Do you want to be anti-ASIC? What is ProgPoW?

Author: Brother Future

Author: Brother Future

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1. The concept and origin of ASIC

ASIC is Application-Specific Integrated Circuit, which is generally used to refer to integrated circuit chips designed and manufactured according to the requirements of specific users and the needs of specific electronic systems. ASIC mining machine mining started in Avalon, and carried forward the mining machine for Bitcoin independently developed by Bitmain. Through this type of mining machine, mining can be made more efficient. The S9 series mining machine is the most famous. Bitmain is also the manufacturer of mining machines with the largest market share. ASIC mining machine mining is not mining coal, but mining specific digital currency, such as Bitcoin ASIC mining machine can only mine Bitcoin. The essence of mining is also to solve the mathematical problems in the block generation of transactions, so as to obtain the block block reward.

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Currently, there are four main types of mining methods and mining machines: ASIC, FPGA, GPU, and CPU mining.

ASIC has already said, Application-Specific Integrated Circuit, a mining machine for specific mining.

FPGA- Field Programmable Gate Array is a programmable semi-custom chip. Its flexibility and programmability are its great features. It can realize the re-customization of hardware functions through software upgrades. However, the high flexibility also means that the efficiency is lower than that of ASIC, and it can be used for Scrypt computing and GPU mining coins.

GPU- Graphics Processing Unit, that is, the graphics card we usually say is mainly used for cryptocurrency mining based on the Equihash algorithm. Equihash is a graphics algorithm, so this graphics card is also a professional counterpart, and the speed is much faster. Burning graphics card operation It has also transitioned from a large-scale online game to a new era of mining.

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3. ProgPoW concept and anti-ASIC logic

ProgPoW (abbreviation for Programmatic Proof of Work) is essentially a POW mining mechanism, hoping to promote the decentralization of the mining industry by optimizing the mining algorithm of GPU mining machines. The Ethash algorithm of Ethereum has been changed, thereby reducing the computing power advantage of ASICs. As we mentioned earlier, unlike GPU graphics card mining, ASICs are highly specialized machines, specific to the mining algorithms they develop.

However, the Ethereum community is still quite opposed to the ProgPoW proposal. The reason is that ASICs are not so concentrated in ETH, and the Ethereum algorithm is relatively resistant to ASICs. What should be worried about is the centralized optimization of GPU graphics card mining. Centralization, because even for low-cost GPU mining, most of the computing power is still in the hands of mines and pools. And ProgPoW intentionally increases the optimization of specific GPU miners, which is also a risk for other GPUs. Although many enthusiasts can also participate through their own advanced graphics cards, the threshold is lower than that of ASIC, but in fact, it is easier for more enthusiasts to participate in POW mining through mining pools.

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Fourth, whether to resist ASIC or not

Future believes that the only dissed aspect of ASIC is its excellent mining performance. Due to the benefits of mining performance, there are concerns about the concentration of computing power after large-scale purchases, as well as concerns about malicious activities. At present, Bitcoin fully supports ASIC mining machines, and there is no problem of large centralization.

I personally think that if ASICs are eliminated, new GPUs with superior performance may become new ASICs, and those that should be concentrated will still be relatively concentrated in computing power. But having said that, the ultimate goal of opening a mining factory, setting up a mining pool, and buying mining machines for fans to mine is to earn rewards. If I have mastered a large proportion of computing power, I can make a lot of money by maintaining the system normally. Why should I? What about doing evil? As for decentralization, I think that the mining pool can launch a group of enough mining machine series, or a group of cloud computing power series, so that more people who love it don't need to spend so much money to buy mining machines at once, but they can share the average share in partnership. currency.

Today's ASICs will be replaced by better ASIC chips tomorrow, which inadvertently promotes the development of the chip industry, so it is not necessarily a good thing that high-performance ASIC chips are replaced. Decentralization can be achieved in more economically feasible ways. GRIN will also launch its own mining machine. The well-reputed community RVN is also constantly launching new algorithms that are resistant to ASICs. At the same time, the X16R algorithm that supports ASICs that are somewhat resistant to ASICs but not so exclusive is also supported by miners to launch RVNClassic.

Monero XMR, which has high privacy, also began to adjust the PoW algorithm (CryptoNight-R) in April 2018, hoping to limit the ASIC mining machines in the network, but there are also teams that fully recognize ASICs and form a forked chain Monero-Classic (XMC), exploring new developments. Blockstream mathematician Andrew Poelstra also said that by modifying the algorithm, it is true that ASIC mining machines can be disabled in the short term, but this resistance will eventually prove to be futile. This also proves that the advantages of ASIC and fully anti-ASIC are still in the verification stage. I think it is a good thing to make the ecology develop healthily. Relative centralization is not a big problem.

▌Author: Brother Future (G Gengche)