Author: Mike Hearn 2014-04-07 17:40:17
Published on: 2014-04-07T17:40:17+00:00
The Bitcoin network requires disk space and bandwidth as its primary resources and does not use electricity like mining. In order to build the database, an intensive initial day or two is required. There are implementation issues that need to be improved to make it work better for low resource users. To tackle this problem, auditable pre-baked databases calculated up to the last checkpoint can be shipped so people can download and start their nodes right away. This will prevent the need to recalculate the entire thing from scratch every time which is unsustainable in the long run. Brent Shambaugh in his email enquired about setting up a node and if using lots of electricity at home could be an issue. Gregory Maxwell clarified that the resource requirements of a full node moving beyond is an implementation issue and not a requirement issue. The distinction is important as things that can be fixed should be done through the implementation approach while those that cannot be fixed except by changing goals/incentives require opposite approaches. The email correspondence was sent on the Bitcoin-development mailing list. The email also included information about Jenkins Continuous Integration and a link to try it in the cloud for new projects.
Updated on: 2023-06-08T18:42:11.397168+00:00