Books are generally a poor medium for emerging technologies. The book industry operates at a glacial pace compared to most emerging technologies. By the time a book is published, the contents are invariably dated and the technology has probably already emerged. Nonetheless, here are a few books, or book-like publications, that cover the Lightning Network.
Here are notes and links to recommended sessions from the first global lightning network conference held in Berlin October 19-20 2019. About 500 people attended. Here’s a review of the conference from Bitcoin Magazine.
Day One October 19 Main Stage Video, 8 hours. Day Two October 20 Main Stage Video, 8 hours. Much more digestible single-session versions, ~20-40 minutes each.
Here are some specific sessions recommended for executives and managers.
Some interesting conference statistics from @fulmolightning:
No word on whether there will be a 2020 conference. Follow @flashstarts or @lnconf for updates.
Bolt-a-Thon Virtual Lightning Conference, 3-day online hackathon, December 6-8 2019. Here’s the YouTube Channel with recordings of many of the sessions. The first Bolt-A-Thon conference was held in April 2019. There are none currently scheduled for 2020.
Recommended sessions. Listed below are the top three hackathon winners with their timecodes. Though somewhat technical, they do provide an interesting range of possible lightning projects.
Litreon – 4:18; Lightning Search Ads – 17:11; SatsHunter – 1:04:23
Podcasts are one of the best educational sources for information about the lightning network. there is something about podcasting and lightning that go particularly well together.
While we have previously covered some video content from online courses, conferences, and websites generally this section features a short curated selection of educational videos intended to quickly explain the lightning network. Watch them all over lunch and you will be a lightning network corporate champion by afternoon.
Lightning Network Explained, 12:24, April 2019. Very clear explanations and lovely hand-drawn graphics. Uses our favorite bar tab analogy as the underlying metaphor. Includes an explanation of the concept of streaming money. Highly recommended.
Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, Simply Explained! 5:33, Dec 2017. Basic clear simple explanation. Note: current implementations generally abstract open/closing channel complexity.
What is the Lightning Network?, 7:17, Nov 2018, Nate Martin, 99 Bitcoins. Good for why people are excited about lightning.
What is Lightning Network and how does it work?, 1:54, April 2018, Coindesk. The best explanation of the concept of payment channels.
Earn Bitcoin with Lightning Network Routing fees, Feb 2019, 8:25, Rene Pickhardt. Watch this if you want more on the topic of lightning network routing fees. The activity and fee data are outdated but the concepts are still relevant.
Bitcoin Q&A: Misconceptions about Lightning Network, 22:42, Feb 2018, Andreas Antonopoulos. Clears up some common misconceptions about the lightning network.
There are not yet many online courses strictly focused on the lightning network. But here are a few Bitcoin courses that we recommend that provide an excellent background for understanding lightning.
Payment Channels and Lightning Network, MIT, 2018, Lectures 13 and 14, Tadge Dryja (leading expert). Great graduate-level lectures. Part of a very good bitcoin course entitled Cryptocurrency Engineering and Design. Very technical (It is a graduate-level MIT course), but interesting and relevant. Really shows the deep complexity lurking behind the Lightning Network.
Blockchain and Bitcoin Fundamentals, Udemy, $11.00. 3 hours of video instruction and a nice pdf glossary.
Introduction to Digital Currencies, University of Nicosia, Andreas Antonopoulos, MOOC on Moodle platform, Self-study with live weekly lecture/Q&A Thursdays 10-11 EST. 12 weeks, weekly quizzes and exam, superb integrated bibliography. Great practical exercises. Week 5 covers the Lightning Network. Certificate program (on a blockchain). Available as part of an MSc in Digital Currency. MOOC 13 started Jan 20, 2020.
Lightning Network 101, iCEX. A text-based short course covering basics, some basic use cases, hands-on, and 10 question quiz.
Lighting Network Explained, Bitdegree.org. Aug 2019, 3,000-word summary. A good high-level overview of how LN addresses the limitations of Bitcoin. NOT really a course
Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies, Coursera/Princeton, 18-hour, 11-week course. 2015. Four lecturers. Very well produced course. Great motivational details and google calendar integration. Early sections are quite technical but necessary. Dated but highly recommended. Videos are also available on YouTube.
