BTG was created as an alternative to Bitcoin which anyone could mine.
Bitcoin mining became centralized and inaccessible to most people because ASICs are expensive and controlled mostly by one company. Until now, BTG could not be mined with an ASIC, but could be mined with a simple GPU, because of the nature of the PoW algorithm: Equihash.
Bitmain recently began to sell a miner that can mine Equihash! The version of Equihash we used, called Equihash<200,9>, was not the best configuration for ASIC-Resistance. Another configuration, called Equihash<144,5>, requires 15x or 20x more memory, and will probably be cost-prohibitive to run on an ASIC until there is a new technological breakthrough.
We are Upgrading our Network to use Equihash<144,5> to stop ASICs before they can take over much of the mining hashpower. We call our version “Equihash-BTG.”
Our Network Upgrade is scheduled for block height 536200, which should come shortly after July 1.
Latest Bitcoin Gold Core Wallet (v0.15.1) download: https://bitcoingold.org/downloads/
Upgrade is accomplished via hardfork, which simply means that software upgrades for all full nodes and miners are mandatory. (No new coin will be created.)
This Upgrade also deploys an improved Difficulty Adjustment Algorithm for better response to large swings in hashpower. No changes are made to the coin supply or the rate of coin creation (miner rewards stay the same.) All coin economics remain the same as Bitcoin.
Upgrades are Mandatory. All partners, including Exchanges, Wallet Providers, Custodians, Pool Operators, and Miners must upgrade some part of their code. We are providing a testnet for our many Partners to make sure their software is updated and ready in time for the Upgrade.
We have already published new core wallet software and many related packages, and several new software miners are already available (and more are promised.)
Partners can find full details and guides here:
Technical spec and detailed guides: PoW hardfork network upgrade spec and guide · Issue #331 · BTCGPU/BTCGPU · GitHub
Countdown Timer: https://bitcoingold.org/bitcoin-gold-network-upgrade/
BTG Blockchain Explorer: https://explorer.bitcoingold.org
As always, our code is free and fully open-source.
Assistance
The development team is ready to assist our partners prepare for the hardfork. Please don’t hesitate to contact us:
Discord: https://discord.gg/HmVUU6S
Telegram: Telegram: Contact @BitcoinGoldHQ
Email: support at bitcoingold.org
List of Global/Language Channels
This important Upgrade will keep BTG ASIC-resistant and will improve our security against hashrate attacks. We’re working hard to assist our partners to make sure it goes smoothly for everyone.
Always moving forwards,
The Bitcoin Gold Organization
#1CPU1VOTE
Latest Bitcoin Gold Core Wallet (v0.15.1) download: https://bitcoingold.org/downloads/
Other useful resources on GitHub:
Mining Tools for Developers Bitcoin Gold Mining Tools · GitHub