Getting Started with Bitcoin

I had a conversation today with someone who was interested in Bitcoin, but didn’t know much about it yet. I started thinking of resources to help get him started and realized that there is a lot of info on the internet and in my past articles. Many times it is good to constrain the amount of options with some opinions. Here is my list from what I know so far in an attempt to not overwhelm you.

There are many rabbit holes and aspects connected to Bitcoin, so it will take some time, but it’s worth the effort.

Why Bitcoin Matters?

Get Started with Michael Saylor - Keynote Bitcoin 2024

Many more interviews, courses, resources and info at Bitcoin <code>hope</code> site .

Inflation is bad and the Bible speaks against it

For fun: Exit Fiat, Enter Bitcoin - A Matrix Meme

Learn More

Go through 21 Days of Bitcoin

Watch Bitcoin University videos.

Curated Resources from Swan

Read my articles , especially check out the Bible and Bitcoin connections.

Articles from Bitcoin Magazine

What is Layer 2 compared to the Base Layer?

Watch Lightning Network

Watch Liquid and Lightning

Layer 2 Wallets

• Aqua Wallet
• Strike

Books:

The Bitcoin Standard

Broken Money

How?

Buy

Get off 0

Daily Cost Average with Swan . Scenario calculator

River and Strike also have options for buying.

Bitcoin IRA . There are many choices, I found this one.

Advanced (get to this later)

Hold your own Keys

“Not Your Keys, Not Your Coins”. Whoever manages the keys of your wallet, they own your coins (essential). I learned this lesson from the Celsius Bankruptcy.

How to do this with ColdCard and Sparrow Tutorial .

Get a steel plate, stamp your keys on it and store it somewhere secure.

As you get more Bitcoin and the value goes up, look into a multi-signature setup for better security. Unchained has a solution

Host your own, more advanced

Run a Bitcoin Node to validate transactions and help secure the network. Connect to that from your wallet. You can run this on a regular laptop/PC that has at least 700GB (the size grows every 10 minutes) or run StartOS on your home network.

Privacy

Everything on the blockchain can be traced. If you buy you’ll have to enter your information with that company (in most cases), which is “Know your Customer” (KYC) laws. No one can stop you from sending and receiving transactions, but it won’t be private.

Watch Bitcoin Privacy &amp; Sovereignty Tools - Pacific Bitcoin 2023 .

If you are really concerned about this people are working on this with CoinJoin and Mixing, the Liquid Network and Cashu (which is connected to fedimint and very new software and ideas as of 2024). Bisq v2 is a way to buy peer to peer and avoid KYC.

Spending and Taxes

We don’t sell our Bitcoin. Right? First think longer term before selling or spending your Bitcoin. Historically, if you held Bitcoin for more than 4 years you are profitable ( https://casebitcoin.com/charts) .

You could buy gift cards on Bitrefill . You could send it to an exchange like Coinbase and sell it there (watch out for fees). Better yet, find someone who will sell you something you need for Bitcoin.

Be very careful putting in your address and verify it matches before signing and sending.

Never put in your private keys online.

Is there utility or value to Bitcoin?

Yes, there is a lot according to Alex Gladstein ’s presentation.

What about Price?

If you do look at the price and volatility, zoom out on the charts and use logarthmic scaling. There will only be 21 million Bitcoins (that can be broken down into 100,000,000 sats per Bitcoin (similar to dollars breaking down into cents)) and demand is growing.

https://charts.bitbo.io/long-term-power-law/

Keep it Simple

Swan DCA to your Cold Card Wallet. Keep your key safe with a steel plate and protect your Cold Card device. Let it sit and only check it every couple months or years.

You’ll have a lot less stress trying to find the next 100x coin or stock. It feels like just having a 401k at work and not worrying about it, you just don’t get the company match (unless you are very lucky). Another way to get exposure is through the many Bitcoin ETFs, if you have access, but you don’t have control of the Bitcoin.

I hope this helps you get started.