provider and see what’s the best rates they can provide. Again, this depends on your locale. 

#8. Join a mining pool

Now, we’d be remiss if we didn’t include joining a mining pool in this list. A mining pool is a group of miners who combine their computational power so as to discover new blocks faster. If the pool succeeds in finding a blog, the block reward is shared proportionally to each contributor’s processing power.

Why should you join a mining pool? Because the more the computational power, the more the likelihood for discovering and processing new blocks. As you can see, an individual miner would have a big challenge – financially and otherwise, assembling that kind of power. While going it alone doesn’t mean you’ll never see profits, it means they will be few and very far between. On the other hand, you stand a better chance to earn smaller but more frequent rewards with a mining pool. 

Final Thoughts 

Crypto mining is a great way to make money. Whether you’re a veteran in the scene or just getting started, these tips will help you make the best of your mining endeavor. Good luck! 

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Crypto Guides

What Should You Know About Bitcoin Miner Capitulation?

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

If you have dealt with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, you must know how uncertain they can be. While they can make you a millionaire within a day, they can also snatch away all your money in a short period. People who mine their money in Bitcoin have to keep a close eye on these fluctuations and ensure they take themselves out while there is still time. The same may be happening with Bitcoin.

You may have heard the experts talk about Bitcoin Miner Capitulation. Some of those also try to explain the concept in their own words. However, there is still a major confusion around the term “Miner Capitulation.” If you also want to learn more about the concept, you have come to the right place. We have collected all the crucial information on the topic to understand what exactly is happening with Bitcoin. So let’s begin.

What Is Bitcoin Miner Capitulation?

Bitcoin mining refers to the completion of verified transactions’ blocks that get appended to the blockchain. For these transactions, miners earn a reward in the form of cryptocurrency. If the miner isn’t able to manage to make out their operational costs from the Bitcoin mining process, they sell a significant amount of their mined Bitcoins. This leads to Bitcoin Miner Capitulation.

On the other hand, Miner Capitulation can also result from sudden drops in the Bitcoin market as this makes miners sell their coins. Hence, we can say that Bitcoin Miner Capitulation is when small miners can’t profit from their mining, and they back out. It creates selling stress in the market, leading to further drops in the price and a lack of buyers.

Is This First Bitcoin Miner Capitulation?

Many people dealing with Bitcoin assume this is the first time Bitcoin is experiencing a Miner Capitulation. But the facts state something different. Miner Capitulation has been seen twice in the history of Bitcoin:

  • 2016: When Bitcoin Halving took place this year, it was seen that miners began selling a significant amount of their Bitcoins.
  • 2018: Bitcoin again crashed by 50%, getting a value of $3,000 from $6,000. This led to low profits for small miners, and they again sold their Bitcoins in massive amounts.

Apart from these, the 2013 effect on Bitcoin’s price also brought in some Miner Capitulation. Therefore, this isn’t the first time Bitcoin is experiencing one such situation. It has happened whenever Bitcoin Halving takes place or the price drops down.

Is Bitcoin Miner Capitulation Something To Worry About?

It is usual for a big market like Bitcoin to host thousands or millions of transactions every day. So when some of the miners sell their coins, how does that make any difference? The answer to this question is simple, i.e., the tension of sale in the market.

With these small miners selling their coins, many other people also begin considering selling their coins. This stress rises with more sales. Moreover, it causes a lack of buyers in the market, and Bitcoin’s price falls further.

People are relating Bitcoin Miner Capitulation to more significant problems that may be seen in the upcoming times. That is why you must learn more about the current situation and take action while there is still time to save yourself from any bigger trouble.

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Crypto Videos

Crypto Mining With Renewable Energy Part 2!

https://youtu.be/aVLnMDP2LF0

https://youtu.be/aVLnMDP2LF0

Crypto Mining and Renewable Energy Part 2 – Renewable Energy Producers

En+ Group, the world’s largest producer of low-carbon aluminum as well as the largest private-sector hydropower generator, has entered its first crypto mining venture.
The new venture, named Bit+, will focus on creating crypto mining facilities that utilize alternative energy sources and have a low carbon footprint.

En+ Group has partnered with Bit+, a subsidiary to the Russian company BitRiver. BitRiver provides hosting services as well as turnkey solutions for institutional and large-scale crypto mining operations.

BitRiver is currently operating the largest data center offering colocation services for Bitcoin mining in Russia. It offers similar services across the country as well as to CIS neighbors.
The first effect of the venture Bit+ made is the installation of a brand new facility close to BitRiver’s existing data center in Bratsk, which is located in the Irkutsk region of Russia. En+ Group has committed 10MegaWatts of electricity to the facility, which is already operational and is composed of modular crypto-mining units. The two companies have plans to scale this facility’s capacity to roughly 40MegaWatts.
The facility is composed of 14 modular units for its initial phase. Each of the units is a converted shipping container as large as a full-scale cryptocurrency mining data center. Each unit should accommodate up to 400 of Bitmain’s S19 Pro miner devices.

En+ Group provided some context regarding how they chose the Irkutsk region and how this region is extremely viable for lower-carbon solutions to cryptocurrency mining in the recent statement:
“Our energy assets in the region produce low-carbon, as well as inexpensive electricity from renewable sources. We are able to offer a surplus of energy to these partnerships. On top of that, the low average annual temperature of the region reduces the energy required, making the process more efficient and further decreasing the carbon footprint.”
As we said in our previous article on renewable energy, high energy consumption remains a major Achilles’ heel for the crypto sector, particularly for proof of work consensus algorithms such as the one Bitcoin has.

Several energy experts have attempted to steer the debate on Bitcoin’s energy problems to another topic. Instead, they have tried to argue that it is extremely important where that energy is produced and how it is generated. They have argued that it is most important to make sure that less harmful choices are made when picking the source of power rather than to argue the whole premise of the whole proof of work consensus algorithm.
With financial and geopolitical forces now entering the sector, it remains to be seen how far renewable energy will improve Bitcoin’s standing if this slow but certain change will be enough to make the mining sector truly sustainable.

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Crypto Videos

The Only Sustainable Way To Make Money Mining – 76% of Crypto Miners Use Renewable Energy!

https://youtu.be/cj639AA3qfk

https://youtu.be/cj639AA3qfk

76% of Crypto Miners use Renewable Energy

 

Green planet earth with solar energy batteries installed on it

The rising energy demand to operate proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining, especially for Bitcoin, has been a hotly debated topic in the most recent months. However, interesting and unexpected news came from the research of the 3rd Global Cryptoasset Benchmarking Study performed by the University of Cambridge. This study shows that 76% of crypto miners actually use electricity from renewable energy sources as a part of their energy consumption mix.

The study found that more than 39% of the total energy consumed by proof-of-work cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and others comes from renewable energy sources.
This finding contrasts with a previous study regarding proof-of-work crypto mining done by the same university, which found that only 28% of the total energy consumed for crypto mining came from renewable resources. Taking a look at the data from 2018, 60% of the miners used renewable energy sources as a part of their energy mix.
According to the latest study, the most common energy source for miners is hydroelectric power, with almost 62% of miners reporting that they are using hydroelectricity. Hydroelectric power is followed by coal and natural gas sources that take the second and third spots at 38% and 36%, respectively.

Crypto miners also reported that they use wind, oil, and solar energy, which are common but to a lesser degree than the aforementioned three sources.

The report also worked on dividing miner energy consumption by region, noticing that miners from Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Europe, as well as North America use close to an equal percentage of hydroelectric power when compared to electricity from other sources, such as natural gas, coal, wind, and oil.
Using coal as an energy source is most common in the APAC region, where it contributes almost an equal amount of electricity to crypto miners as hydroelectric sources. Miners from Latin America, on the other hand, reported that they do not use coal-fired electricity to mine cryptos at all.

The study also notes that miners from the APAC region contribute almost 77% of the Bitcoin hash power, all while using the lowest amounts of renewable energy sources. On the other hand, while North America adds only 8%of the total Bitcoin hash power, 63% of the energy consumed in mining Bitcoin in that region came from renewable sources. Europe is a bit behind North America, with close to 30% of its crypto mining powered using renewable energy. Europe contributes nearly 10% of the worldwide Bitcoin hash power.

While using renewable energy as a main or only source of energy for mining is still far away, more and more miners are starting to use alternative sources in search of cleaner and better ways to make a profit.

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Crypto Guides

Beginners Guide to Cryptocurrency Mining

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

There is a significant difference in how cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies are generated and issued to the ecosystem. Fiat currencies are created and printed by the government bodies in response to orders by the state authority. At the same time, cryptocurrencies are issued to the public by going through the blockchain network according to a preset algorithm. There are different schemes assigned for mining, such as the Proof of Work, Proof of Stake, Proof of Authority, etc. These are referred to as consensus algorithms. The in-depth working of these processes is complicated. So, we shall stick on the basic working of it.

Definition

Cryptocurrency mining is the procedure to bring up new coins into the current flowing supply, by verifying the coins through a system. The ones that mine these coins are called miners.

Procedure to Mine Cryptocurrency

  • When a transaction is performed over the blockchain network, i.e., when a user sends coins to another address, the transaction information is recorded and put onto a block.
  • This block must be encrypted and made secure. This is where the miners come in.
  • To encrypt a blockchain, miners solve a complicated cryptographic puzzle to find the appropriate cryptographic hash for the code. For this, miners typically make use of large rigs of application-specific hardware to increase their chances of being the first one to verify and secure the block.
  • Once the block is successfully secured, it is then added to the blockchain, where other nodes on the blockchain network verify it. This verification process is known as consensus.
  • When the block successfully clears through the nodes in the network, the block is officially said to be verified and secured. And for securing a block, the miner is rewarded new-created coins. Hence, the complete above procedure of work is called Proof of Work.

Reward system in Cryptocurrency mining

Mining is a complicated process. Each day, miners commit a thousand watts of electricity towards mining cryptocurrencies. People mine coins though it is an expensive process because they receive a good number of Bitcoins for it, which has value in various markets.

As mentioned above, the reward is released to the miners when they successfully solve a block in the blockchain. The compensation received is pretty decent; in fact, it compensates a thousand watts of electricity. Having that said, the reward cannot be very high, as it could cause an oversupply in the market and depreciate the value of the currency.

Supply and Demand of a Cryptocurrency

Buying and selling cryptocurrencies is different from buying and selling of stocks, bonds, etc. Also, unlike investing in traditional currencies, cryptocurrencies are not issued by the central banks. Therefore, the monetary policy, inflation rates, and other economic factors do not apply to the cryptocurrencies. They are influenced majorly by factors such as the supply of the coins and the demand for it, the number of competing coins, and also the exchanges it trades on.

The supply of cryptocurrencies is impacted by the cryptocurrency protocol, which permits the creation of a new coin (same type) at a fixed rate. A number of coins are introduced into the market when miners verify the blocks of transactions. And the rate at which these new coins are introduced is designed such that it slows down over time. This is done to create a scenario in which the demand for coins increases faster than the supply, which hence causes the prices to shoot up.

Hence we can say that mining & miners have a crucial role in maintaining the supply & demand of any cryptocurrency!

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Forex Videos

The Best Cryptocurrencies To GPU Mine In 2020 – Part 3

https://youtu.be/5kMCXQFjmKg

https://youtu.be/5kMCXQFjmKg

Best Cryptocurrencies to GPU mine in 2020 – part 3

The third part of this series will be devoted to the smaller cryptocurrencies, which might deserve a spotlight in the world of crypto mining. These cryptocurrencies are much more unstable due to the lack of liquidity but are still worth mentioning. Make sure to do the research and choose cryptocurrencies to mine based on your beliefs and calculations.

Pirl (PIRL)


Pirl is a relatively small community-based decentralized cryptocurrency. However, it is interesting as it introduced the world to the first Ethash-based Masternode. Pirl’s potential use case of a decentralized currency, as well as applications and governance platform, is by no means a small task to achieve. Pirl is often mistaken for Ethereum as people may think it intends to do the same thing as Ethereum did.
People that want to mine Pirl can do so using their GPUs by utilizing Pirl’s Ethash proof of work algorithm. Pirl rewards 6 PIRL as block reward every 10 seconds.NVIDIA cards, as well as AMD cards, are the recommended GPUs for PIRL mining.

Metaverse (ETP)


Metaverse is a decentralized public blockchain that originates from China. It aims to facilitate a low-cost transfer of identities as well as digital assets and properties. A project like this has a long way to go until it reaches success, and its chance of succeeding is arguably small. However, Metaverse is a fun project, which is why it’s mentioned in this guide. People that want mine ETP can do using their GPUs. Metaverse uses the Ethash algorithm, which, in this case, rewards 2.5 ETP as a block reward every 30 seconds.
NVIDIA and AMD cards are, once again, the recommended GPUs for ETP Mining.

Expanse (EXP)


Expanse- is a platform that offers blockchain as a service, just like Ethereum does. It supports smart contracts and DApps that focus on identity, equity, philanthropy, gamification as well as governance. Its cryptocurrency’s ticker is EXP, which is based on the Ethash proof of work algorithm. Once again, Expanse is easily minable with GPUs.
Many serious value miners that have a future expectation of price appreciation in mind took a look at this coin. However, its lack of liquidity is something that stops current profitability miners from investing their time and resources in this project. Expanse’s block time is 45 seconds, and its reward generates 4 EXP per block.
NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards are recommended for EXP mining.

Conclusion

The path towards the biggest profits, in the long run, includes mining a moderately profitable cryptocurrency that has a chance of appreciating in the future. That way, a miner can amass a more significant amount of the currency before it becomes oversaturated with other miners, while still being able to cash out when needed. The hash rate will remain reasonably low until other miners pick it up. By then, however, you would have already mined some amount of the cryptocurrency of your choice.
Whether you are a current profitability miner or a value-driven miner at the moment, this guide should have shown some interesting cryptocurrencies to potentially mine or take a deeper look into.

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Crypto Videos

The Best Cryptocurrencies To GPU Mine In 2020 – Part 2

https://youtu.be/RdyRpQaqF1k

https://youtu.be/RdyRpQaqF1k

Best Cryptocurrencies to GPU mine in 2020 – part 2

 

Part 2 of the series will continue with listing cryptocurrencies worth mining with your GPU in 2020. Once again, the cryptocurrencies listed in the guide are a personal choice, and you will have to do your research and choose your favorite cryptocurrencies to mine.

Monero (XMR)


Monero is one of the most unusual cryptocurrencies as it pioneered the era of privacy and private money itself when it comes to the crypto industry. Monero is an open-source private cryptocurrency that is aimed towards people who want to transact funds and messages privately. The ability to be completely private gives Monero a serious use case, as well as a probable long life in the world of crypto. On top of that, Monero recently got included by many wallets. Value miners, which mine cryptocurrencies solely based on their use case and future potential (rather than current profitability), are certainly considering XMR as their cryptocurrency of choice.
Monero is based on the CryptoNightV8 proof of work algorithm. It generates 3.38 XMRs per block, which occurs every 2 minutes.
Recommended GPUs for XMR mining are NVIDIA cards as well as AMD cards.

Ubiq (UBQ)


Ubiq is a decentralized platform that is used for hosting smart contracts and DApps, just like Ethereum. It is another fork of the Ethereum network itself. However, Ubiq markets itself as stable as well as a bug-free version of Ethereum. Ubiq’s main advantage is its ease of use. It can be complicated for developers to build their projects on a dynamic platform such as Ethereum, as it is continuously evolving.
Ubiq has tweaked its proof of work algorithm from Ethash to Ubqhash. It is also mineable using GPUs, but it has a few differences from its original algorithm. Its block time is 1.25 minutes, while its block reward is 7 UBQ per block. One thing to note is that Ubiq’s profitability is less than the profitability of ETH & ETC.
Recommended GPUs for UBQ mining are NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards.

Bitcoin Diamond (BCD)


Bitcoin Diamond yet another Bitcoin hard fork. It came to life in November of 2017 with the intent to overcome the so-called shortcomings of Bitcoin. The shortcomings addressed by BCD were Bitcoin’s lack of privacy and its slow transaction confirmation, amongst other things. BCD has increased its total supply from 21 million to 210 million, which in turn increased its block reward ten times than that of BTC. Bitcoin Diamond mining has a block reward of 125 BCD, released approximately every 8 minutes.
NVIDIA, as well as AMD cards, are recommended GPUs for BCD mining.

Aion (AION)


The Aion Network is a blockchain project that addresses problems that DApps of today face. These problems include scalability, privacy, as well as interoperability. AION uses a proof of work algorithm called Equihash, which is well-suitable for GPU mining. This cryptocurrency has the lowest block timing of all the cryptos mentioned here. Its block timing is a staggering 10 seconds. The Equihash algorithm releases 1.5 AION as its block reward each block. This block speed allows miners to expect their rewards much faster, which is useful in some cases.
AION is also quite a popular choice amongst miners who mine cryptocurrencies that they expect will increase in value in the future.
NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards are recommended GPUs for AION mining.

Energi (NRG)

Energi is, without a doubt, one of the most profitable cryptocurrencies minable with GPU. While this one is not the most popular choice for value-driven miners, it is for the miners guided by current profitability. If you don’t care about the use case of the cryptocurrency and are optimizing rigs to mine the most profitable currencies at this very moment, Energi is one of the best, if not the best choice for you.
Energi miners can expect 2.28 NRG approximately every 1 minute.
As with every cryptocurrency so far, recommended GPUs for NRG mining are NVIDIA and AMD.

Conclusion

This was the part 2/3 of the “Best cryptocurrencies to mine in 2020” series. Mine with caution and always take into consideration both the future value of a cryptocurrency as well as its current profitability.

Categories
Crypto Videos

The Best Cryptocurrencies To GPU Mine In 2020 – Part 1

https://youtu.be/jygCIw2-Gtk

https://youtu.be/jygCIw2-Gtk

Best Cryptocurrencies to GPU mine in 2020 – part 1

Cryptocurrency mining can be extremely rewarding if done right. Many people earn substantial amounts of money by running full mining nodes for various cryptocurrencies. This guide will share a few meaningful cryptocurrencies you, too, can mine via GPUs to earn rewards and contribute to their decentralization. The cryptocurrencies listed are a personal choice, and you will have to choose your favorite cryptocurrencies to mine based on their profitability as well as your beliefs in the cryptocurrency’s future potential.
Part 1 of this series will showcase 3 cryptocurrencies worth mining in 2019 and 2020.

Ethereum (ETH)


Making a list of top GPU mineable cryptocurrencies without including Ethereum can be considered criminal. Ethereum, which is also known as Ether, is an open-source, decentralized cryptocurrency of the Ethereum network. This network acts as a fuel for the decentralized projects it hosts. Ether is a GPU mineable cryptocurrency and is based on the Ethash proof of work algorithm. At the time of writing, if you assemble and optimize an excellent GPU rig, you can expect handsome profits as its current block reward is around 3 ETH per block.
GPUs that are recommended for ETH Mining are NVIDIA as well as AMD.

Ethereum Classic (ETC)


Ethereum Classic is an Ethereum fork. It is also a GPU mineable coin.
Once these two cryptocurrencies split up, many people debated whether Ethereum Classic is the “real” Ethereum. However, that is a story for another day. Ethereum Classic is also based on the Ethash proof of work algorithm, just like Ethereum. Yet, this cryptocurrency has a slightly higher block reward than Ethereum does, granting 4 ETC per block. Even though the higher block reward can be explained by the higher inflation ETC has, it also has higher scarcity because its supply is fixed.
In any case, Ethereum Classic is definitely one of the most profitable GPU minable cryptocurrencies with a couple of GPU rigs set up. Once again, the recommended GPUs for ETC mining are NVIDIA and AMD cards.

Bitcoin Gold (BTG)


Anyone who has been involved with the cryptocurrency industry for some time has heard about Bitcoin Gold. Bitcoin Gold is another fork of Bitcoin. It came to life in 2017, intending to make Bitcoin mining more democratic. BTG wanted to do that by creating a version of Bitcoin that can be mined with GPUs rather than monopolized CPU-based mining devices.
As BTG is a fork of Bitcoin, its block timing and block reward remain unchanged. Each block gets validated (approximately) every 10 minutes and grants 12.5 BTG, respectively. However, its proof of work algorithm, Zhash, is ASIC resistant, which means that it favors GPU miners.
No difference in here either, as the recommended GPUs for BTG mining are NVIDIA and AMD cards.

Caution

While mining can be a great tool for passively earning money, one has to take into consideration many factors. After all, this is not a small investment. One word of advice would be not to engage in cloud mining as the contracts these platforms offer are rarely good.

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Crypto Videos

Calculate Crypto mining profitability – Is Mining Still Worth It?

https://youtu.be/ZFdJd04OLOc

https://youtu.be/ZFdJd04OLOc

 

Crypto mining profitability guide

If anyone is serious about cryptocurrency mining, they’ll have to learn how to maximize their equipment and their invested resources. Not knowing which equipment is profitable and how to optimize its use may end up with you having a negative balance. On top of that, not knowing the mining profitability of your rig might make you spend a lot more money without a cause or overestimate your earnings. This guide will try to show how to calculate the profitability of your mining setup as well as which tools to use to increase your profits.


Factors affecting mining profits

Many factors influence the outcome of a person’s mining profitability. The most significant factor are undoubtedly the cryptocurrency’s price, mining algorithm, the hardware that a person utilizes to mine crypto as well as the total hash rate of the network.

Choosing a cryptocurrency to mine

Mining cryptocurrencies involves solving complex mathematical algorithms by utilizing computational power. There are many consensus algorithms out there, but we will list the most popular ones.

SHA-256 consensus algorithm

The SHA-256 algorithm uses brute computational power to process the cryptographic equations. Bitcoin was easily mined with the CPUs and GPU cards that are used in regular PCs before it was popular. However, as the years progressed, and the market matured, mining hardware ended up evolving to keep up with the increasing mining difficulty. At the moment, Bitcoin is mined purely by using ASIC miners.


Scrypt consensus algorithm

The scrypt consensus algorithm uses a substantial amount of RAM as well as parallel processing to generate cryptocurrencies. This means that you can use GPUs to mine them instead of CPU, which is required for the SHA-256. Scrypt-based ASICs are quite unpopular at the moment, which brings the mining difficulty at a lower level than what it currently is with Bitcoin.

Mining profitability calculators

Many websites can be used to calculate the mining profitability for a specific coin. They take into account the mining equipment you use, power consumption, electricity cost as well as and other details. More straightforward calculators with fewer factors are available for free, but so are much more advanced ones, with features such as:

Hash rate,
Power consumption,
Power cost,
Mining difficulty,
Block reward,
Cryptocurrency price in USD.

Mining profitability can be calculated for various time-frames: hourly, daily, monthly as well as yearly.

Conclusion

Mining is a great way to earn cryptocurrencies passively. On the other hand, you need to take various factors that can affect mining profitability into consideration. Having an accurate prediction about all of the factors can be quite tricky, especially when some factors are out of your control. Be careful and do all of the calculations before investing in cryptocurrency mining gear.

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Cryptocurrencies

The ultimate guide to cryptocurrency mining

So, can you still make enough money out of crypto mining in 2019? This simple guide tells you everything you need to know about cryptocurrency mining. And acts as the

So, can you still make enough money out of crypto mining in 2019? This simple guide tells you everything you need to know about cryptocurrency mining. And acts as the

So, can you still make enough money out of crypto mining in 2019? This simple guide tells you everything you need to know about cryptocurrency mining. And acts as the perfect launchpad to a successful crypto mining career.

The concept of cryptocurrency mining is often baffling to people outside cryptoverse and even to some inside it. Cryptocurrency mining, a.k.a crypto mining, is the process by which transactions between cryptocurrency users are verified and added on to the long list in the public blockchain ledger. The same process also introduces new coins into the circulating supply of a particular cryptocurrency.

Cryptomining is achieved via the use of specialized computers. Technically, anyone with a computer and internet can mine cryptocurrency. The only problem in actual success with crypto mining depends on several factors, such as which crypto you’re mining, how powerful your computer is, and the cost of electricity where you live. (More on that later). Depending on all these factors, crypto mining may be more expensive – both financially and time-wise – than anything you’re gaining from it.

Who Are Cryptocurrency Miners? 

Cryptominers are sometimes called the backbone of many cryptocurrency networks. And they’re worthy of this title because they are the ones responsible for issuing new crypto coins, validating transactions, and ensuring the security of blockchain networks.   

Bitcoin miners use specialized computers known as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), which are designed for the sole purpose of mining cryptocurrency. ASIC miners are usually designed to mine a specific cryptocurrency. This means a Bitcoin ASIC miner can only mine bitcoin. A Litecoin ASIC miner can only mine Litecoin, and so on. 

As cryptocurrency has increased in value, so have more cryptominers jumped into the bandwagon. As such, crypto mining has become so competitive that it’s no longer profitable to mine alone. Today, most cryptocurrency mining is done by “mining pools” in warehouses that have low-cost electric power. 

Mining pools are made of a group of miners who agree to share block rewards in proportion to the amount of work that each contributed to finding a new block (a block is essentially a collection of unconfirmed transactions plus a set of data about those transactions) 

What Is Hash Rate? 

Hash power, or hash rate, is the measure of the processing power of a mining computer. The higher the hash rate, the faster the next block on the blockchain network is found. The creator of the first cryptocurrency – Satoshi Nakamoto – intended for Bitcoin to be mined via computer CPUs. However, innovative programmers soon discovered they could derive more hashing power from graphic cards and wrote mining software to facilitate this. 

Graphic cards were then surpassed by Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), which were soon phased out by ASICs, which packed inordinately more hashing and staying power. Nowadays, all serious crypto mining is done with ASICs, usually in low-cost electricity areas and in thermally-regulated areas. (Data mining centers are thermally regulated because the power ASICs consumes ends up as so much heat.)

What Is The Purpose Of Mining And How Does It Work? 

Cryptocurrency mining is actually another term to refer to a type of validation model known as proof of work (PoW). Different cryptocurrencies utilize different validation models to facilitate their release into circulation. Apart from proof of work, the other more common validation model is proof of stake, which uses a random selection of stakeholders (coin holders) as transaction validators. 

However, in PoW – which is used by cryptos such as Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and others, miners compete with each other to solve computational puzzles to solve the next block. 

So, what is the point of mining at all? Mining is central to cryptocurrencies that rely on PoW TO keep the network functional. There are many intricacies involved with mining, but it has three most important functions which are as follows: 

It issues new coins into circulation.

Unlike fiat currency, which can be issued by the central bank at any time, mining is what facilitates the entry of new crypto coins into circulation. The issuance of new coins is set in the cryptocurrency code, so miners cannot manipulate the system or create new coins out of thin air. 

It validates transactions on the network 

When transactions are sent on the blockchain network, miners include these transactions in their blocks. A transaction is only considered secure and complete once it’s recorded on the blockchain – because that’s when it’s added on the public blockchain.

It secures the blockchain network 

Miners keep the blockchain network secure from attacks. The more miners are on the network, the more secure the network is. The only way to sabotage a blockchain network is for one miner to have more than 51% of the network’s hash power, which is near impossible with the many different miners working on the network across the globe.

How Miners Make Money and Block Rewards

Block rewards refer to the crypto coins that are awarded by a blockchain network to block miners each time they mine a block successfully. These rewards are issued by cryptocurrencies that use the proof of work consensus mechanism. Most miners channel these rewards back to the ecosystem to fuel their mining costs while keeping the rest.

Bitcoin – the first cryptocurrency and the pioneer of cryptocurrency, currently rewards miners with 12.5 BTC for each mined block. In the beginning, miners were rewarded with 50 BTC. Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator(s) of Bitcoin, embedded “halving” – or what’s colloquially referred to as “halvening” in cryptoverse, into the system so that the block reward is slashed into two after every 210,000 blocks have been mined. Bitcoin’s halvening happens after about every four years. 

Another example is Litecoin, which also halves its mining rewards. Litecoin’s halving occurs after every 840,000 blocks. As of November 2019, the block reward for the cryptocurrency is 12.5, having been halved from 25 in August.

The question that bugs many in cryptosphere is this: what happens after these cryptocurrencies’ coins, and others that rely on mining, are all mined? How will miners be rewarded? Well, besides block rewards, these crypto’s protocols have also provided transaction fees as a means of reward. The transaction fees will shoot up once the maximum supply is achieved – in response to increased demand. Thus, new coins may no longer enter into circulation, but miners will still have a payday. 

Cryptocurrency Mining Step By Step

When a transaction is made on the blockchain, e.g., a user sending bitcoin to another user’s address, the transaction must be recorded – that is, the information must be indicated on a new block

  • This block must be secured and encrypted so that it cannot be reversed or modified, and is up for grabs for all miners on the network 
  • To encrypt the block, miners must find the solution to a computational puzzle through trial and error method in a race to find the proper cryptographic hash for the block. 
  • Once a miner finds a new block, it’s verified by other computers in the network in a process known as consensus and then added on the blockchain.
  • If a miner has successfully mined, verified, and secured the block, they are awarded newly created coins.

The Downsides to Cryptomining

Though mining is the lifeblood of certain cryptocurrencies, it comes with its own share of challenges. Some of these are as below: 

Complexity: Cryptomining is not for the uninitiated. Even people with a pretty good grasp of cryptocurrencies and blockchains might find themselves befuddled in the first few days. What’s more, you’ll need to assemble a range of equipment such as a customized mining computer, an ASIC chip, cooling equipment, and so on. 

On top of that, you’ll need to read a lot, keep abreast of what’s happening in the crypto world, and be prepared to make mistakes once in a while.  

Electricity Costs – Mining can prove quite expensive, mainly because it consumes a lot of electricity. The ASIC computers and the massive servers involved usually rake up enormous power bills. Bitcoin mining is especially electricity-intensive – so much that it has raised questions from ecologists who argue that it’s becoming a threat to the environment. 

Current estimates show that the current global power consumption by Bitcoin mining is a minimum of 22 terawatt-hours per year – which is almost the same as the annual power consumption by Ireland. 

Hardware Costs – Mining farms need to spend a lot of money to purchase stronger equipment every other few months as the prior equipment becomes obsolete due to increased mining competition. The cooling systems further add up to the hardware costs. 

Vulnerability: The proof of work model is vulnerable to an individual or an entity gaining control of 51% of the network’s computing power. If this were to happen, it would essentially hold the network hostage. The more dominant mined cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Bitcoin, and Monero are safe from this nature of attacks. However, smaller cryptocurrencies that require longer block processing durations and have weaker daily volumes could fall prey easily. 

Conclusion

The concept of cryptocurrency mining is fun, as it can be confusing. This guide should lift part of the mystery surrounding the concept. It has been interesting to see the evolution of crypto mining – from being able to mine from the comfort of your home on your PC to dedicated warehouses solely for mining. The innovation of ideas that have gone into the space is also exciting, and we can only wait to see what more the enterprising mining community comes up with in the future.