- Learn the fundamentals of Bitcoin from a predominantly non-technical perspective
- Free tutorial
- Rating: 4.1 out of 54.1 (1,192 ratings)
- 36,025 students
- 6hr 58min of on-demand video
- Created by Draper University, Matt Schlicht
- English
What you’ll learn
Requirements
- This course is perfect for beginners – no prior knowledge about Bitcoin is necessary.
- An interest in Bitcoin and an open mind
Description
Over the past couple years there has been an explosion of growth and innovation in the bitcoin space, but many people still don’t really understand what bitcoin is, or why it’s exciting to so many entrepreneurs and investors.
Draper University and Zapchain have come together with the goal of making the most comprehensive bitcoin course. By making bitcoin more approachable, we hope to inspire people to innovate with Bitcoin, because we believe that bitcoin has transformative potential.
In this course we’ll teach you the fundamentals of bitcoin and introduce you to entrepreneurs who have been funded by tens of millions of dollars, the venture capitalists behind them, and some of the brightest engineers in Silicon Valley, all of whom will give us their unique insights into how bitcoin can change the world.
If you’ve heard of bitcoin but still don’t quite understand what it is, or are interested in how new technology has the power to transform the financial industry today, then this course is definitely for you!
Come join us at The Bitcoin Course.
Who this course is for:
- This course is for anyone interested in learning the basics of Bitcoin as both a technology and a currency. No prior knowledge about Bitcoin is necessary. This course is probably not for you if you’re looking for a deep technical dive into Bitcoin, blockchain technology and/or cryptography.
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Course content
7 sections • 53 lectures • 7h 0m total lengthCollapse all sections
What is Bitcoin?7 lectures • 28min
- What is Bitcoin?01:07
- What is a distributed ledger?00:52
- How do transactions work on the distributed ledger?01:21
- Bitcoin as a protocol and bitcoin as a currency01:36
- Why is trust so important to financial transactions?02:51
- How does Bitcoin solve this issue of trust?02:43
- Interview: How Bitcoin allows trustless transactions [Matthew Martin]17:59
- Introduction Quiz10 questions
An Evolution of Payment Systems12 lectures • 1hr 26min
- Introduction to payments00:18
- What is Money?03:14
- How does Bitcoin compare to other forms of money?01:07
- What are the limitations of legacy payment platforms?01:40
- What are the advantages of Bitcoin?02:24
- How does Bitcoin change international transactions?01:26
- Interview: What is Money? Pt. 1/2 [Christopher Smith]09:33
- Interview: What is Money? Pt. 2/2 [Christopher Smith]10:47
- Interview: Improving internet transactions with Bitcoin [Greg Brockman]19:43
- Interview: Why Bitcoin is good for merchants and creators Pt. 1/2 [Nick Tomaino]11:31
- Interview: Why Bitcoin is good for merchants and creators Pt. 2/2 [Nick Tomaino]10:46
- Interview: How Bitcoin can transform international markets [Brian Gamido]13:56
- Evolution of Payment Systems Quiz15 questions
The Protocol14 lectures • 1hr 44min
- Protocol Introduction00:16
- Money transfers without Bitcoin01:29
- Distributed Ledger: The Blockchain01:10
- P2P Networks00:44
- Digital Signatures01:26
- Proof of Work02:04
- Protocol Summary01:07
- Interview: How the blockchain and Bitcoin mining work [Ross Mckelvie]19:39
- Interview: Securing Bitcoin Pt. 1/2 [Olaf Carlson-Wee]13:19
- Interview: Securing Bitcoin Pt. 2/2 [Olaf Carlson-Wee]12:14
- Interview: An overview of Bitcoin mining Pt. 1/2 [Chris Shepherd]12:05
- Interview: An overview of Bitcoin mining Pt. 2/2 [Chris Shepherd]11:47
- Interview: Using the Bitcoin protocol to enable new ideas Pt. 1 [Adrian Macneil]13:54
- Interview: Using the Bitcoin protocol to enable new ideas Pt. 2 [Adrian Macneil]12:46
- Protocol Quiz10 questions
Innovation in Bitcoin10 lectures • 1hr 52min
- Section Intro00:28
- Interview: Bitcoin will change the world Pt. 1/2 [Tim Draper]11:36
- Interview: Bitcoin will change the world Pt. 2/2 [Tim Draper]11:33
- Interview: Bitcoin as a utility for financial markets Pt. 1/3 [Adam Draper]14:13
- Interview: Bitcoin as a utility for financial markets Pt. 2/3 [Adam Draper]12:12
- Interview: Bitcoin as a utility for financial markets Pt. 3/3 [Adam Draper]14:27
- Interview: Current roadblocks and future potential Pt. 1/2 [Matt Slater]12:01
- Interview: Current roadblocks and future potential Pt. 2/2 [Matt Slater]13:09
- Interview: The Bitcoin job market Pt. 1/2 [Derek Minter]10:47
- Interview: The Bitcoin job market Pt. 2/2 [Derek Minter]11:22
Getting Started4 lectures • 11min
- Getting started with Bitcoin00:35
- How to get a Bitcoin wallet01:09
- Making a purchase with Bitcoin01:02
- Creating a Bitcoin Node08:38
Bonus Interviews5 lectures • 1hr 17min
- Open Source04:56
- Interview: The media perspective on Bitcoin [Daniel Cawrey]16:58
- Interview: How legal tools can be useful for Bitcoin innovators [James Skelley]19:15
- Interview: Bitcoin vs traditional alternatives Pt. 1/2 [Teemu Paivinen]16:13
- Interview: Bitcoin vs traditional alternatives Pt. 2/2 [Teemu Paivinen]19:30
Supplemental Material1 lecture • 2min
- Other resources01:41
