#CryptoBasics

Bitcoin records transactions in a shared public ledger called the blockchain. Wallets use this ledger to calculate available balances. When sending funds, a user creates a digital signature with a private key so the network can verify that the spending is authorized, without revealing that key to the recipient. Addresses receive payments; private keys authorize spending.

After a transaction is broadcast, miners include it in a block and the network verifies it against its rules. Mining helps participants agree on transaction order and makes rewriting history more costly.

Using Bitcoin means understanding who controls the assets and who is responsible for keeping them safe. Holding your own private keys gives you direct control, but also makes you responsible for preserving recovery information. If you permanently lose access, no central authority can reset it for you. Leaving assets with an exchange instead introduces reliance on its custody and ability to honor withdrawals.

The article also explains that blockchain records are public and persist over time, so Bitcoin is not fully anonymous. There is no bank customer service team that can reverse a payment, and an unconfirmed transaction should not be treated as a completed receipt.

An Ethereum wallet is a tool for interacting with an account: viewing assets, sending transactions and connecting to applications. An address can be shared to receive funds, while a private key authorizes transactions and must remain secret. Distinguishing wallets, accounts, addresses and keys helps separate deleting an app from losing control of an account.

The source compares hardware, mobile, browser and desktop wallets, and explains how self-custody differs from exchange custody. Wallets that support recovery phrases require those phrases to be kept safe. Changing devices does not necessarily mean losing assets, but recovery depends on still having the necessary keys or recovery information.

Gas measures the computational resources required to execute an Ethereum transaction, with fees paid in ETH. A simple transfer and a complex contract operation can consume different amounts of gas. Network demand also changes the price of the same operation. Transaction cost therefore depends on resource use and unit price, rather than only on the amount being transferred.

The source explains the calculation as gas used multiplied by the sum of the base fee and priority fee. The protocol burns the base fee; the priority fee goes to the validator proposing the transaction’s block. Wallets typically show an estimate, and gwei is a common small denomination of ETH. The article also introduces L2 networks as a way to reduce costs for some activities.

Stablecoins aim to track a reference asset, such as the US dollar, to provide a more stable unit for onchain payments and exchanges. Their backing mechanisms differ: some rely on fiat reserves held by an issuer, others use crypto collateral, and other designs depend on assets or supply adjustments.

Understanding a stablecoin requires looking beyond its name or target price to its collateral, issuance mechanism and trust assumptions. The source compares different types and the reliance on centralized issuers and reserves. Price stability is a design goal, not evidence that every product offers the same protections.

Bitcoin.org organizes getting started into four steps: understanding the basics, choosing a wallet, obtaining bitcoin and making payments. Wallets can run on a phone or computer. Bitcoin can be obtained by accepting it for goods and services, or by buying it from other people or exchange services, then spent with merchants that accept it.

For merchants, the page describes handling payments and invoices directly or using a merchant service, with the option to keep bitcoin or local currency. It also covers accounting, tax and merchant directories, noting that tax treatment depends on local rules. This is an overview of spending and receiving payments, with links to more detailed resources for each step.

Ethereum.org’s learning center organizes resources into basic concepts, practical use, applications and protocol operation. Beyond transferring assets, Ethereum can execute code to support applications and organizations. Wallets let users create and access accounts, send transfers and interact with applications.

Resources cover account creation, wallet use, scam prevention and gas fees. Application examples include payments, games, prediction markets and digital identity. Technical sections link to proof of stake, the EVM, nodes and clients, alongside books, podcasts and videos. This page is a topic index; detailed mechanisms and procedures are covered in the linked guides.