lightning-network-guide

An Easy Guide To Understand Lightning Network Better

For carrying out Bitcoin transactions efficiently, a Lightning Network is applied on bitcoin that employs micropayments channels to increase the blockchain capability of this crypto. This is second layer technology. Transactions that take place through this network are less costly, faster, and more readily confirmed compared to those that are carried out directly on the BTC blockchain. 

By taking the transactions far from the original blockchain and making them off-chain, this network was formulated for the purpose of de-congesting the Bitcoin blockchain and decrease the attached transaction fee. There are several Lightning Network wallets that include BLW, Eclair, Wallet of Satoshi, Breez, etc. The Network can also be employed to carry out other types of off-chain transactions that require exchange between digital currencies. The Lightning Network exchange includes OKCoin, Bitstamp, and Bitfinex

Understanding The Lightning Network

The concept of the Network was primarily proposed by Thaddeus Dryja and Joseph Poon in 2015 and has been developing since that time. The issue was that this network was built to solve the slow transaction time. The Lightning Network token is Lightning Bitcoin (LBTC). 

If it wishes to attain its potential of becoming a platform for regular transactions, then Bitcoin will require to reach tens or hundreds of thousands of transactions every second which is similar to electronic payment networks or credit cards. Due to the characteristics of being decentralized that needs consensus from every node inside its network, BTC is laden with such issues in its present state. The Lightning Network price is $1.89. 

This network aimed to resolve the increasing issue of building a second layer on the main blockchain of Bitcoin. That second layer has various payment channels among Bitcoin users or parties. By using those channels these parties can receive and make payments from each other. 

The processing of these transactions is different when compared to standard transactions that take place on the blockchain of Bitcoin. They are updated only on the main blockchain when a channel is open or closed by 2 parties. 

Among these 2 actions, the parties can alter funds among themselves without any end and also without informing the original block about their activity. This process rapidly speeds up the transaction speed as all transactions are not needed to be permitted by all nodes within a blockchain. Individual channels of payments among varied parties come together to create a network of lightning nodes that can navigate the transactions. The interconnections among the different channels of payments result in a Lightning Network. 

Are There Fees for Using Lightning Network? 

Yes, there is a Lightning Network fee on transactions that are attached to the Network. They are a mix of the routing charges for routing payments data among the lightning nodes and the transaction fees of Bitcoin for the channels to open and close. 

In 2019 November, scientists at two universities in Institute for Computer Science and Control and in Hungary published a report that questioned the potential of the operators of Lightning Networks to continue to process the transactions without radically scaling the fees. The authors in their abstract assert that, 

“Participation is economically irrational for the majority of the large routing nodes who currently hold the network together. Either traffic or transaction fees must increase by orders of magnitude to make payment routing economically viable.”

Issues With This Advanced Network

The most obvious issue with this network is that it can lead to a depiction of the “hub and spoke” model that portrays the financial system of the present day. In the present model, financial institutions and banks are the main intermediaries via which all the transactions happen. 

By having more open connections with others, these lightning nodes for significant businesses may become centralized nodes or similar hubs in the network. A failure among one such hub can easily crash an important portion of the network. 

Conclusion

The off-chain solutions and the Lightning Network are a crucial part of the scalability of the network and are the key to the transformation of Bitcoin into a real digital currency that can be employed in all types of regular purchases. This article aimed to summarize the concept of this network and its impact on the Bitcoin blockchain. 


Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is Lightning Network?

The concept was primarily proposed by Thaddeus Dryja and Joseph Poon in 2015 and has been developing since that time. The issue was that this network was built to solve the slow transaction time. The Lightning Network coin is Lightning Bitcoin (LBTC).

2. Is Lightning Network Bitcoin?

For carrying out Bitcoin transactions efficiently, the network is applied on bitcoin that employs micropayments channels to increase the blockchain capability of this crypto.

3. Why is there a Lightning Network?

The Lightning Network is the second layer on the top of the Bitcoin blockchain built to allow cheaper and faster transactions by allowing user-generated platforms for receiving and sending payments.

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