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title: An Appeal For Review For "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line"

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# An Appeal For Review For "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line"
## Blockchain Commons Intern Group

### Christian Second Draft
Dear Bitcoin Experts,

On July 23, 2020, Christopher Allen wrote an email to this list requesting reviews of and support for "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line", a complete guide to learning how to use and interact with bitcoin through code and its RPC interface:

https://github.com/BlockchainCommons/Learning-Bitcoin-from-the-Command-Line

As he mentioned, the course has seen a lot of success, getting over 1200 stars and 300 forks on Github. We, the intern group at Blockchain Commons, would like to reiterate Christopher's request to review this course, so that it can be advanced to a second edition. All of us have completed this course and many of us have made contributions to it as well. We all believe the course is an invaluable resource to both those looking to advance their personal knowledge and those seeking a bitcoin-related job. We would greatly appreciate the talent of the bitcoin core community in reviewing chapters 1-15 as we plan to add more modules to the course in a second version.

Good technical learning resources for bitcoin are scattered and quickly become out of date. Our aim with "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line" is to provide a high-quality resource that falls between simplistic documents ("explainers", online guides, etc) and large tomes such as "Mastering Bitcoin". Its structure is such that it can either be read through like a textbook or used as a reference document. It is therefore useful for anyone, whether it is serving as an introduction to using bitcoin or as a "cheat sheet" for an already experienced user.

Learning Bitcoin From The Command Line is unique in its approach, focusing mainly on low-level interaction with bitcoin core via RPC and providing code examples in a variety of languages later on. This approach is intended to cultivate a practical working knowledge of bitcoin that anyone can master, allowing anyone to learn how to build with and on top of bitcoin. This strategy has already seen success, as many have already used the skills they learned from it to either become bitcoin core contributors themselves or to work full time with bitcoin. A course such as ours is essential to helping would-be bitcoin developers enter the space. 

However, the course finds its greatest strength in collaboration. It is an open-source effort, with contributions from both inside and outside of [Blockchain Commons](https://www.blockchaincommons.com/). In addition to our own efforts, we need the engagement of the wider bitcoin community to help us ensure we deliver an accurate and robust course. Your expertise can help to verify or even polish our teachings. Any review, PR, or issue is thus appreciated!

Please help us empower the next generation of bitcoin developers with [the best possible class](https://github.com/BlockchainCommons/Learning-Bitcoin-from-the-Command-Line)!

- The Blockchain Commons Intern Team

### ChristopherA's comments

include some links!

### Shannon's Edited Draft

Dear Bitcoin Experts,

On July 23, 2020, Christopher Allen wrote an email to this list requesting reviews of and support for "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line", a complete guide to learning how to use and interact with bitcoin through code and its RPC interface:

https://github.com/BlockchainCommons/Learning-Bitcoin-from-the-Command-Line

As he mentioned, the course has seen a lot of success, getting over 1200 stars and 300 forks on Github. We, the intern group at Blockchain Commons, would like to reiterate Christopher's request to review this course, so that it can be advanced to a second edition. All of us have completed this course and many of us have made contributions to it as well. We all believe the course is an invaluable resource to both those looking to advance their personal knowledge and those seeking a bitcoin-related job. We would greatly appreciate the talent of the bitcoin core community in reviewing it.

Good technical learning resources for bitcoin are scattered and quickly become out of date. Our aim with "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line" is to provide a high-quality resource that falls between simplistic documents ("explainers", online guides, etc) and large tomes such as "Mastering Bitcoin". Its structure is such that it can either be read through like a textbook or used as a reference document. It is therefore useful for anyone, whether it is serving as an introduction to using bitcoin or as a "cheat sheet" for an already experienced user.

Learning Bitcoin From The Command Line is unique in its approach, focusing mainly on low-level interaction with bitcoin core via RPC and providing code examples in a variety of languages later on. This approach is intended to cultivate a practical working knowledge of bitcoin that anyone can master, allowing anyone to learn how to build with and on top of bitcoin. This strategy has already seen success, as many have already used the skills they learned from it to either become bitcoin core contributors themselves or to work full time with bitcoin. A course such as ours is essential to helping would-be bitcoin developers enter the space. 

However, the course finds its greatest strength in collaboration. It is an open-source effort, with contributions from both inside and outside of [Blockchain Commons](https://www.blockchaincommons.com/). In addition to our own efforts, we need the engagement of the wider bitcoin community to help us ensure we deliver the best course possible. Your expertise can help to verify or even polish our teachings. Any review, PR, or issue is thus appreciated!

Please help us empower the next generation of bitcoin developers with [the best possible class](https://github.com/BlockchainCommons/Learning-Bitcoin-from-the-Command-Line)!


### Previous Draft
Dear Bitcoin Experts,

On July 23, 2020, Christopher Allen wrote an email to this list requesting reviews of and support for "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line", a complete guide to learning how to use and interact with bitcoin through code and its RPC interface. As he mentioned, the course has seen a lot of success, getting over 1200 stars and 300 forks on Github. We, the intern group at Blockchain Commons, would like to reiterate Christopher's request to review this course so that it can be advanced to version two. All of us have completed this course and many of us have made contributions to it as well. We all believe this course is an invaluable resource to both those looking to advance their personal knowledge and those looking for a job related to bitcoin. We would greatly appreciate the talent of the bitcoin core community in reviewing it.

Good technical learning resources for bitcoin are scattered and quickly become out of date. Our aim with "Learning Bitcoin From the Command Line" is to provide a high-quality resource that falls between simplistic documents ("explainers", online guides, etc) and large tomes such as "Mastering Bitcoin". Its structure is such that it can either be read through like a textbook or used as a reference document. It is therefore useful for anyone, whether it is serving as an introduction to using bitcoin or as a "cheat sheet" for an already experienced user.

Learning Bitcoin From The Command Line is unique in its approach - focussing mainly on low-level interaction with bitcoin core via RPC and providing code examples in a variety of languages later on. This approach is intended to cultivate a practical working knowledge of bitcoin that anyone can master, allowing anyone to learn how to build with and on top of bitcoin. This strategy has already seen success, as many have already used the skills they learned from it to either become bitcoin core contributors themselves or to work full time with bitcoin. A course such as ours is essential to helping would-be bitcoin developers enter the space. 

This course is the best way to quickly bring a newcomer up to speed on bitcoin and allow anyone to maintain their bitcoin knowledge from an easily accessible resource. The course finds its strength in collaboration. It is an open-source effort, with contributions from both inside and outside of Blockchain Commons. In addition to our efforts, we need the engagement of the wider bitcoin community to help us ensure we deliver the best course possible. Any review, PR, or issue is appreciated. Please help us empower the next generation of bitcoin developers with the best possible class!

### Key Points to Include
- Learning materials for bitcoin are scattered and can become out of date quickly
- Everyone needs an entry point to begin learning, and providing good quality resources is a primary focus for Blockchain Commons
- lBTCfcl falls between low-level documents ("explainers", "primers", etc) and large tomes (ie Mastering Bitcoin)
- Its structure makes it a valuable resource to those at all levels of bitcoin skill; it is easy to quickly interface with it to find the information one needs, whether to remind oneself of something or to learn it for the first time.
- lBTCfcl is a collaborative, open-source project that has contributors from inside and outside of Blockchain Commons
- lBTCfcl has a focus on learning how to interact with bitcoin at the lowest level - via the bitcoin-cli command line interface, and gives specific examples of how to interact with bitcoind from several programming languages later in the course
- The course has already been very successful, with 100 watches, 300 forks and 1200 stars on github
- This course was used as a prequesite to becoming a Blockchain Commons intern and has been immensely helpful in bringing everyone up to speed quickly, regardless of our previous knowledge level
- lBTCfcl has already led several people into getting jobs at bitcoin companies or becoming bitcoin core contributors
- lBTCfcl is an opportunity to bring both those new to tech and experienced developers into the bitcoin fold; cultivating an expanded community of people who know how to effectively interface with bitcoin and who will be empowered to create the next generation of software that is powered by bitcoin
- Many aspects of the course have been written or improved upon by Blockchain Commons interns, but we also need engagement from the bitcoin community at large to help use review and edit this course to make it as effective as possible
- We believe that lBTCfcl is one of the most effective ways to bootstrap one's bitcoin knowledge, but need the input of the bitcoin-core community to help us take this course to the next level. 
- Soon, version two of the course will be released and we are asking to hear your feedback on any aspects of the course.