what is POW?

[mafia]

Can someone explain to me what POW phase is? is it better to mine during the POW phase?

thanks!

[Chrithu]

POW stands for "Proof of Work".

It is the principle behind how mining Bitcoin work. Basically it means that in order to find blocks you proof that you have contributed hashing power to the network.

Another approach that some altcoins take is PoS or "Proof of Stake". Here basically your current wallet balance determines your chances of finding a block.

Simplified you could say that PoW rewards you for contributing more hashing power than others do, while PoS aims at rewarding you for using the network (buying the coin and making transactions) as well as contributing hashing power for prolonged periods of time (and thus building up a stake from the rewards for found blocks).

[mafia]

i see! thanks. I am mining a coin which has POW for 24 hours. so why would it only be 24 hours? what happens after?

[gragas]

Proof of work or means prisoner of war, in this case its proof of work.

[Mercator]

i see! thanks. I am mining a coin which has POW for 24 hours. so why would it only be 24 hours? what happens after?

A lot of the new alts have short emissions in the POW phase - then they move onto a POS stage which saves power and is perhaps nowadays the only way to overcome BTCs massive advantage in hashing power.

[KimNam]

i see! thanks. I am mining a coin which has POW for 24 hours. so why would it only be 24 hours? what happens after?

because dev of that coin just want it for 24 hours
after that? usually become POS coin, if that coin is POW + POS hybrid

[Kiloday]

PoW = Proof of Work

Miners compute hashes to solve blocks and get coins.

PoS = Proof of Stake

Your wallet balance determines your chances of solving a block and getting coins.

I'm not sure about how other PoW + PoS hybrids work, but Peercoin is an example of a coin that is initially PoW but gradually transitions to a PoS stage over time. In the beginning, coins are produced via traditional PoW mining just like the way Bitcoin is mined. Over time, PoS begins to overtake PoW until the majority of new coins are generated via PoS minting. Peercoin uses coin age which means that coins must be kept in a wallet for a certain length of time before proof of stake starts to take effect. Furthermore, PoS coins usually require you to keep your wallet running and unlocked in order to stake coins.

[BitCoinDream]

Can someone explain to me what POW phase is? is it better to mine during the POW phase?

thanks!

This question is already answered before. U might like to read this...

In short, Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Stake are criteria that determine your ability to add a block to the block chain. Their purpose is to ensure that the cost of adding an invalid transaction to the block chain is more than the benefit of the invalid transaction.

In PoW, the amount of work done by your mining hardware determines your chances of adding a block. In order to double spend you would need to expend a lot of computing power.

In PoS, the amount of coins you own determines your chances of adding a block. Double-spending damages the integrity of the currency, and doing it would threaten the value of the coins you own.

[mafia]

Thanks guys,  I understand now! Have a good weekend all!

[montello]

Even though i have not tested my mining skills yet being a newbie i have learned a lot from this.Thanks you Guys.

[abora]

Highly elaborating discuss i have gained a lot.

[melisande]

I appreciate this posting it really makes sense.Thanks.

[Gnarrrly]

Whats the point of POS when compared to POW? Its just all a big joke?

[dumbdragon]

I'm interested in knowing the advantages and disadvantages of both? Can anyone explain please?

[Wusolini]

I'm interested in knowing the advantages and disadvantages of both? Can anyone explain please?

Read this, https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=27787.0  it's quite interesting discussion.