Scrypt-based miners and the new cryptocurrency arms race

Scrypt-based miners and the new cryptocurrency arms race

Manufacturers are planning to ship scrypt-based equipment that will speed up mining and reduce the power overhead for the alternative cryptocurrency algorithm. Could this fuel the next cryptocurrency arms race? Most cryptocurrencies that are mined by computers use a 'proof of work' algorithm, designed to make them prove that they have invested the computing power in producing the coins. Bitcoin uses SHA-256, but many alternative coins (altcoins) use another system, called scrypt. One of the biggest differences between scrypt and SHA-256 is that the former relies heavily on computing....


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