Bitcoin Mining: How To Start And All You Need To Know: Flint

Bitcoin mining is the process to generate and release new Bitcoin and verify new transactions using networks of specialized computers. It involves a vast, decentralized network of computers around the world to verify and secure the virtual ledgers that document cryptocurrency transactions. 

Computers on the decentralized network are rewarded with new coins, in return for contributing their processing power to generate the process. It’s a cyclic process, where the miners maintain and secure the blockchain and the blockchain awards the coins, and these coins are provided as rewards to the miners for maintaining the blockchain.

Why mine Bitcoin?

Crypto mining is a computer operation that creates new Bitcoin and tracks transactions and ownership of the cryptocurrency. You can mine BTC to earn profit/rewards. BTC miners build Bitcoin mining pools by combining their efforts with other miners to increase the chances of earning rewards and splitting the profits. You might want to mine Bitcoin for learning about this blockchain-based network technology. 

Is Bitcoin mining worth it?

You have to make a cost-benefit analysis to determine which actions should be undertaken and which should be avoided. Ensure you are willing to invest the required initial capital in hardware and determine the future value of Bitcoin and the level of difficulty before committing your resources. When Bitcoin prices and mining difficulty fall, then fewer miners are mining BTC, and then acquiring BTC is easier but expect more miners to compete for fewer BTC with the increase in Bitcoin prices.

Bitcoin Mining Setup

• You need some specific resources for mining Bitcoin that include:
• At least one specialized computer (ASIC miner)
• A reliable and cost-efficient energy supply.
• A fast internet connection.
• A cooling infrastructure 
• Computer software and the technical skill to establish and monitor the operations.
  

Bitcoin mining process

• First, you should determine the scope of profitability and viability of your Bitcoin mining operation. Before starting to mine Bitcoin you need to build a proper hardware setup and a steady cost-efficient power supply to run the computations.
• Acquire your Bitcoin mining hardware. Buy Bitcoin mining "rigs" from a supplier. When buying any hardware, always ensure the products are used and the conditions of the miners to effectively execute the mining operation without any interruptions.
• After placing the Bitcoin mining rig, download the mining software that will connect you to the blockchain network. An efficient software is NiceHash to mine Bitcoin, which distributes work to miners and attempts to find blocks for the blockchain. 
• It is difficult for individual miners to compete with large mining farms backed by mining companies so select and join a Bitcoin mining pool. You have to pay fees to the operator of the pool and rewards will be distributed among the participants.
• After selecting your pool, you are ready to start mining Bitcoin. Connect your mining hardware to a power outlet and complete the connection to the Bitcoin blockchain with the software. To collect your rewards fill in your Bitcoin address.

Bitcoin mining is not an easy task but if you can set up your mining process then you can get bitcoins and earn rewards. It takes a lot of effort and infrastructure with a proper internet connection and power supply to run these transactions and you may have to wait for some time to come to profit.

You need extensive initial investment to generate a scale that may provide credible returns,  but for some time now, several institutions have also  initiated projects to build their bitcoin mining farms.

Key Takeaways

• Bitcoin mining lets users earn cryptocurrency without investing.
• Bitcoin miners receive rewards as Bitcoins for completing "blocks" of verified transactions that add to the blockchain
• Mining rewards are paid to the miner who discovers a solution to a complex hashing puzzle first, and the probability that a participant will be the one to discover the solution is related to the portion of the network's total mining power.
• Bitcoin miners compete against one another to solve complex mathematical equations.
• Mining pools can help increase your profitability because they share the workload and have faster-combined hash rates. Profitable miners often own many mining rigs and work together in mining pools.
• You'll need a cryptocurrency wallet, mining software, and mining hardware to begin mining cryptocurrency.