Community Forex Questions
What is the Difference Between Litecoin and Bitcoin?
In 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin as the world's first cryptocurrency. The code is open source, which means it can be modified by anyone and freely used for other projects. Many cryptocurrencies have launched with modified versions of this code, with varying levels of success.
Litecoin was announced in 2011 with the goal of being the "silver" to Bitcoin's 'gold'. At the time of writing, Litecoin has the 7th highest market cap of any mined cryptocurrency, after Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, tether, Bitcoin cash and Bitcoin SV.
Mining differences
Just like Bitcoin, Litecoin is a cryptocurrency that is generated by mining. Litecoin was created in October 2011 by former Google engineer Charles Lee. The motivation behind its creation was to improve upon bitcoin. The key difference for end-users being the 2.6 minute time to generate a block, as opposed to bitcoin's 10 minutes. Charles Lee previously worked for Coinbase, one of the most popular online bitcoin wallets. He now dedicates his time to the Litecoin Foundation.
For miners and enthusiasts though, Litecoin holds much more important difference to Bitcoin, and that is its different proof of work algorithm. Bitcoin uses the SHA-256 hashing algorithm, which involves calculations that can be greatly accelerated in parallel processing. It is this characteristic that has given rise to the intense race in ASIC technology, and has caused an exponential increase in Bitcoin's difficulty level.
Litecoin, however, uses the scrypt algorithm - originally named as s-crypt, but pronounced as 'script'. This algorithm incorporates the SHA-256 algorithm, but its calculations are much more serialized than those of high-speed RAM, rather than raw processing power alone. As a result, scrypt is known as a 'memory hard problem'.
Litecoin was announced in 2011 with the goal of being the "silver" to Bitcoin's 'gold'. At the time of writing, Litecoin has the 7th highest market cap of any mined cryptocurrency, after Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, tether, Bitcoin cash and Bitcoin SV.
Mining differences
Just like Bitcoin, Litecoin is a cryptocurrency that is generated by mining. Litecoin was created in October 2011 by former Google engineer Charles Lee. The motivation behind its creation was to improve upon bitcoin. The key difference for end-users being the 2.6 minute time to generate a block, as opposed to bitcoin's 10 minutes. Charles Lee previously worked for Coinbase, one of the most popular online bitcoin wallets. He now dedicates his time to the Litecoin Foundation.
For miners and enthusiasts though, Litecoin holds much more important difference to Bitcoin, and that is its different proof of work algorithm. Bitcoin uses the SHA-256 hashing algorithm, which involves calculations that can be greatly accelerated in parallel processing. It is this characteristic that has given rise to the intense race in ASIC technology, and has caused an exponential increase in Bitcoin's difficulty level.
Litecoin, however, uses the scrypt algorithm - originally named as s-crypt, but pronounced as 'script'. This algorithm incorporates the SHA-256 algorithm, but its calculations are much more serialized than those of high-speed RAM, rather than raw processing power alone. As a result, scrypt is known as a 'memory hard problem'.
Litecoin and Bitcoin are both cryptocurrencies, but Litecoin is like the "silver" to Bitcoin's "gold." Here's the gist:
Speed: Litecoin processes transactions faster than Bitcoin, potentially improving everyday purchases.
Cost: Litecoin transactions typically have lower fees compared to Bitcoin.
Supply: Litecoin has a larger maximum supply of coins than Bitcoin, affecting their value.
Mining: Litecoin uses a different mining algorithm, making it slightly easier to mine than Bitcoin.
While Bitcoin is seen as a store of value, Litecoin aims to be a faster and more scalable exchange.
Speed: Litecoin processes transactions faster than Bitcoin, potentially improving everyday purchases.
Cost: Litecoin transactions typically have lower fees compared to Bitcoin.
Supply: Litecoin has a larger maximum supply of coins than Bitcoin, affecting their value.
Mining: Litecoin uses a different mining algorithm, making it slightly easier to mine than Bitcoin.
While Bitcoin is seen as a store of value, Litecoin aims to be a faster and more scalable exchange.
Jul 24, 2021 14:03