What is Feathercoin?
Feathercoin is a decentralized cryptocurrency and open-source blockchain that was forked off the Litecoin protocol in 2013. Note that the Litecoin protocol had earlier on been forked from the Bitcoin core.
The cryptocurrency network is based on the proof of work (PoW) NeoScyrypt algorithm that was aimed at making sending of value more reliable, secure and convenient.
The Feathercoin network was created by a programmer referred to as Peter Bushnell who wanted to see things taking a different course in the blockchain niche. His commitment to the network saw him leave a fulltime job as the Head of IT at Brasenose College of Oxford University. Though he left the Feathercoin network for some time, his return in 2017 has brought new vigor that could help to make Feathercoin the next big thing in the crypto industry.
The Feathercoin (FTC) price in the markets started at $0.4 early in May 2013 before dropping to $0.08 in July the same year. By December 2013, the price had risen to $0.8 before dropping to $0.03 in August 2014. Then, it remained within the same range until April 2017 when the price started growing significantly and reached $0.5 in January 2018.
By the third quarter of 2018, the price of Feathercoin was $0.04 with a market capitalization of $10.4 million.
What is the problem that Feathercoin Solves?
After Bitcoin was launched in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto, it did not take long before major shortcomings started emerging. As a payment network, Feathercoin did not just target improving the already existing blockchain networks.
Rather, it also focused on addressing the challenges that people faced when using the conventional financial services such as credit cards and banks. Here are some of the issues that Feathercoin target to address.
- The high cost of sending value across the globe
Many people sending value across the world using the banking systems have complained of high transaction charges. The cost arises from the fact that the conventional financial services are designed as for-profit-organizations.
For those who use credit cards, the respective companies have a lot of restrictions and unnecessary penalties.
While previous networks such as Bitcoin had addressed these issues, the Feathercoin team believed that there was a great room for more improvement.
- Centralized mining
After the debut of the blockchain technology in 2009, one of the most notable developments was the discovery of advanced mining equipment especially Application-specific integrated circuit (ASICs) miners.
The miners generate very high hashing power to increase the rewards to the owner. However, the miners are very expensive which implies that only the rich people can afford them.
Besides, they also require a lot of power to run. This has created a situation where only a few people can mine and own coins especially those using the proof of work algorithm.
Feathercoin wants to restore the mining power and cryptocurrencies to the community. This was the original vision of Satoshi Nakamoto.
- Poor adoption of the blockchain technology
While the growth of blockchain industry has been impressive, the adoption by the community has been wanting. Indeed, most of the people coming to the blockchain networks target buying the native tokens for speculation purpose. Feathercoin wanted to change this narrative by increasing the adoption by having applications.
- Poor scalability
While the benefits of the blockchain technology such as low transaction costs are evident in most networks, the problem of scalability has been threatening to slow down the technology adoption.
When Feathercoin was created in 2013, the main competitors were Litecoin and Bitcoin. Bitcoin can only handle seven transactions every second and will require 60 minutes to confirm them.
Though Litecoin is faster than Bitcoin, it can only handle 56 transactions per second using Segregated witness and will require 30minutes to confirm them.
Even with the Litecoin’s improvement, the blockchain still lags behind when compared to other technologies such as Visa that can complete over 20,000 transactions every second.
Feathercoin targets to improve the scalability of the network to make the blockchain solutions more desirable especially to traders.
How does Feathercoin Solve the problem?
Though many people indicate that Feathercoin was conceived from the need to simply have another coin, the development team demonstrated the thoroughness of the system to address most of the issues experienced in the financial sector. Here are some of the solutions introduced by Feathercoin.
- Use of NeoScrypt mining algorithm.
The focus of the development team at Feathercoin to expand and experiment with new technologies made it target new applications and introduce important changes.
To address the problem of centralized mining the development team had initially opted for the Scrypt mining algorithm.
However, the team had to change to NeoScrypt that makes it unviable to mine the coins using ASICs. This implies that more people including those with GPUs and CPUs can now mine and own FTC.
- Advanced checkpointing.
In 2013, Feathercoin adopted the Advanced Checkpointing (ACP) technology to help keep the network extra secure. The technology publishes all checkpoints through a node to help maintain the network integrity. In the Bitcoin system, the checkpoints are stored in the node of the respective clients.
This means that every node is required to maintain an update on the latest block to verify the transactions correctly. If a node lacks the latest update, the platform becomes open to new vulnerabilities.
At Feathercoin, the development team created a master node that is responsible for publishing all the series of checkpoints for the clients to check. This implies that nodes can now operate as lightweight clients, run transactions more securely, and faster.
- Advanced cryptography to guarantee users of total anonymity.
For many people coming to the blockchain industry, one of the primary goals is seeking an opportunity to operate anonymously. In most banks, transactions can easily be accessed by a wide range of parties including bank management and cashiers.
Feathercoin adopted advanced encryption that ensures all the user information cannot be easily accessed. With the encryption, even miners spread on the system can only follow back to check the balance on the public address but cannot pull out the personal details.
- The Enhanced Hash Rate Compensation.
To address the serious threat of poor scalability in other networks, Feathercoin development team went for the Enhanced Hash Rate Compensation.
The technology helped to ensure that new blocks on the Feathercoin platform are added every 60 seconds. The technology was developed for the Feathercoin system and has helped to make it about ten times faster.
What makes Feathercoin better than it’s competitors?
When Feathercoin was designed in 2013, it did not bring much regarding uniqueness. It was considered to be simply another clone in the market that was fast attracting new networks. However, Feathercoin has stuck around and committed to delivering greater value to users. Here are some of the main things that make Feathercoin better than competitors.
- Feathercoin has managed to address the serious issue of blockchain scalability by using Checkpointing and Advanced Hash Rate Compensation. These technologies have made Feathercoin better than many blockchain networks out there including Bitcoin.
- Sending value on the Feathercoin platform is cheaper and faster compared to most networks. Unlike many financial organizations that charge high transaction fees to optimize profitability, Feathercoin is not owned by any single entity. The small charge levied on the Feathercoin transactions is directed at motivating the nodes. The fact that the value of FTC is still low compared to others such as Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash also helps to keep the transaction costs low.
- The Feathercoin development team is very aggressive. Though the founder left when the coin was still young, his return in 2017 has made the network to vibrate with vigor. He and the development team have vowed to bring the platform to the level of Bitcoin Core 0.13 by adding the latest versions of BarterDEX and Lightning networks. These goals, coupled with the new Feathercoin Development Foundation, have made the community believe that this could be the next Bitcoin.
- Feathercoin allows users to join and own the network. By operating as a completely decentralized network, it implies that the nodes spread in its system own the network. As a proof of work based network, users in the network can be called to vote on key issues that define the direction of the platform. If you are a miner, the network will greatly rely on you to confirm transactions and building consensus.
- The commitment to operate as a decentralized exchange has suddenly renewed interest in Feathercoin even by blockchain experts. As more governments threaten to pass punitive crypto laws, one of the strategies to keep the networks completely anonymous is adopting decentralized exchanges. At Feathercoin, the development team targets to ensure that users can trade right from their wallets without going through the risky centralized exchanges.
- The value of FTC has performed relatively well in the markets. Though the price has not grown to the levels of other top networks such as Bitcoin Cash, its progress has been impressive. The growing community and experts are of the view that the value of Feathercoin could surprise everyone with high ROI in the coming years.
How can Feathercoin be categorized?
Feathercoin is a network designed to evolve with the shifting blockchain technology. Unlike other platforms that often find it difficult to adopt changes resulting in stagnation, Feathercoin is different. Since inception, the platform has added technologies such as Advanced checkpointing, NeoScrypt mining model, and now targets to introduce BarterDEX technology.
What is Feathercoin’s vision on security?
The Feathercoin’s vision on security is to become the most secure network in the blockchain industry. Having been introduced at a time when major attacks such as the Mt. Gox hack of 2011 and Bitcoinica resulted to major losses, the development team at Feathercoin team had to craft a reliable strategy to keep the platform secure. Here are some of the technologies and features used to keep the Feathercoin system secure.
- Checkpointing is used to help protect the integrity of the network and prevent 51% attack.
- The advanced cryptography used in the platform helps to keep the user information private and away from third parties.
- The development team progressively reviews and updates the network to identify gaps and address vulnerabilities.
Examples of Feathercoin’s use cases/ applications.
When cryptocurrencies enter the market, the target is getting adopted widely and being used for direct payments. The unique design of Feathercoin has helped increase to include the following.
- FTC can be used to pay for products and services in stores that accept it. After realizing that digital coins are cheaper, faster, and more reliable when making payments, many stores are now accepting payment using cryptocurrencies. Some of the stores that accept Feathercoin include Coaex Precious Metals, I Got Spots, Countdown Zed, Wood Shot Glass, and Converted. Note that even in stores that only accept a different coin, it is still possible to buy with Feathercoin by converting to the supported coin.
- Use Feathercoin to pay taxes in jurisdictions such as Singapore and Arizona. In Singapore, the administration insists that the main role of cryptocurrencies such as NEO and Feathercoin is sending value and, therefore, can be used in making official payments. In Arizona, HB 1091 allowed citizens to pay transactions in cryptocurrencies.
- Use FTC to pay for transaction fee in the Feathercoin network and the exchanges. Like other platforms, Feathercoin requires users to pay a small transaction fee for motivating the miners spread in the network. This fee must be paid in FTC. If you opt to pair FTC with other coins such as BTC, ETH or NEO to trade in the market, the transaction fee can be paid using FTC.
- Using FTC coin for investment. For people who want to invest in the blockchain network prospecting the value of the native coins to go up, one of the high potential coins in the market is Feathercoin. The impressive performance, especially in 2017 and 2018, is being used as an indicator that the price growth could be positive in the coming years.
http://forum.feathercoin.com/topic/8523/faq-new-forum-member-most-asked-questions-try-here-first
https://feathercoin.com/merchants-who-accept-ftc/