Programming Bitcoin from Scratch: A Python Guide by Jimmy Song (PDF)

Programming Bitcoin by Jimmy Song: A Review

If you are interested in learning how to program Bitcoin from scratch, you might have come across a book called Programming Bitcoin by Jimmy Song. This book claims to teach you the basics of Bitcoin technology and how to code a Bitcoin library in Python. But is this book worth your time and money? In this article, we will review Programming Bitcoin by Jimmy Song and help you decide if this book is right for you.

What is Programming Bitcoin?

Programming Bitcoin is a book written by Jimmy Song, a Bitcoin developer and educator. The book was published by O'Reilly Media in February 2019 and has received positive feedback from many readers and reviewers. The book aims to teach Python programmers and developers how to program a Bitcoin library from scratch, covering topics such as math, cryptography, transactions, blocks, network messages, simplified payment verification, segwit, and lightning network. The book also includes exercises and code examples for each chapter, as well as a GitHub repository with the source code for the book.

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Who is Jimmy Song?

Jimmy Song is a well-known figure in the Bitcoin community. He has been involved in Bitcoin since 2013 and has contributed to various open source projects such as Bitcoin Core, Armory, btcd, and bcoin. He is also a co-author of the Bitcoin Improvement Proposals (BIPs) for segwit and taproot. He is currently a partner at Blockchain Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in blockchain-related startups. He is also a founder and instructor at Programming Blockchain, a company that offers seminars and workshops on Bitcoin programming. He has a blog, a podcast, and a YouTube channel where he shares his insights and opinions on Bitcoin and related topics.

Why should you read Programming Bitcoin?

If you are curious about how Bitcoin works under the hood and want to learn how to code your own Bitcoin applications, Programming Bitcoin might be a good choice for you. The book assumes that you have some basic knowledge of Python and programming concepts, but does not require any prior experience with Bitcoin or cryptography. The book explains the concepts and techniques behind Bitcoin in a clear and concise manner, using diagrams, illustrations, and code snippets. The book also challenges you to apply what you learn by doing exercises and building a Bitcoin library from scratch. By reading this book, you will gain a deeper understanding of the design and logic of Bitcoin, as well as the skills and confidence to create your own Bitcoin projects.

Programming Bitcoin: The Content

Programming Bitcoin consists of 14 chapters, each covering a different aspect of Bitcoin technology. Here is a brief overview of each chapter:

Chapter 1: Math

This chapter introduces some basic math concepts that are essential for understanding Bitcoin, such as binary numbers, hexadecimal numbers, base conversion, modular arithmetic, exponentiation, logarithms, and big integers. You will learn how to use Python to perform these operations and how they relate to Bitcoin.

Chapter 2: Elliptic Curve Cryptography

This chapter explains what elliptic curves are and why they are important for cryptography. You will learn how to define an elliptic curve, how to perform addition and scalar multiplication on an elliptic curve, and how to use the secp256k1 curve that Bitcoin uses. You will also learn how to generate public and private keys using elliptic curve cryptography.

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Chapter 3: Finite Fields

This chapter introduces the concept of finite fields, which are sets of numbers that have a finite number of elements and obey certain rules. You will learn how to define a finite field, how to perform arithmetic operations on a finite field, and how to use the finite field Fp that Bitcoin uses. You will also learn how to represent points on an elliptic curve as elements of a finite field.

Chapter 4: Elliptic Curve Cryptography in Practice

This chapter shows you how to use elliptic curve cryptography in practice, such as how to sign and verify messages using digital signatures, how to compress and decompress public keys, how to encode and decode keys and signatures using base58 and base58check, and how to derive child keys using hierarchical deterministic wallets. You will also learn how to use the Python library ecdsa to perform elliptic curve cryptography operations.

Chapter 5: Transactions

This chapter explains what transactions are and how they work in Bitcoin. You will learn how to create, parse, serialize, and deserialize transactions, how to use inputs and outputs, how to calculate transaction fees, how to lock and unlock scripts, how to use pay-to-public-key-hash (P2PKH) and pay-to-script-hash (P2SH) addresses, and how to broadcast transactions to the network.

Chapter 6: Script

This chapter introduces the scripting language that Bitcoin uses to specify the conditions for spending outputs. You will learn how to write, read, execute, and debug scripts, how to use opcodes, stack operations, flow control, and arithmetic operations, and how to use standard scripts such as multisig, timelock, hashlock, and nLocktime.

Chapter 7: Blocks

This chapter explains what blocks are and how they work in Bitcoin. You will learn how to create, parse, serialize, and deserialize blocks, how to use headers, merkle trees, and merkle proofs, how to validate blocks and transactions, how to calculate block hashes and difficulty, and how to mine blocks using proof-of-work.

Chapter 8: Network Messages

This chapter describes the network protocol that Bitcoin uses to communicate with other nodes. You will learn how to create, parse, serialize, and deserialize network messages, how to use message types such as version, verack, ping, pong, getaddr, addr, inv, getdata, tx, block, and reject, and how to use the Python library socket to send and receive network messages.

Chapter 9: Simplified Payment Verification (SPV) Nodes

This chapter explains what simplified payment verification (SPV) nodes are and how they work in Bitcoin. You will learn how to create and run an SPV node, how to use bloom filters to request relevant transactions, how to use merkle proofs to verify transactions, and how to use headers-only mode to sync with the network.

Chapter 10: Bloom Filters

This chapter dives deeper into the concept of bloom filters, which are data structures that allow SPV nodes to request transactions that match certain criteria. You will learn how to create, parse, serialize, and deserialize bloom filters, how to use hash functions and bit arrays, how to calculate false positive rates and optimal parameters, and how to use the Python library bitarray to manipulate bloom filters.

Chapter 11: Segwit

This chapter introduces the concept of segwit, which is a protocol upgrade that separates the signature data from the transaction data. You will learn how segwit works, why it was implemented, what benefits it brings, and what challenges it faces. You will also learn how to use segwit addresses, scripts, transactions, blocks, and network messages.

Chapter 12: Lightning Network

This chapter introduces the concept of lightning network, which is a layer-2 solution that enables fast and cheap off-chain transactions. You will learn how lightning network works, what problems it solves, what trade-offs it involves, and what features it offers. You will also learn how to use payment channels, routing nodes, invoices, payments, and network messages.

Programming Bitcoin: The Pros and Cons

Programming Bitcoin is a well-written and well-structured book that covers a lot of ground in a relatively short amount of pages. However, like any book, it also has some drawbacks and limitations. Here are some of the pros and cons of Programming Bitcoin:

The Pros

• The book is clear and concise. The author uses simple language and avoids unnecessary jargon. The book also uses diagrams, illustrations, and code snippets to explain the concepts and techniques behind Bitcoin.

• The book is practical and hands-on. The author challenges you to apply what you learn by doing exercises and building a Bitcoin library from scratch. The book also provides you with the source code for the book and a GitHub repository where you can find solutions and additional resources.

• The book is comprehensive and up-to-date. The author covers a wide range of topics, from the basics of math and cryptography to the advanced features of segwit and lightning network. The book also reflects the current state of Bitcoin technology and protocol as of 2019.

The Cons

• The book is not for beginners. The book assumes that you have some basic knowledge of Python and programming concepts, but does not teach you how to program in Python or how to use Python tools and libraries. The book also does not explain the basics of Bitcoin or cryptocurrency, such as what is a blockchain, what is a wallet, or what is a node. You will need to have some prior background or do some extra research to fully understand the book.

• The book is not for experts. The book focuses on teaching you how to program Bitcoin from scratch, but does not go into much depth or detail on the theory or the implementation of Bitcoin. The book also does not cover some of the more advanced or specialized topics, such as consensus algorithms, privacy techniques, or alternative cryptocurrencies. You will need to look for other sources or books if you want to learn more about these topics.

• The book is not for everyone. The book is written in a conversational and informal style, which some readers might find engaging and entertaining, but others might find annoying or distracting. The book also uses Python as the programming language, which some readers might prefer and enjoy, but others might dislike or struggle with. You will need to have a certain level of interest and comfort with the style and the language of the book to appreciate it.

Programming Bitcoin: The Verdict

Programming Bitcoin by Jimmy Song is a great book for Python programmers and developers who want to learn how to program Bitcoin from scratch. The book is clear, concise, practical, comprehensive, and up-to-date. However, the book is not for beginners, experts, or everyone. The book requires some prior knowledge of Python and programming concepts, does not go into much depth or detail on the theory or the implementation of Bitcoin, and uses a conversational and informal style and Python as the programming language. Therefore, you will need to consider your own level of experience, interest, and preference before deciding if this book is right for you.

Conclusion

In this article, we have reviewed Programming Bitcoin by Jimmy Song, a book that teaches you how to program Bitcoin from scratch using Python. We have discussed what the book is about, who the author is, why you should read it, what content it covers, what pros and cons it has, and what verdict we have reached. We hope that this article has helped you decide if this book is worth your time and money.

FAQs

• Q: How can I get a copy of Programming Bitcoin by Jimmy Song?

• A: You can buy a physical or digital copy of the book from various online platforms such as Amazon, O'Reilly Media, or Google Play Books. You can also download a PDF version of the book for free from .

• Q: How can I contact Jimmy Song or follow his work?

• A: You can visit his website at , where you can find his blog, podcast, YouTube channel, courses, books, and social media accounts.

• Q: What are some other books that teach Bitcoin programming?

• A: Some other books that teach Bitcoin programming are Mastering Bitcoin by Andreas Antonopoulos, Grokking Bitcoin by Kalle Rosenbaum, Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies by Arvind Narayanan, Joseph Bonneau, Edward Felten, Andrew Miller, and Steven Goldfeder, and Programming Blockchain by Jimmy Song.

• Q: What are some other resources that can help me learn Bitcoin programming?

• A: Some other resources that can help you learn Bitcoin programming are .

• Q: What are some other topics that I can learn about Bitcoin?

• A: Some other topics that you can learn about Bitcoin are the history and philosophy of Bitcoin, the economics and game theory of Bitcoin, the security and privacy of Bitcoin, the scalability and innovation of Bitcoin, and the social and political implications of Bitcoin.

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