Bitcoin Forum

I've been dealing with Bitcoin for a long time now - whether it was gambling (I know), exchanging, etc. - however, seeing as I'll be going off to study compsci at school soon, and with the constant debate over the future of Bitcoin, I'd like to reach a point of "expertise," where I can feel confident participating in technological discussions about btc. As a result, in addition to the fact that I've been trying to secure an internship with a Bitcoin startup this summer, I'd like to dedicate the remainder of my school year (and free time this summer outside of my internship) to educating myself about the technological mechanics of Bitcoin and the blockchain.

Life story aside, I'm looking for any and all educational materials on the subject - I've already accepted the fact that I'll need to explore a wide variety of sources - though if there really is an all-encompassing piece of material, I'll happily accept that too. Please also feel free to make suggestions for the best ways to go about learning all of this, be it a course, a textbook, etc.

I understand that there are those who have spent years on the subject, and I don't really expect to reach any level of significance in a period of months.

Criticism and off-topic responses are also accepted, lol.

I'd start with the whitepapers.  Get yourself a workstation, download the source code.  Learn to compile the source yourself.  Make some cosmetic changes, recompile.

Best way to learn is HANDS ON, IMO.

Thanks, will do. Not sure how or why I haven't read the whitepapers before - this is exactly the type of thing I was looking for.