Why Cryptocurrencies? Book

Bitcoin is one of the most transformative technologies in history, but at the same time it’s dismissed as useless or only seen as a speculative vehicle. Why Cryptocurrencies? will dispel that myth by exploring real use-cases and show how cryptocurrencies are uniquely positioned to revolutionize the way we use money today.

Can you afford to miss out?

What makes this book special?

Gives you the important conceptual ideas

It’s all too easy to get bogged down with technical details; the high-level concepts are what’s truly important.

Easy to read

The book is beginner-friendly and doesn’t require any prior knowledge.

Focused on utility

The focus is on concrete use-cases, instead of the more seductive speculative approach.

It’s bigger than Bitcoin

There are many more cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin. The focus is on the general cryptocurrency concept and it’s potential, instead of on a single implementation.

Visits a wide variety of topics

This isn’t only about cryptocurrencies. It’s also about money, censorship, our financial system, and the dark secrets that Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden revealed.

The order doesn’t matter

Chapters are self-contained, so you can jump around and read the sections you’re interested in.

Print

  • Beautiful design
  • Each page carefully formated by hand
  • Hand-drawn colored illustrations
  • ISBN: 978-91-986762-0-4

eBook

  • Hand-tuned CSS to look as good as I could make it, while adapting to whatever settings you prefer
  • ISBN: 978-91-986762-1-1

PDF

  • Same layout and design as the printed version
  • Looks the same on every reader and device
  • ISBN: 978-91-986762-2-8

Web

Reader Comments

Anyone who wishes to prepare for the future must learn about cryptocurrencies. This book is an excellent place to start.

Roger Ver, the “Bitcoin Jesus”

This book is a well-written resource that should be easy to understand by everyone. From the flaws of the current financial system to the future implications, you’ll see what a cryptocurrency is and why it’s needed.

SerHack, author of “Mastering Monero”

Education is the most powerful tool which you can use to change the world and investing your time reading this book may give you the highest dividends of your life.

/u/MobTwo

Great book. I’ve been recommending it to everyone willing to learn about crypto.

Michal Salaban, creator of the Monero Python module

The information is correct and concise. Going with what we saw, quality work has been done.

Very cool! I love the focus on utility instead of just speculation. That is what truly gives cryptocurrencies their value.

This is very good, easy to read and nice illustrations!

Had a skim read of a few chapters. Looks like a great project, very impressive. You seem to have struck a great balance between giving enough information to be of practical help, while still keeping things simple enough that it’s not overwhelming for people new to the space.

Well written based on facts. Really appreciate.

Great book, thanks for writing and making this available to all for free!

I like how you explain the game theory behind it. Incentivising to play by the rules is -in my opinion- the most innovative aspect about blockchains. (as opposed to current financial markets where the incentive to cheat is quite big and only punishable by third actors but not the value of the fraudulent transactions themself)

Frequently Asked Questions

Do the different versions have different content?
No! They all have the same chapters, the same illustrations and the same text. Even the free web version.
The book is too expensive, how can I get it cheaply?
I made the web version completely free to make it available for as many people as possible. And if you buy the digital version with crypto you can pay whatever you want! That’s almost free!
Which version pays you the most?
Buying the digital versions directly from me with crypto removes all third-party fees, leaving me with the most amount of money in the end. It also allows you to set the amount to whatever you want, so if you want to shower me with money you can do that too!
How can I buy the printed version with crypto?
Unfortunately I haven’t found a way for you to buy it with crypto directly. What you can do is buy Amazon gift cards with crypto and use them to buy the book from Amazon. I’ve used Keys4Coins and Coinsbee, but there are many other alternatives. Purse.io is another service I’ve used before.
What about DRM?
I hate DRM.
Who made the amazing cover?
Brad Lark, blark@blark.com
Can I get the cover as a poster?
Unfortunately, not now. If there’s demand for it I might look into it.
Can I get the cover as a background?

Yes! Check these out:

If they don’t fit, feel free to crop and resize however you want.

How did you create the book?
The book is self-published and I plan to write a series of on my blog detailing the process.
Who are you?
See the chapter About me, the author.
What if I find an error in the book?
One of the benefits of an open-source book is that you can open an issue or send me a pull request on GitHub. You can also contact me at contact@whycryptocurrencies.com.
What if I have any other questions?
Just send me an email: contact@whycryptocurrencies.com