What is cryptocurrency and data mining in the layman's terms?

[KralArthur]

I heard that our data etc are being processed online and that sites like those offering watching movies for free use mining in the background... What is and what is not mining in the layman's terms?

[WhiteSteve]

I’m still trying to figure it out. My dad, who is a retired career trader (more bonds than stocks), but he was fully immersed in that world with one of the major brokers, he recently read a book explaining the basics, and he still doesn’t really understand it. So that’s why I’ve never invested in it, going buy the principle of not investing your money in anything you don’t fully understand. Two of my buddies are even in the crypto game, one of them is a professional crypto analyst and something of an online personality, they’ve tried breaking it down for me, and I just do not understand it whatsoever lmao.

[Astarlessnightsky]

Crypto currency like bitcoin are like any currency, they got a value which you can exchange for goods, but they aren't bound by countries and the economy. So the value fluctuates a little bit more. And there is no bank involved, its just data.

Whenever a transaction with these currencies are done, there have to be several encrypting processes be done, this requires processing power, a pc doing the math so everything is safe and nothing gets. lost.
"Miners" do provide this procrssing power with their pcs and ger some coins as reward, like a tax.

[KralArthur]

Perfect explanation

[jshm2]

You're confused

Data processing/collecting, crypto mining and crypto trading are all very different things.

Data collecting/processing, is more about collecting/making information available from raw data, which can then be sold/leased. crypto mining is providing/leasing hardware to run the algorithms to mine certain cryptocurrency. Crypto trading is the market trading of that cryptocurrency.

[EssenceOfLight]

Data Mining means someone collects your data for the sake to sell it. Facebook, Twitter... etc.
Crypto Mining is calculation of hashes which are necessary for cryptocurrency transactions and those hashes are sold for a fee.