FairCoin activates the first 100% Cooperative Blockchain

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We are at a historical landmark: after two years of development and testing, Faircoin’s blockchain is ready to change its consensus algorithm from Proof of Stake (PoS) to Proof of Cooperation (PoC).

Have you ever asked yourself why bitcoin uses such a huge amount of electricity? And why it is controlled by a small amount of mining farms? The new version of Faircoin is the complete opposite in that sense: it barely needs energy to confirm transactions (nodes can work with minimalist hardware, such as Raspberry Pi3 and similar) or to guarantee the security of the system. In addition, the use and distribution of FairCoin are based on social justice and equality criteria.

Unlike other cryptocurrencies, Faircoin 2 doesn’t involve mining or minting systems, which are based on competition. Transaction blocks are generated by Cooperatively Validated Nodes (CVNs). These nodes cooperate to maintain the security of the network. This is why we call the system Proof of Cooperation.

Faircoin is becoming the essential digital currency for a totally decentralized payments system that uses the minimum possible amount of processing power. Faircoin is the currency of a system that is being accepted by more and more people. It’s the basis for FairCoop, FairMarket, FreedomCoop and also now for Bank of the Commons an alternative banking cooperative of which Faircoop is one of the founders.

Faircoin is the fundamental element of a system that facilitates currency transfers at very low or zero cost between continents, countries, users and also between ordinary bank accounts. In the Faircoin ecosystem, collective intelligence creates useful tools that people can share, including point of sale systems for merchants, prepaid cards, instant currency exchange, exchanges to euros via ATMs, payment of direct receipts and all the banking services that have until now been in the hands of an elite.

Micropayments are an important tool to meet the needs of people’s real economies and for its use in regions and societies where money is scarce. Faircoin’s high network efficiency, the relationship between trusted nodes, minimal energy costs and, consequently very low transaction fees make Faircoin one of the best currencies for micropayments.

On the 18th July 2017, the 53.193.831 Faircoin in circulation was transferred to a new blockchain. From that date on no more coins will be created. This way, being a finite good it is anticipated that its value in respect to other currencies will grow alongside the progressive extension of its use in the real economy. This will be a big incentive to the community of Faircoin users and allowing for a level of self-management that will allow us to become progressively empowered to face the capitalist system based on infinite growth and loss of people’s purchasing power, in a constant struggle for the distribution of resources in the hands of a few.

Faircoin is an open, horizontal self-organized currency. The community decides, based on a previously established consensus in the online economic strategies group, when and in what proportion a revaluation should be realized. It is a transparent process according to the current situation. So it is a completely stable currency, which cannot be devalued and is absolutely reliable for its community of users in personal or commercial transactions. Its algorithm is based on Proof of Cooperation and contributes to the distribution of wealth by preventing the richest from producing more and more coins and getting richer and richer. It is probably the most important technological innovation in the field of blockchain technologies since the creation of Bitcoin. This outstanding contribution doesn’t come from a company or group of people with private interests but from a social movement!

“We have been planning, developing and testing the cryptographic algorithm for two years. Now is the time to switch to a Proof-of-Cooperation system, which is the most stable and trustworthy concept ever seen in the world of Blockchain.”
Thomas König, Faircoin’s lead developer.

One-fifth of all circulating faircoin were bought by Enric Duran in 2014 and donated to FairCoop. With the value generated by cooperative activity and for the common good, today its value already exceeds one million euros, and remain in a communal wallet used for various FairCoop social funds, such as the commons fund or the global south fund. With FairCoop, an entire self-sustaining ecosystem for a fair economy is being built.

“With FairCoop, we are building a partnership based on cooperation and mutual support. In this way, FairCoin is showing itself to be a key tool, with which to interconnect globally and finance the transition. With the arrival of the “Proof of Cooperation”, the code stands at an equal level to our political vision “
Enric Durán, activist in cooperative ecosystems and alternative economies.

After the change to FairCoin2, it will be necessary to update all existing electronic wallets

The process for updating most FairCoin wallets is as simple as upgrading the application, except for Electrum where, after the new installation, you will need to introduce the seed of the previous wallet, which is what guarantees that coins can not be lost even when the device carrying the coins is destroyed.

  • For the Android native wallet: There will be an update in the Google Play Store.
  • For the Core wallet (MacOsX, Windows, Linux): the new version is downloaded, and the migration will be carried out following the steps indicated by the installer.
  • For the Electrum wallet (MacOsX, Windows, Linux, Android): install the new version and restore your wallet, using the seed you saved when installing the previous purse. The Android version of Electrum is a new development that launches alongside Faircoin 2 and that will facilitate its use, on mobile devices as well as on PCs.

We have enabled a special page, with links to download all types of wallet: https://download.faircoin.world

As anyone who uses an electronic wallet should know, it is important to keep a copy of it outside of the device on which it is installed. In the case of Electrum, when installing it you have to write down or carefully save the 12 words (seed) which are generated during installation. In this way, you can reinstall a wallet every time you want without losing the coins it contains.

If a user is not sure of having a backup of their Electrum wallet or does not have the seed of it they should not uninstall it. It is preferable that you first send the coins to another wallet (for example, an online wallet such as https://fairpay.fairtoearth.com/), then install the new one and, finally forward the desired faircoin from the online purse to your new Electrum wallet.

For more practical information: https://fair-coin.org/
https://github.com/faircoin/faircoin/wiki/FairCoin2-migration-FAQ

Concepts:

Blockchain: A database distributed across numerous servers that serves basically to record all the accounting data or movements of a cryptocurrency, so that, once data on a transaction has been published, it is impossible to modify.

Wallet: A program (currently available for several operating systems and also with online versions) that allows its users to save and manage digital coins (Faircoin in this case) very safely. You can view the balance, receive coins or send them to others who also have their own wallet.

POS: Point of Sale. It refers to software in charge of managing sales and stock keeping in stores.
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Proof-of-Stake(PoS): An algorithm used by some cryptocurrencies, by means of which the machines in charge to find blocks of transactions and to confirm them receive a reward which is directly proportional to the number of coins they already own. The greater the number of coins saved, the greater the reward.

Proof-of-Cooperation(PoC): The machines that are in charge of finding and validating the transactions do it in a rotating form and receive a small reward as a thanks for their cooperation and for the minimum amount of energy that they use.

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