Dash is based on bitcoin, therefore, it’s considered a fork of bitcoin. Since bitcoin is open source software, anyone with the skills and knowledge can make a copy of bitcoin and modify it to suit their needs – this is how Dash was created.
How Dash Works
Dash is designed to be secure in that the details of a transaction (sender, receiver, and amount) are not publicly available, fast – supporting instant transactions, and have very low transaction fees. Dash achieves privacy by using its Master Nodes whenever funds are transferred. The Master Nodes mix funds from other users based on standard denominations of 0.01 Dash, 0.1 Dash, and 10 Dash. The Master Node mixes and anonymizes funds without needing any input from the user transferring the funds – the process is automatic. The end result is an anonymized transaction which hides the details of the sender, receiver and the amount.
Dash supports InstantSend – a means to send finds with five confirmations within less than one second. InstantSend uses Dash Master Nodes to lock the inputs of transactions to prevent certain attacks like double spend. The system randomly selects ten master nodes every 2.5 minutes (the block time) which manage all InstantSend transactions. The Dash developers hope InstantSend will be used to instantly confirm transactions in the same way that centralized systems like Visa work.
Mining Dash
Among the changes Dash made to bitcoin is the mining algorithm. Dash can be mined yet the algorithm is called X11 and requires hardware and software that’s different from bitcoin mining hardware and software. Similar to bitcoin, mining Dash has become difficult over time such that using a regular computer is no longer profitable. Only ASIC, or Application Specific Integrated Circuit, hardware can be used to mine Dash. Currently a few manufacturers make ASIC hardware for mining Dash: Baikal Giant X10, Bitmain Antminer D3, iBelink DM11G, iBelink DM22G, Innosilicon A5, and the Pinidea DR-100 PRO.
In addition to the change in the mining algorithm, Dash is different in the way that it provides mining rewards to miners. Miners form part of the Dash network, the other part is something called Master Nodes. Master Nodes provide crucial services to the Dash network and they have the power to reject improperly formed blocks from the miners. As a result, Master Nodes receive partial funding from the proceeds of mining. The split is as follows: the miner gets 45% of the block reward, 45% goes to the Master Nodes, and 10% is reserved for the budget system (which is created by superblocks every month). Ultimately, the Master Node has the final say in whether a block mined by a miner is valid. As a result of the split in block reward, the mining reward for miners is lower for Dash than it is for bitcoin.
Dash Exchanges
Another way to get Dash is to buy it at an exchange – many exchanges are supported:
- bitfinex.com
- binance.com
- kraken.com
- hitbtc.com
- cryptopia.co.nz
- kucoin.com
Dash Wallets
You store Dash in a wallet – there are many options available incluing hardware, mobile, and desktop wallets.
For hardware wallets, the Ledger, Trezor and KeepKey are the three best on the market.
For mobile, wallets include Dash wallet, Jaxx, and Coinnomi
For desktop wallets, the core Dash wallet is the standard one, with third party wallets like Exodus and BitKan offering various features.
Conclusion
This article described Dash, how its different from bitcoin, dash mining, where to buy Dash, and discussed Dash wallets.