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Alyssa Hertig

Alyssa Hertig

Alyssa Hertig is a programmer and journalist specializing in Bitcoin and the Lightning Network. Over the years, her work has also appeared in VICE, CoinDesk, Mic, and Reason. She holds less than 1 BTC.

Stories by Alyssa Hertig

  • Can the Bitcoin Lightning Network Disrupt Media Monetization?

    What if every time you "react" to a post with a laughing or fire emoji, you could sweeten the pot by attaching a tiny amount of Bitcoin for the content creator? That’s the kind of thing that’s possible with a range of new Lightning monetization tools unveiled today by Lightning company Mash and popular bitcoin media company Tales From the Crypt (TFTC). The company has created a plugin for content creators to accept tips and donations in Bitcoin’s Lightning, their goal is to chip away at media re...

    NewsBusiness
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Compute Anything on Bitcoin? What You Need to Know About BitVM

    Bitcoin took a leap this week. Bitcoin developer Robin Linus released a paper on Tuesday called "BitVM: Compute Anything on Bitcoin," which proposes a way to take advantage of more complicated smart contracts on Bitcoin than have been possible in the past. Smart contracts are essential computer code that runs applications on blockchain networks. Pseudonymous developer Super Testnet boldly proclaimed that "this is probably the most exciting discovery in the history of Bitcoin script." This is pr...

    NewsCoins
    4 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • This Update Could Change Bitcoin Development Forever

    "Libbitcoinkernel" is a far-reaching, in-progress face-lift of Bitcoin's code that's been flying under the radar, but is likely to make it easier for developers to experiment with changes to Bitcoin. The goal of the ambitious project is to untangle Bitcoin Core's code—the main software underlying Bitcoin—so that much of the "security-critical" code is sliced out from the rest of it. By doing so, it could unclog the path to new Bitcoin improvements. Untangling this code makes developers’ lives ea...

    Deep DivesLong Reads
    5 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Amboss Wants to Solve the Bitcoin Lightning Network Liquidity Problem

    The Lightning Network is a faster and cheaper form of Bitcoin, but using it without a custodian can be a nightmare, requiring businesses accepting Lightning payments to know much more about the inner workings of Lightning “liquidity” than they'd like. In super simple terms, businesses need liquidity to send and receive payments on the Lightning Network. But getting it in a hurry can be tricky to pull off. Lightning Network data provider Amboss has launched a new subscription service “Hydro” to a...

    NewsBusiness
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • Image: Shutterstock

    Half of the People in Turkey Now Own Crypto: Report

    Crypto adoption is on the rise in Turkey, a country in the throes of high inflation, according to a research survey conducted by KuCoin. Over the last year and a half, adoption has increased from 40 percent to 52 percent of the Turkish population. KuCoin—the fifth largest crypto exchange in the world—collected this data based on the survey responses of 500 people, which they analyzed in their latest "Understanding Crypto Users" report. "Per our findings in Turkey and other previous country repor...

    NewsCoins
    2 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • No Internet? You Could Still Use Bitcoin on the Lightning Network

    No access to the internet? In addition to not being able to browse tweets or the latest heart-melting cat eating corn on the cob video, lack of a connection means users can't make Bitcoin payments. Researchers have long been exploring how to get around this problem in the case of natural disasters or in areas of the world where internet access is spottier. Wireless computer researcher Ahmet Kurt pointed to the 2017 hurricane in Florida as an example. "There was a huge power outage. People were d...

    NewsCoins
    4 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Tor Network Is Now Using Bitcoin-Like Security to Guard Against Attacks

    Since mid-2022, the privacy preserving Tor network has been plagued by denial of service attacks, making the network sluggish and—at times downright impossible to use. In its latest software release,Tor is aiming to "defend" against these attacks with proof of work, the same cryptographic mechanism that underpins and secures Bitcoin. Using proof of work in some manner to prevent attacks has been an idea in the Tor community for many years. Now it’s finally in place. Malicious Tor Network Servers...

    NewsBusiness
    2 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Bitcoin IRL: Here Are All the Real-Life Tributes to Satoshi Nakamoto's Invention

    Because of Bitcoin’s nebulous, digital nature, people often find it difficult to grasp what it is, how it works, and why people use it as a store of value and currency—rather than just accept the regular money most people use. Artists over the years have explored ways of showing the significance of its ones and zeros in a physical form. Some of the tributes have been permanent and others were temporary. Let’s take a look at these various monuments, made by artists and hobbyists from around the w...

  • Meet Nodeless, The Non-KYC Bitcoin Lightning Processor Jack Dorsey Tweeted About

    Late last week, Jack Dorsey tweeted a link to Nodeless —and nothing else. Although cryptic, the mention seemed like a stamp of approval for the platform from one of Bitcoin’s most famous backers, sparking buzzy excitement as well as some debate over the merits of the Lightning payment processor. https://t.co/LZmNol22Ho — jack (@jack) June 22, 2023 What is Nodeless, exactly? In short, merchants can add the tool to their website to accept Bitcoin payments more easily. Specifically, it helps with...

    NewsCoins
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • Image: Shutterstock

    Bitcoin Startup Casa Expands Beyond BTC With Ethereum Vaults

    No longer a Bitcoin-only company, today Bitcoin wallet provider Casa released Ethereum vaults, aimed at giving ETH holders a more secure way of take control of their funds. As the common refrain in crypto goes, "Not your keys, not your coins." Casa tries to make it easier and more secure for users to store their own funds via self-custody, rather than trust a third-party exchange with their funds. Now they’re allowing users to store Ethereum too, partly because so many Bitcoin owners also own ET...

    NewsCoins
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • Jack Dorsey talks Bitcoin in Miami. Image: Bitcoin 2021

    Jack Dorsey Pledges $5M to Help Bitcoin Core Developers

    In yet another donation aimed at fueling the Bitcoin ecosystem, Jack Dorsey is doling out $5 million to Brink, a crucial funder of open source developers in the Bitcoin space. The $5 million will be given to Brink over the course of five years—$1 million per year. The funds will be donated through his initiative Start Small, a charity vehicle the tech mogul started in 2020, initially dedicated to relief amid the COVID-19 crisis. Brink grants make it possible for core developers supporting the wo...

    NewsBusiness
    2 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • You Can Earn Bitcoin for Using This Twitter Alternative

    Lightning company Zebedee is launching a new version of its ZBD app—a gaming-centric Bitcoin wallet—that gives users access to a new social platform with a twist: It gives its users the opportunity to earn a little Bitcoin. Now in alpha, users can sign up for a waitlist for early access to the new ZBD app, which was created by Zebedee's open-source wing NBD. The app is powered by Nostr, a decentralized protocol for building apps that's on the rise to the tune of more than two million users. Its...

    NewsBusiness
    2 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • This Bitcoin Tool Could Change the Way Businesses Use Lighting Network

    Lightning data provider Amboss wants to draw more enterprises to Bitcoin's Lightning, hopefully spurring adoption of the speedy and cheaper protocol, with the introduction of the so-called LINER (Lightning Index Rate) index. The index provides businesses more insight into how much it costs to set up Lightning accounts on an annualized basis, as well as the yield businesses can earn by providing liquidity to the Lightning Network. With this public information they can better compare these numbers...

    NewsBusiness
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Umbrel CEO Says DIY Bitcoin Node Blocks Corporations From Spying on Us

    Bitcoin node provider Umbrel debuted its Umbrel Home, hardware that bundles together a Bitcoin node and tools for a home server, to give users more control of their finances and data. Umbrel, which previously focused on providing users with the umbrelOS software for self-hosting data, is now breaking into hardware. Usually users need to set up a dedicated computer or Raspberry Pi to use for a Bitcoin node or home server. Then they need to do all the prep work of downloading all the required infr...

    NewsBusiness
    2 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • Image: Flickr/TED Conference

    Jack Dorsey Leads $6 Million Raise for Bitcoin Payments Company Azteco

    Block co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey—also co-founder and former CEO of Twitter—led a $6 million seed funding round for Bitcoin payments firm Azteco, the startup announced today. Azteco offers a unique way to buy Bitcoin worldwide with a focus on making it easier for unbanked populations to use the digital money. Users either buy an Azteco voucher online or at a local, brick-and-mortar store, which they can then redeem for Bitcoin. The model works similar to buying a gift card or a mobile phone t...

    NewsBusiness
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Bitcoin Transaction Fees Surpass Block Rewards for the First Time Since 2017

    Amid Bitcoin’s recent spike in transaction fees, block number 788695 marks a special milestone for miners: For the first time since 2017, the transaction fees in a single block surpassed the block rewards doled out to miners. Transaction fees in the block clocked in at 6.7 Bitcoin, beating the block subsidy of 6.25 Bitcoin. Though this spike in fees has thrown a curveball to users, this block shows how it's benefitting Bitcoin miners, the global network of volunteers that run expensive, speciali...

    NewsCoins
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig

  • Fedi Raises $17M in a Bid to 'Accelerate the Adoption of Bitcoin and Lightning'

    Tech startup Fedi has raised $17 million in an effort to make Bitcoin easier for newbies to use and grasp through the use of private and scalable "federations." "Fedi, as a company, aims to empower communities everywhere by accelerating the adoption of technologies like Bitcoin and Lightning—and rolling out Fedimint federations to communities and companies worldwide is how we intend to do it," Fedi CEO and co-founder Obi Nwosu told Decrypt. Fedimint federations are a cryptographic Bitcoin tool t...

    NewsBusiness
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • The Lightning Network helps scale payments on the Bitcoin blockchain. Image: Shutterstock

    Lightning Labs Aims to Help 'Bring Bitcoin to Billions' With Latest Upgrade

    The team at Bitcoin tech startup Lightning Labs, one of the main developers of Bitcoin's speedy and scalable Lightning Network, released an update to its Litd node management tool designed to make Bitcoin and Lightning easier to use. Users need to run a Lightning “node” to send and receive payments on the network non-custodially, meaning without the assistance of a third party, a feat that isn’t easy for users who aren’t tech-savvy or don’t want to spend hours learning the ins and outs of the pr...

    NewsTechnology
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • How private are your Bitcoin transactions? Image: Shutterstock

    What You Need to Know About the Bitcoin 'Privacy War'

    If you've been anywhere near Twitter recently you might have noticed Bitcoiners furiously debating Bitcoin privacy ins and outs. This feud has colloquially become known as the Bitcoin "privacy war." Bitcoin isn't private by default. Because Bitcoin's transaction history is open for the world to see, users need to take the time to learn and use certain tools and wallets, if they want to fully privatize their Bitcoin. Two of the most popular wallets out there today that make it easy for users to s...

    NewsTechnology
    6 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
  • MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor with Bitcoin laser eyes. Image: Michael Saylor/Twitter

    How to Copy Michael Saylor and Create Your Own Bitcoin Lightning Email Address

    Employees of business software company MicroStrategy can now receive Bitcoin payments to their corporate email addresses, MicroStrategy co-founder and executive chairman Michael Saylor revealed during the Cafe Bitcoin Twitter Spaces on Monday. It might sound like a magical feat, but anyone can set one up. We'll show you how. The Lightning Network, Bitcoin's speedier and more scalable cousin, fixes Bitcoin's scalability problems. Traditionally, when someone wants to receive a Lightning payment, t...

    NewsTechnology
    3 min read
    Alyssa Hertig
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