This is a very basic visual introduction to the concepts behind a blockchain. We introduce the idea of an immutable ledger using an interactive web demo.
0:00 Intro
0:15 SHA256 Hash
2:18 Block
5:16 Blockchain
9:20 Distributed Blockchain
12:19 Tokens
14:36 Coinbase Transaction
Part 2 is here: • Blockchain 101 - Part ...
If you are interested in playing with this on your own, it is available online at:
anders.com/blockchain/
The code that runs this demo is also on GitHub:
github.com/anders94/blockchai...
I'm @anders94 on Twitter and @andersbrownworth on Steemit.
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Does youtube have a two thumbs like button for this kind of video?
i did try but no, yet still i did it 3 timea
Why doesn't this have more views? This is the best explanation of blockchain I've ever seen on KZhead. There are many "Blockchain explained" or "Blockchain demystified" videos which are total crap, but this one is golden. Not only it explains the concepts step by step from the grass roots up, but also it is not cluttered with Bitcoin-specific nuances (which is always the problem with other presentations, despite the fact that blockchain can also be used for other purposes than Bitcoin).
Thanks very much - I really appreciate your comment.
Anders Brownworth , this is a brilliant explanation on blocks, blockchains, tokens etc. Well done! You mentioned in this video that there would be a follow-up with more details. Any timeline on when we can expect to see the next instalment? I look fwd to seeing it and thanks for sharing.
No idea. And yes, all videos I watched before this one "explained" blockchains from a business perspective, not a technical one. Personally, as someone looking to implement solutions based on blockchains in the future, this is a great step forward to understanding them!
Great
Bon bon confirmed to be disrupting traditional financial systems.
holy mother of god, best blockchain explanation ever!
only God is holy
I believe this video is the most vivid block chain introduction so far I've ever seen, so thank you for making it.
Good teachers are rare. Just found one here
Best blockchain demo I've seen so far. Looking forward to future videos!
Totally agree! I wish I'd make a follow up!
This is one of the best demo video I've ever seen, Much appreciated Anders. You earned one more fan in your list.
This is by far the BEST explanation of blockchains on KZhead. Well done. Looking forward to part 2!
Finally, an explanation that makes sense. The actual visualization helped me far better understand this than most other explanations. Thanks for taking the time to do this and making it available to us.
Wow, having a visual representation makes this so much easier to understand. Thanks for this!
This is a superb demo - so well presented - a testament to the effort that clearly went into the preparation.
this is one of the best explanation I have seen so far. no animation with jingle music. I am always looking for good blockchain explanation for our podcast and I will definitely consider this one for our next episode. Just simple and to the point! Thank you so much for this!
Magnificent and simply perfect blockchain explantation. If all teaching videos were like this one, the world would be a better place.
Thank you very much for taking the time to create this easy to understand version of how the Blockchain works. I truly believe it is the best explanation I have seen. Thanks
Great video and phenomenal visualization. Looking forward to pt.2!
This is the only introduction to block chain that i've ever understood. Thanks for taking the time to put together this amazing demonstration!
Wow, this is the most exquisite explanation I've seen so far on how a blockchain works. Thank you so much.
A very helpful explanation, thanks. I think this will be particularly useful to programmers and other technical people. The low level description makes it much clearer than the theoretical videos I've watched.
Excellent!! Gets right to the point without any abstract talk. Watching this one video explained blockchain 10x better than reading 5 articles.
Really well explained - I thoroughly enjoyed the video!
Thanks Anders. Your demo makes it easy to understand the blockchain flow!
I wish every tutorial on KZhead like this. Great job. looking forward to new demo.
This is the BEST Blockchain demo I have ever seen. Thank you for your effort.
Absolutely excellent animation of the blockchain concepts! Thanks for creating and sharing this.
This is the very best explanation of blockchain, from first principles, I have come across. Well done Anders and thank you for making the source code available.
This is one of the best run through's I have seen. Well done!
I have skimmed almost the whole KZhead. This video is by far THE most concise and clear video that explains exactly how block chain works. Thank you so much!
Far and away the best explanation out there! Thank you for taking the time to put this together.
Greatest BC demo ever, love it.
This video is great - you explain things in a very clear way, and I selfishly wish you'd make a bunch more of these vids. At least, I hope you make a part 2!
This is the best blockchain explanation ever, very logical , easy to follow and understandable. Great job.
Thank you very much. It’s been about 5 months I was looking for the explanation of blockchain, gotta to admit it, this is the best of all. Thank you
Thank you for this video, definitely VERY well explained, simplified and love the visual demo! :)
Congratulations from Brazil. Awesome explanation!
Thank you! Explaining blockchain this way with your coded demo makes it very clear and easy to understand.
This is the best representation of block chain on the web today. Thanks for the great work !
I have had to turn comments off on my blockchain videos due to spam. If you want to reach out to me, please find me on twitter @anders94 instead. Most of the recent comments (which I've been judiciously deleting these past few years) have been people pushing an "I can get your private keys back for you" scam which, as everyone who has watched these videos knows. is quite impossible. I hate to take such a drastic measure but I'm afraid I just don't have the time.
Much appreciate Anders. Well described and very helpful. Quite a demo to setup, but it is a benefit to the public. Clear concise and logic. Thanks once again.
Excellent video! Far beyond anything else I've seen on KZhead that is supposedly explaining blockchains but doesn't really manage to in a clear way. This one is very pedagogical.
Excellent explanation and very well done.
Really good work!
Thank you for such a calm, clear and thorough explanation.
Excellent video. Simple enough that you don't need to know anything about blockchain to follow but technical enough that you can understand the fundamentals behind how a blockchain actually operates.
Finally something I can understand! thx
Very impressive demo! Thanks! And thanks for making the code available as well.
Kamal Prasad where is the code available ???
Kamal Prasad I found the git page...
Thank you for a great tutorial on blockchains. I've viewed several, and your tutorial is by the far the best presentation and very clearly explained. Great approach using the visual demo.
This is the best Blockchain explanation, I had came across so far. I was searching for this kind of explanation for weeks! Thanks a lot and looking forward for more videos on blockchain with IoT.
awesome explanation on blockchain. You should probably do a ted talk on this.
I'd be happy to if someone has a spot to offer at a TEDx event.
Anders Brownworth where are you based
Anders Brownworth you should probably reply to this thread..
Danny Mortimer Anders github shows Cambridge, MA (Boston). Anders, great video thanks!
which online platform do we use to solve these blocks?
I am a blockchain enthusiast and this video clears a lot of confusion i had. you have explained it in very simple and efficient way. May you be blessed by Satoshi himself/herself :)
unless the author of this video is Satoshi himself! ;-P
Thank you, Anders! Truly the best ever video about blockchain in layman terms.
Very clear, simple video of how the chain works. Thank-you for being simple and concise! Excellent work. Subscribed.
Awesome..the best explanation of #blockchain that I've seen so far
Great explanation! Thanks
Amazing tutorial. The best one I've seen so far. Part 2 even gets better. Thanks Anders
Excellent explanation and video on the basic mechanics behind how a Blockchain/ Distributed Ledger works (possibly the best one out there on the Web/ KZhead), great narration too by Anders!
This video is AWESOME! It explains in a very simple and visual way how the blockchain (applied to Bitcoin I would say, where the blockchain represents the ledger) works. And it gives you a perfect idea of why Bitcoin is so secure, because if you wanna change something in the past, like the value of a transaction, you should change every block from that one on, and not only on that blockchain but on all the "copies" that you have around. Once again, GREAT VIDEO. Thanks!
Well, on the majority of the copies, by the sound of it. If you can outvote the others then your truth becomes the truth.
But the problem is...the chain that has the most work wins. So if you happen to have the largest data center in the world...you could manipulate a block chain.
That is the gist of the "51% attack" possibility.
That was amazing !! Thank you
This is the best blockchain demo i have ever watched . Easy to understand and totally practical. Thanks a ton...
This is the best explanation of blockchain that I have seen so far. Thank you!
For all those who manged to thumbs down this awesome video, you are upside down.
Anders, loved this demo thank you. Couple questions: 1. in a blockchain based technology such as bitcoin, does the entire history reside in one chain and one chain only? 2. can you have multiple sets or threads of transactions happening simultaneously in a blockchain ledger? I'm wondering about scalability. 3. who creates coin base or originating transactions? with bitcoin especially... I'm wondering "how it all started" so to speak. This would also help me think about future valuations of other cryptos like etherium and lite coin for example. Thank you! Best explanation I've ever seen.
Hey. 1. The entire history usually resides on one chain (of which everyone has a copy) but in the real world, chains split (such as the case with bitcoin into bitcoin cash, bitcoin gold and soon-to-be bitcoin 2x) so a single coin pre-split will become 2 coins, one on each version of the chain, post split. From a speculation perspective, it might be easiest to value bitcoin as a basket of all currencies derived from bitcoin instead of simply the price of one bitcoin. 2. You can have multiple threads of transactions but that is very uncommon at this point. (I don't think any coin trading on an exchange supports that at this point but I do know of several projects that seek to diminish blockchain bloat by doing this. 3. Coinbase transactions are allowed via a rule enforced by the software which everyone runs. It is designed into the system as both a way to get money into the system and as something to entice miners to verify transactions and include them in the chain. Hope this helps.
Wow, this is the best blockchain demo I've seen so far. Thank you!
i think i saw like 8-10 "what is Blockchain" videos on KZhead. only with this video i FINALLY understand it... this is BY FAR the BEST Blockchain explanation video ! Thank you VERY much !
can you show us how new blocks are created? when new bitcoin is mined how it is confirmed and transactions as well.
Great video, thanks! I sent you some bitcoins.
Much appreciated!
Did you really?
Probably now that donations is worth thousands of $ :p
Carlo Pizzuti lol over $5k
which platform are you using to solve these bitcoin blocks?
Best illustration of the Blockchain I’ve seen. Thank you.
Beautiful. Elegant. Concise. Perhaps the most productive 17 minutes I spent today.
If I learned anything it's that Jackson doesn't like to give much
So bitcoin miners don't create/compute new bitcoins, but they get rewarded bitcoins for verifying the validity of the transactions state in the block chain?
Yep, that's generally the idea. Solving a block gives the miner the right to assign some new bitcoin to whatever address they like. Of course they choose an address they control so they can get the bitcoin, most likely sell it and pay their power bill and have some profit.
Who rewards the miners? Is there a central entity?
The miners are rewarded by being allowed to take the coinbase transaction which creates new tokens out of nothing. No central entity controls this - it is simply one of the rules that all nodes on the network have agreed to abide by by running the software.
@Sam Akbari, the community that "buys" the new bitcoins. As long as demands outweighs supply, bitcoin price will increase and mining will keep profitable. It's like normal money. Central banks emit money and we "buy" it (accepting new money in economy). As long as there is enough product, prices will not rise because of that. The problem is that central banks generally abuse this process to cause a low inflation, because they believe a low inflation is a good thing to economy. Bitcoin is turning into a deflationary currency as its emission halves every four years. In the future, there will be no new bitcoins and miners will receive only transaction fees. So, many bet bitcoin prices will skyrocket to the moon.
Every bitcoin transaction also has an associated fee- the miner that solves the block also earns the fees of those transactions.
I have been looking for a basic introduction to the topic and this one clearly explains the concepts. Great demo!
Never found a better explanation than this one. Top Job !
i believe the 11 thumbsdown of this video are conventional bankers... hahaha....
This means everyone could calculate how much money you have?
Yes, blockchains are public, but in practice they don't use names of people like I do here. Stay tuned for the next video where I bring public / private key cryptography into the example.
This is, by far, the best blockchain explanation i've seen. In fact, i keep playing this vid, although i understand it 100%, just for the beauty of it.
Anders, Thanks. This is the most succinct Blockchain basics video that I have come across. Keep it flowing.
No. Min 3:00 What do you mean "this block is signed" ?????
It is totally arbitrarily defined. If we work with this rule though and call a block "signed" when its hash starts with at least four zeros, we get this ability to require something that is hard to do but easy to check. This turns out to be very useful when getting a group of disinterested nodes on the internet to agree that some data is the official "correct" data.
Yes (!). I'm a newbie and I benefited greatly from you video (thanks!). The "signed" part 'sunk in' with the 2nd listening to your vid. Thank you for talking slow. These bitcoin gurus talk like auctioneers -- "just slow it down 20% if you want people to keep up with you". Am looking forward to your Part 2 video, but these can be a challenge to make. Question: other btc vids talk about "the Transaction Chain" -- I understand the concept, but is it SEPARATE from the blockchain? (I don't see why it should/would be, but other talk about it like it is separate). On the politcal from, my biggest fear is that Govt does to Bitcoin what it did to gold -- made it illegal to have/use. With Bitcoin, you just make it illegal to exchange. Counter-pressure: pressure AMAZON (and Walmart) to accept Bitcoin. (!!!!). Carry on! Bitcoin rocks!
The "transaction chain" and the blockchain are the same thing. Blocks consist of transactions. Governments making use or ownership of cryptocurrencies illegal is a concern, but only to the extent that all other governments do the same. FDR made ownership of gold in the USA illegal in 1933 as a means to get more gold back into the reserve so he could print more dollars. (which at the time were backed in part by gold) This was reversed in 1974 by Ford. Other countries didn't make gold ownership illegal en masse so gold retained value elsewhere during that time. I don't think bitcoin is best suited for payments. It seems to me more like a tool for bulk settlement instead so I don't think it is likely Amazon or Walmart will accept it directly. Just a guess though.
Thank you Anders. I'm in the awkward/uncomfortable position of "preaching to the minister" about Bitcoin. First up: you obviously know more about than me; and your video above has helped out a lot in my/the-world's understanding of how Bitcoin works. That said, I URGE you and everyone in the "Bitcoin community" to pressure Amazon into using it (!) re: decentralization and mass recognition. The idea is make Bitcoin so big government wouldn't dare kill-switch it -- because that's what they want to do. Government's hatred of gold will translate into hatred of Bitcoin. If they try to kill-switch it, make the price they pay as high as possible.
Pardon the hyperbole of the previous post. I tune in to the political, and crypto's problem looks political, not technical. However, These two videos raise the concern that crypto currencies will not survive Quantum Computing. (????) The Cryptocurrency Kill Switch kzhead.info/sun/dKqYZcqnqaSoi40/bejne.html Quantum computing explained with a deck of cards | Dario Gil, IBM Research kzhead.info/sun/rN1vhLpxe6Cqn68/bejne.html
So if someone sends me crypto-money, I have to check the chain of transactions to confirm he actually have that summ. And as far as the hashes are correct this new transaction is valid. Right? Now, I have to sign the lager with new hash, that is to mine the some "nonce" to find special type of hash? But during the mining process there can be new trasactions, so the lager changes multiple times. So when does this very moment comes a new block in chain is populated?
You don't have to check the ledger to make sure the new money you got actually exists because the miners do that job. it is nice to independently verify that though. There may be many updates to the ledger. You only become more and more sure your update happened as more blocks are added to the blockchain. Sometimes the copy of the chain you have doesn't agree with others when 2 blocks are created at the same time and you ended up with the invalid chain. In these cases, the bad block(s) are removed (which is called a reorg) and the correct block(s) are added. If your transaction isn't in the newly added block it "didn't happen". That is the uncertainty. Generally though, if your transaction is 6 blocks "in the past", it will never be reorged.
Thanks for reply. I found one more video about bitcoin that covers this question.
Hey :) Do you mind linking that exact video? I would be interested
shoutitallloud Thanks!
do you mind sharing the link of that video??
The visual makes it so clear. excellent work! thanks.
This is nice. I've seen several blockchain explanations before but this is the one I can actually understand without going too deep into the details.
The average Joe won't get it but good video for the rest of us.
I haven't seen it yet, so thanks for the heads-up.
At 14.21 You used the term, "This begs the question", that is a logical term (fallacy) called circular reasoning. The classic example is, "Are you still beating your wife?" where the answer is assumed from the question. What you meant to say was, "This raises the question". Thanks for your excellent video.
Didn't know - thanks.
robert, your definition of "begs the question" is out of date. Its modern usage is the way Anders uses it in this video.
Great video, in 17 minutes, I know completely understand how block chain work that has been puzzling me for months. Thanks, Anders.
Finally someone with people skills that can explain all of this. Thank you Anders.
Great way of visualising some of the mechanics inside the blockchain. Good job, Anders!
Probably the best and most succinct explanation of the concept of blockchain. Thank you Anders. Keep the good works coming.....
The best explanation of Block Chain concept with an example. Thank you and appreciate for your time and effort!
dude seriously this is the best of the best explanation ever created/visualized. you are the man! thank you!
Demystified a new topic with such clarity and lucidity! Great job and a big thumbs up from a layman.
Super great effect of putting up a web form interactive example of this!! Very nicely done, thank you!!!
I can not believe how easy this video explained everything to me! Good job!
I watched more than hundreds of videos on youtube about blockchain so far this is the best one thank you
Best explanation I've seen so far. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Anders, bless you for this wonderful interactive website and series of videos! I'm an educator and THIS will become my go to resource to authentically teach the blockchain process and its related concepts!!
The only video you need to watch to understand the working of a blockchain!! Good work!
Fantastic introductory explanation of a block chain. First one I heard where I could actually follow along.
Hands down the best explanation ever. I am moving to part two right now.
Well done Anders. I really appreciate the effort you put into building that demo - no mean feat in its own right!
This is really awesome! The simplest and the best explanation of blockchain I've seen so far.
Wow. Thank you for making a clear and simple video. This has given many of us a good understanding on this technology.
Its really simple to understand. Best explanation I have seen so far. Thanks Anders! It seems there is a lot of preparation behind this video.