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IOTA: Feeless Microtransactions for the Future

Beyond the Blockchain

By Kevin SouthgatePublished 4 years ago 3 min read
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It was around this time two years ago. I stood in the bus shelter, shivering from the cold Canadian winter. I smiled, staring at my phone, at my cryptocurrency portfolio. It was diverse, and it seemed like it was doubling every day. The growth was unbelievable. I dreamed of dropping out of school, pretty soon I would be a millionaire. I should probably see if any islands are for sale when I get home?

The market crashed. The bubble burst. My dreams were dashed.

I cut my losses and tried to salvage some of my initial investment. Liquidating most of my portfolio. There was one crypto I couldn't get rid of though. It was the first one I ever bought, and the only one I've kept all these years. There's something different about it.

IOTA, dubbed the next generation of distributed ledger technology.

The Tangle

The IOTA team saw fundamental flaws in the blockchain tech that is intertwined with almost every other cryptocurrency. Transaction times are slow, and there's a fee for every transaction. The Tangle solves both these issues. Each interaction in the network requires the user to perform verification of two previous transactions. This means the network is getting faster every second, and that there will never be any fees associated with using it.

6 Unique Features of IOTA

  • Highly Scalable - Increased network activity decreases transaction settlement times.
  • Low Resource Requirements - Designed for tiny devices, such as sensors, to participate.
  • Zero-Fee Transactions - Send 1 cent and receive 1 cent. Send $1,000,000 and receive $1,000,000.
  • Secure Data Transfer - All data is encoded, allowing secure data transfer, storage and reference.
  • Offline transactions - Devices never need perfect connectivity.
  • Quantum Immune - Using special signatures IOTA is resilient to the next generation of computing.

IOTA isn't perfect, but with all the features already, it seems like a pretty radical and revolutionary cryptocurrency.

One reason I trust IOTA, is that they're constantly expanding their team. Unlike many coins that consist of nothing more than a simplified white paper, IOTA is a vast network of people working full-time to create something they're passionate about. They have attended hundreds of events and are always communicating with interested individuals and organizations.

Trinity

IOTA is available to purchase on most major exchanges. The IOTA foundation also recently launched a very sleek wallet to safely secure any tokens you buy. It's called Trinity.

It's very simple to use, and you will only need to create a 81 Character randomly generated seed to access it at any time. Make sure you only use a trusted third-party site to generate it, and preferably do it offline. Anyone who has your seed could easily steal your tokens. IOTA tokens are generally traded as MIOTA on exchanges (1 IOTA = 1,000,000 MIOTA).

There is a set number of IOTA tokens in existence, and there will never be more created. Cryptocurrency is almost at an all-time low as of the end of 2019, but I have a feeling things may start to change soon.

Future

The IOTA Roadmap is constantly being updated with new projects and ideas. Some of these include Qubic, technology that will enable smart contracts, oracles, and outsourced computation on the Tangle. Another current project is the Hub, this will simplify listing IOTA more easily on exchanges. The IOTA foundation has perhaps one of the most complex roadmaps, simultaneously working on dozens of projects. It excites me that they have continued their frantic pace of development, regardless of token price. They are more interested in advancing technology than making a lot of money, solely to later abandon the project.

Warnings

Never invest more than you're willing to lose. Cryptocurrency is perhaps one of the most unpredictable investments you can make. Do extensive research from a wide variety of sources before investing. Do your best to fully understand any projects you support, and be vigilant for scams.

SOURCES

https://www.iota.org/

https://trinity.iota.org/

https://www.iota.org/research/roadmap

https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/iota/

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