Introduction
Cryptocurrency is a digital medium of monetary exchange that uses encryption to transfer and verify funds. Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency for which a technology called Blockchain was invented. Although Blockchain has been the standard cryptocurrency technology for the past couple of years, issues such as speed and scalability have led to the development of other technologies.
Such a newcomer in this cryptocurrency arena is Tangle. In this article, we will shed more light upon the recent debate – Tangle vs Blockchain, and understand which is better.
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What is Blockchain?
Blockchain is a ledger of transactions that is secured using cryptography. It supports cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum. The ledger consists of transaction blocks, where each block is cryptographically linked together. Each block has a link to the preceding block, so this way the entire history of the ledger is maintained.
All the computers who take part in these transactions are called nodes. Each node has to authenticate a transaction independently. This means that a transaction can occur when both nodes verify it. This is what makes Blockchain highly secure.
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Some of these nodes are called Miners, who receive rewards for verifying transactions and marinating network integrity. Miners invest lots of money in application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) for obtaining more block rewards. This reward is a percentage of the transaction fees.
Moreover, Blockchain allows the creation of decentralized applications. These applications are under no one’s authority and give you complete control over your data.
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Advantages of Blockchain
Distributed storage
As the blockchain data is distributed over multiple systems on a network, there is no single point of failure. This means that if one node fails or shuts down, the data can still be retrieved from another node on the network. Furthermore, blockchain is resistant to malicious attacks and technical failures, making the storage even more powerful.
Security
Blockchain is a highly secure system where data cannot be modified or tampered without the consensus of both parties who created the transaction block. Moreover, every node that enters the blockchain is assigned a unique ID that is linked to the account. This ensures that the account owner is performing the transactions.
Using this ID, modifications performed by parties can be easily traced back.
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Processing
Unlike traditional financial systems, Blockchain processes data very fast.
Disadvantages of Blockchain
Scalability
The structure of the blockchain and as each node has to maintain an updated version of the ledger at times makes scalability a big issue. With the increasing number of transactions, the network becomes more restricted.
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Data modification
Data modification is very hectic in a blockchain as once written, it cannot be removed. So, if a person desires to remove some traces of a transaction from the blockchain, he will struggle to do so.
Security
Although very secure, blockchain can be compromised by the 51% attack. In this data cyber-attack, if the hacker is able to control 51% or more of the nodes, it will gain control over the entire network.
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What is Tangle?
Tangle is a technology that is used for cryptocurrency transactions like Blockchain. Here, a directed acyclic graph (DAG) is used, which resembles a distributed ledger. DAG is not under the control of any external authority such as a bank or any financial institution.
The best part is that Tangle supports IoT (Internet of Things). IoT is a network of connected devices that can interact and share information between them. This means that Tangle will be able to support massive transactions between various connected devices, which will be fast and seamless.
Advantages of Tangle
No miners
Tangle does not have miners, which means that no fees or rewards have to be given to miners. Miners also tend to block some transactions, which is also not possible here.
Scalability
Tangle is more scalable and fluid than Blockchain. The scalable data units of Tangle allow the technology to transfer training bits of data and process micro-transactions. The transactions are processed very fast in this technology.
Disadvantages of Tangle
- As the technology is still under development and testing, it is less reliable
- Less secure – The technology is vulnerable to cyber attacks
- No support for decentralized applications
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Tangle vs Blockchain: The Final verdict
We have understood the basics of the two cryptocurrency technologies to answer the debated question – “Tangle vs Blockchain – which is better?”. If you are new to the cryptocurrency scene, Blockchain is the best choice as it is tried and tested. The technology is far more secure than Tangle and supports decentralized applications. More companies and users rely on Blockchain for cryptocurrency transactions.
Tangle is still under development and has some vulnerabilities. The technology cannot be called entire decentralized as it uses a central coordinator node. This node verifies valid transactions, and this aspect does not make Tangle data completely autonomous. The node addition protocol is also not very detailed, which makes it less secure than Blockchain.
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Conclusion
So, in the battle of Tangle vs Blockchain, the clear winner is Blockchain. Although it has some scalability issues, its security and seamless transactions will always give it an edge over other competitors. Tangle is indeed an exciting technology, but it has a lot to catch up with.
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What data structure is required for Tangle technology?
Unlike the Blockchain structure, which consists of a series of blocks connected in a chain, the Tangle data structure consists of a group of data nodes that flows unidirectionally. Tangle supports the IoT (Internet of things) architecture whose primary components are clients, users of the network who send the transaction to nodes that have to be attached to Tangle; nodes are the connected devices that form the IoT network and are responsible for ensuring the integrity of Tangle. The Final IOTA structure is called the Tangle. All data is stored in transactions that cannot be altered after being attached to the Tangle.
What are the different use-cases of Blockchain technology?
There are numerous use-cases of blockchain technology. With every passing day, many industries and companies adopt blockchain technology and reap the benefits. The most popular use-case is banking and finance. Apart from cryptocurrency, the blockchain network facilitates several other financial services, such as money transfer, borrowing, lending of money, etc. Blockchain technology is increasingly used in the insurance, healthcare, and media sectors. Other than these, supply chain management, real estate, record management, to name a few, are some of the new industries using blockchain technology. Many big names like IBM and Microsoft have already been involved in Blockchain technology for a long time.
What programming languages are used in blockchain development?
The steep increase in blockchain technology among many industries has created many jobs and has fuelled the demand for various blockchain professionals such as Blockchain Developer, Blockchain Consultant, etc. Knowledge of programming is one of the main requirements of getting into blockchain development. Some of the most famous programming languages used by the developers are the common languages like C++, Python, Java, and Blockchain-specific programming languages like Solidity, Vyper, Simplicity. Being an expert in these programming languages can open up many new opportunities for those interested in the field.
