Hey there, it’s your favorite meme frog, Pepe, here to break down the juicy details of Siacoin (SC)! Ready to dive into the world of decentralized storage? Let’s go!
What’s Siacoin All About?
Siacoin is like the Airbnb for your hard drive space. Imagine renting out your extra hard drive space to folks who need to store their files. Instead of trusting big tech companies like Amazon or Google, Sia lets you store data on a distributed network of computers around the globe. How cool is that?
How Does It Work?
When you store files on Sia, they’re chopped up into tiny pieces, each encrypted for security. These pieces are scattered across different hard drives on the network. So, if you’ve got some extra storage space, you can rent it out and earn Siacoin, the platform’s native cryptocurrency, in return. As of 2020, Sia boasts a whopping 2+ petabytes of network capacity and hosts over 766 terabytes of files. That’s a lot of data!
The Brains Behind Sia
Sia was founded by David Vorick and Luke Champine back in 2013. They came up with the idea during a hackathon at MIT. By 2014, they had founded Nebulous Inc. with some solid backing. Fast forward to 2015, and Sia’s public beta was launched, with the live network following shortly after. Today, Sia is supported by big names like Raptor Group and Fenbushi Capital.
How Does Siacoin Work?
Siacoin is the currency you use on the Sia network. Renters pay hosts in Siacoin to use their hard drive space. The magic happens through smart contracts called “file contracts,” which lay out the terms of the storage deal. These contracts typically last 90 days and are automatically enforced by the network.
To ensure hosts are actually storing the data, they must provide storage proofs. If they fail to do so, they don’t get paid. This setup ensures that your data is safe and sound, even if it’s spread across multiple hosts.
Siafunds – What’s That?
Besides Siacoin, Sia has another token called Siafunds. These bad boys are designed to incentivize more users to join the network. Holders of Siafunds get a 3.9% cut of each completed contract’s fees, including renter fees and host collateral. There will only ever be 10,000 Siafunds, making them pretty rare. Most of these are still held by Nebulous, but some have been sold to help fund the network’s development.
Why Use Siacoin?
Siacoin is valuable because it’s the lifeblood of the Sia network. Renters need it to pay for storage, and hosts earn it by providing storage space. Miners also play a role, earning Siacoin by creating new blocks on the network. As of 2020, miners earn about 40,511 SC (or around $40) per block.
But competition is fierce! Siacoin goes up against other decentralized storage projects like Filecoin, Storj, and MaidSafe. Each has its own technical quirks and benefits.
The Sia Blockchain
The Sia blockchain is similar to Bitcoin’s but tweaked for storage. Your files are encrypted and split into 30 pieces, ensuring no single point of failure. Even if 20 out of 30 hosts go offline, you can still access your data thanks to a nifty feature called erasure coding.
Renters are protected from malicious hosts by requiring storage proofs. This keeps everyone honest and ensures your data is always available when you need it.
Why Should You Care?
If you’re all about keeping control over your data and not letting big corporations or governments snoop around, Sia is a great option. It’s private, secure, and gives you peace of mind. Plus, you get to be part of a growing network that’s shaking up the cloud storage industry.
So there you have it, folks! Siacoin is all about decentralized, secure, and private storage powered by a global network of computers. Ready to join the revolution? Let’s go!
Links:
https://sia.tech/
https://sia.tech/discord
https://github.com/SiaFoundation