Crypto has been touted as the next big thing for a number of years now. Jonathon Spire has this review of Gekko for you. Please see here.  People didn’t take it seriously when it all started, but after seeing the recent price increase, everyone is suddenly into crypto. Leading the charge of this blockchain ship is the most famous cryptocurrency, bitcoin. Although purchasing it outright is becoming more and more impractical as time goes on, you can still earn some bitcoin by mining it at home.

What is bitcoin mining?

Bitcoin, like many other cryptocurrencies, relies on the blockchain for its operations and transactions. But these transactions are extremely complex and require plenty of computer power. So, these coins rely on individuals for using their computers to solve these complex functions and reward them with some of that currency as a reward. This process of turning your computer into crypto mining hardware is known as crypto mining or bitcoin mining in this case.

Can you mine bitcoin on your home computer?

Yes, you absolutely can. If you’ve been following bitcoin-related news for any amount of time, you’ve most likely heard of mining farms that utilize the power of tens or even hundreds of computers to mine bitcoin. You don’t need all that. You can mine bitcoin on any hardware. The rates might be low on your home computer, but that’s the sacrifice you have to make in exchange for not having to buy many top of the line computers.

A guide to bitcoin mining:

The first thing you have to do is to make sure that it’s actually worth it. Sure, you can mine it on virtually any hardware; there is a certain performance point below which you won’t make any profit. Is the hardware check done? Now it’s time to create a bitcoin wallet that will store your rewards and will be used to get payouts. There are many websites available on the internet for this specific purpose.

After getting a wallet, the next step is to join a pool. A pool, as the name suggests, is a collaborative environment where people share their hardware and connect them into giant mining machines. This increases the chance of making a profit, but this also means that that reward will be shared among the pool members accordingly. Make an account on the pool of your liking and connect your payout options to it.

Now that the accounts side of things is done, it’s time to download mining software. The mining software is what brings in the complex transactions that your computer has to solve. There are many of these software available on the market, each with its own pros and cons. A popular one among the hardcore mining community is the GUIminer available for the PC. Just make sure that you download a legit one and don’t get malware in the name of higher rewards.

After the installation is done, open the software. Enter the pool that you chose earlier and log in to your account. All that’s left is to hit start mining, and you’re done.