The Book Of Satoshi: The Collected Writings of Bitcoin Creator Satoshi Nakamoto
by: Phil Champagne (0)
Have you, like the rest of the world, speculated as to the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, anonymous creator of Bitcoin?
The worldâs first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin went online in 2009 and has since revolutionized our concepts of currency and money. Not supported by any government or central bank, completely electronic, Bitcoin is a virtual currency based on advanced cryptographic systems.
Like the currency he created, the identity of Bitcoinâs creator Satoshi Nakamoto is virtual, existing only online. The Nakamoto persona, which may represent an individual or a group, exists only in the online publications that introduced and explained Bitcoin during its earliest days. Here, collected and professionally published for the first time are the essential writings that detail Bitcoinâs creation.
Included are
- Satoshi Nakamoto Emails and Posts on Computer Forums Presented in Chronological Order
- Bitcoin Fundamentals Presented in Laymanâs Terms
- Bitcoinâs Potential and Profound Economic Implications
- The Seminal Paper Which Started It All
The Book of Satoshi provides a convenient way to parse through what Bitcoinâs creator wrote over the span of the two years that constituted his âpublic life" before he disappeared from the Internet ... at least under the name Satoshi Nakamoto. Beginning on November 1st 2009 with the publication of the seminal paper describing Bitcoin, this public life ends at about the time PC World speculated as to a possible link between Bitcoin and WikiLeaks, the infamous website that publishes leaked classified materials. Was there a connection? You be the judge.
Nakamotoâs true identity may never be known. Therefore the writings reproduced here are probably all the world will ever hear from him concerning Bitcoinâs creation, workings, and theoretical basis. Want to learn more about Bitcoin? Go directly to the sourceâthe writings of the creator himself, Satoshi Nakamoto!
The Reviews
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Itâs a bit of a strange read in that itâs just a compilation of forum posts and emails, but valuable in understanding the early days of Bitcoin. Itâs really cool to see Satoshiâs early thoughts on bitcoin and how much of it has happened by now. Example- he predicted mobile bitcoin payments via QR code in 2010!
The Book Of Satoshi is the best book on Bitcoin I have read. It is fascinating glimpse into the thought put into the creation and evolution of Bitcoin.
This was an enjoyable look through the forum posts, responses, and the white paper for Bitcoin by Satoshi Nakamoto, whoever they may be. It shows that Satoshi thought of so much beforehand, and that the idea of the blockchain is here to stay and will dominate every facet of every industry. You donât need to understand much math or coding, as those specific parts are maybe 1% of the book and not essential to getting the gist of it.
Before reading this I thought it was either: a) a hagiography of Satoshi, b) a load of public domain content slapped in a hastily self-published book with the idea of making a quick buck, c) both. Of course it does mainly contain public domain writings about bitcoin but the author has added significant value by sorting through them and adding his own editorial comment and introductory paragraphs.I had a few minor quibbles with the intro but anyone reading this book wouldn't use it as an intro to bitcoin. It gives a fascintating and surprisingly readable background to the genesis of bitcoin, spread over 70 or so short chapters. For me the fact that things are discussed in a to and fro correspondence between Satoshi and others really helped to form a picture of the development of the system and gave enough time for things to sink in as I read.Buying this book was a highly price-sensitive decision for me, knowing that this is mostly free content, but I think the author priced the paperback at exactly the right level (~15 bucks in Dec '14), hence it's well worth five stars. Quality of print and layout is very good for a self-published book (I assume that's what it is anyway).What else would I have wanted? Larger glossary and more links to insightful papers about particular aspects raised in the book - there were some but I think the author might have gone a little further. Minor points though - great book that spans technology/culture/contemporary history.
The words of Satoshi alone are more then enough to convince anyone who hates governments why we need bitcoin and a decentralized world. Highly recommend to someone just starting in crypto.
The book itself is 5/5 but some of the pages are stuck together
If you are looking to research or review everything satoshi put on the web, then this book is for you. Great background provided by Phil Champagne also to put everything into perspective.
